The coat of arms of Gabon

Gabon

Gabon , officially the Gabonese Republic is a state in west central Africa sharing borders with Equatorial Guinea to the northwest, Cameroon to the north, and with the Republic of the Congo curving around the east and south. The Gulf of Guinea, an arm of the Atlantic Ocean is to the west...

was designed by the Swiss

Switzerland

Switzerland name of one of the Swiss cantons. ; ; ; or ), in its full name the Swiss Confederation , is a federal republic consisting of 26 cantons, with Bern as the seat of the federal authorities. The country is situated in Western Europe,Or Central Europe depending on the definition....

 heraldist and vexillologist Louis Mühlemann, one of the founding members of the FIAV and also designer of the former coat of arms of Congo

Coat of arms of the Republic of the Congo

The coat of arms of the Republic of Congo has a shield with a rampant red lion holding a torch. The background color of the shield is yellow with a green wavy stripe in the middle. A golden crown sits above the shield. Two large African elephants support the shield...

. It has been in use since 15 July 1963.

The supporters of the symbol are panther

Leopard

The leopard , Panthera pardus, is a member of the Felidae family and the smallest of the four "big cats" in the genus Panthera, the other three being the tiger, lion, and jaguar. The leopard was once distributed across eastern and southern Asia and Africa, from Siberia to South Africa, but its...

s which symbolize the vigilance and courage of the president who protects the nation. The bezants (golden discs) in chief of the shield symbolize the mineral wealth of the country. The ship at the lower part represents Gabon

Gabon

Gabon , officially the Gabonese Republic is a state in west central Africa sharing borders with Equatorial Guinea to the northwest, Cameroon to the north, and with the Republic of the Congo curving around the east and south. The Gulf of Guinea, an arm of the Atlantic Ocean is to the west...

 moving towards a brighter future. The okoumé tree

Aucoumea klaineana

Aucoumea klaineana is a tree in the family Burseraceae, native to equatorial west Africa in Gabon, the Republic of the Congo, and Rio Muni. It is a medium-sized hardwood tree growing to 30-40 m tall, rarely larger, with a trunk 1-2.5 m diameter above the often large basal buttresses...

 at the top of the shield symbolizes the timber trade.

The coat of arms is unusual in having two ribbons with mottos in two different languages. The ribbon below the shield has a motto in French 'UNION, TRAVAIL, JUSTICE' ('Union, Work, Justice'). The second ribbon is placed beneath the branches of the okoumé tree

Aucoumea klaineana

Aucoumea klaineana is a tree in the family Burseraceae, native to equatorial west Africa in Gabon, the Republic of the Congo, and Rio Muni. It is a medium-sized hardwood tree growing to 30-40 m tall, rarely larger, with a trunk 1-2.5 m diameter above the often large basal buttresses...

and has a motto in Latin 'UNITI PROGREDIEMUR' ('We shall go forward united').