New South Wales Flag
Both the State Flag of New South Wales and the Coat of Arms of New South Wales were adopted in 1876. The idiosyncratic use of the Southern Cross appear on the Cross of St George together with the Gold Lion of England. The Coat of Arms consists of a red St George’s Cross again, carrying the four pointed stars of the South Cross.
New South Wales MOTTO
The Motto for New South Wales is
Orta recens quam pura nites
Newly risen how brightly you shine
FLORAL EMBLEM
The floral emblem for New South Wales is the very unique native flower the Waratah (Telopea speciosissima). This flower was one of the first flowers described and drawn by English Botanist Sir James Smith. The Waratah is a huge flower and has a rather plastic appearance.
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ANIMAL EMBLEM
The Platypus is the state animal emblem for New South Wales. The Platypus is one of only three monotremes known in the world. A monotreme is an animal that gives birth to their young in eggs through the birth canal, which is also the waste canal.
The Platypus is very shy and is difficult to spot in little pools and ponds in the outback. When it was first taken back to the United Kingdom by Banks the botanist, it was considered to be a hoax. How could an animal be so misshapen, with a flat bill like a duck, a strong tail like a beaver and strong claws like a kangaroo?
BIRD EMBLEM
The New South Wales State bird is the Kookaburra. Nowhere in the world is a bird recognised by their call as much as the Kookaburra in Australia, and particularly New South Wales. This bird is often described as the Laughing Kookaburra. These birds are actually the largest kingfishers in the world, and come in beautiful plumage of whites and browns. These beautiful birds of prey live in forests throughout Australia. They usually mate for life and tend to stay in the one location for their whole life.
MARINE EMBLEM
The New South Wales Marine emblem is the Blue Groper. This fish belongs to the fish genus Achoerodus. They are differentiated by their bright blue colouring. These fish are by no means attractive and have sharp pegged teeth that give them a rather grotesque look.
COLOUR EMBLEM
SKY BLUE reflecting the beautiful skies of New South Wales.
GEM EMBLEM
The gem emblem for New South Wales is the beautiful Black Opal, which is only found in Australia. This stone usually has a dark body tone together with streaks of rainbow colours. Black Opals are mined in Lightning Ridge, in northern New South Wales. Many hundreds of millions of dollars of black opals have been found at the Ridge since New South Wales was settled. It was only adopted as the State Gem emblem in 2008.
