Annuit cœptis (/ˈænuɪtˈsɛptɪs/,Classical Latin:[ˈannʊ.ɪtˈkoe̯ptiːs]) is one of twomottos on the reverse side of theGreat Seal of the United States. The literal translation is "[He] favors (or "has favored") [our] undertakings", fromLatinannuo ("I approve, I favor"), andcoeptum ("commencement, undertaking"). Because of its context as a caption above theEye of Providence, the standard translations are "Providence favors our undertakings" and "Providence has favored our undertakings."[1]
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Barton explained that the motto alluded to theEye of Providence: "Deo favente which alludes to the Eye in the Arms, meant for the Eye of Providence."[2] In western art, God is traditionally represented by the Eye of Providence, which principally symbolizes God'somniscience.In 1782,Samuel Adams appointed a design artist,William Barton ofPhiladelphia, to bring a proposal for the national seal.[3] For the reverse, Barton suggested a 13-layered pyramid underneath theEye of Providence. The mottos which Barton chose to accompany the design wereDeo Favente ("with God's favor", or more literally, "with God favoring") andPerennis ("Everlasting"). The pyramid andPerennis motto had come from a $50Continental currency bill designed byFrancis Hopkinson.[4][a]
When designing the final version of the Great Seal,Charles Thomson (a former Latin teacher) kept the pyramid and eye for the reverse side but replaced the two mottos, usingAnnuit Cœptis instead ofDeo Favente andNovus ordo seclorum instead ofPerennis. When he provided his official explanation of the meaning of this motto, he wrote:
The pyramid signifies Strength and Duration: The Eye over it & the Motto allude to the many signal interpositions of providence in favour of the American cause.[5]
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Annuit Cœptis is translated by theU.S. State Department,[6] theU.S. Mint,[7] and theU.S. Treasury[8] as, "He [God] has favored our undertakings" (brackets in original). However, the original Latin does not explicitly state who (or what) is the subject of the sentence.[9]
A 2024 publication in the Associated Gospel Churches Journal explores the question as to whetherAnnuit Coeptis makes reference to God, examining the claim that the founders of the United States were deliberate to avoid references to God by choosing only secular mottos.[10]
According to Richard S. Patterson and Richardson Dougall,Annuit cœptis (meaning "He favours our undertakings") and the other motto on the reverse of the Great Seal,Novus ordo seclorum (meaning "new order of the ages"), can both be traced to lines by the Roman poetVirgil.[citation needed]Annuit cœptis comes from theAeneid, book IX, line 635, which reads,Iuppiter omnipotens, audacibus adnue coeptis.[11] It is a prayer byAscanius, the son of the hero of the story,Aeneas, which translates to, "Jupiter Almighty, favour [my] bold undertakings", just before slaying an enemy warrior, Numanus.
The same language also occurred in an earlier poem of Virgil, theGeorgics. In line I.40 of that work is the phrase "da facilem cursum atqueaudacibus annue cœptis." The line is addressed toCaesar Augustus and translates to "give [us] an easy path and nod at our audacious undertakings."[citation needed]
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