The Coat of Arms

Protocol enquiries

Ph: + 61 7 3224 5921
Fax: + 61 7 3224 6502
protocol@premiers.qld.gov.au
Postal Address:
PO Box 15185
CITY EAST, QLD, 4002

The Queensland Coat of Arms, the oldest State Arms in Australia, was granted to the Colony of Queensland by Queen Victoria in 1893.

They were the first Arms assigned to a British colony since Charles II granted Jamaicaits Arms in 1661.

The Coat of Arms is a heraldic device, symbolising the Queen's constitutional authority in the State.

In line with economic trends in the nineteenth century, primary industries take pride of place on the Arms. Rural activities are represented by a sheaf of wheat, the heads of a bull and a ram, and by two stalks of sugar cane.

The importance of mining is indicated by a column of gold rising from a heap of quartz.

The State motto, Audax at Fidelis, means "Bold but Faithful."

The Coat of Arms was given a more modern rendering when the supporters, the red deer and the brolga, were assigned in 1977, the Queen's Silver Jubilee year.

The brolga is one of Queensland's most distinctive native birds. The red deer was introduced from the royal herds near London.

While the Queensland Government has a corporate logo, the Coat of Arms remains in use for formal, ceremonial, ministerial and parliamentary use. The Coat of Arms is not available for commercial use.

Queensland emblems

The Coat of Arms