The Seal of the State of Minnesota

Image courtesy of Britannica Online

The state seal depicts a settler plowing his field with the Falls of St. Anthony and the setting sun in the background. A Native American is shown on horseback riding toward the settler. The state motto appears on a red ribbon superimposed on the picture itself. The date of the founding of the state, 1858, appears beneath the picture. This is the fourth version of the seal. The original version, drawn by Seth Eastman while Minnesota was still a territory, depicted a Native American galloping east, not west, into the setting sun. The Latin phrase "Quo sursum velo videre" ("I want to see what lies beyond") represented the pioneer heritage of Minnesota, but was unfortunately misspelled. When Minnesota became a state in 1858 the seal was corrected. The Native American was depicted galloping east and the Latin phrase was changed to the state motto "L'Etoile du Nord". When Minnesotans began questioning the depiction of Native Americans on the state seal in the 1960's the seal was changed again. The new seal depicted a white settler, not a Native American, galloping off into the sunset. In 1983 the fourth and current state seal was approved by the legislature. Several state trees (the Norway Pine) were added and the settler on horseback was replaced with a Native American on horseback galloping toward the farmer.

Sources:
Awesome Almanac Minnesota
Minnesota: State Name, Flag, Seal, Song, Bird, Flower, and Other Symbols