The Coat of Arms of the Kingdom of Hawai`i

The coat of arms of the Hawaiian Kingdom, bearing the motto, "Ua mau ke ea o ka `aina i ka pono,"* adorns each of the four major gateways into the `Iolani Palace grounds. First appearing during the reign of Queen Lili`uokalani, these bronze plaques were removed by the conspirators who overthrew the Kingdom in 1893 with United State military support. Sold at public auction, the plaques were retrieved after ninety years. Following exhaustive restoration of paintwork, they were reinstalled in 1983.

*Translated as: "The sovereignty of the land is perpetuated in righteousness," or "The life of the land is perpetuated in universal balance."

From a photograph by R. A. Young

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