The International Association of Amateur Heralds

American Samoa uses a non-heraldic seal:



But it could be easily adapted to an armorial format by placing the fly whisk (of wisdom) and the staff (of authority) in saltire in chief and the kava bowl (of service) in base.

Arthur Radburn wrote:

Chris Green wrote:Indeed one might be forgiven for thinking that Tonga was once a colony of Switzerland!

Or of the International Red Cross. Apparently, the original Tongan flag, adopted in 1862, was white with a couped red cross. This was before the Red Cross was established. The Tongan flag was later changed to the present design after the RC flag had become internationally recognised.

I passed over the Red Cross as a colonial power on the grounds that it isn't a country. But, on reflection, the Knights Hospitaller once ruled Malta so why shouldn't the Red Cross (theoretically) rule Tonga?!

Before sending someone to Tonga on the fool's errand of claiming sovereignty on behalf of any foreign entity, you might want to carefully read up on and digest Captain Cook's visit and his hosts' intended dinner plans had he not made a fortunately early departure...

Or one might consider that given the chronology noted above, that Tonga would have a better claim to sovereignty over the Red Cross than vice-versa.

I'd wondered the origin of the Vesica Piscis shape of Guam's seal. The shape is that of the sling stones used by the native Chamorros, not a Vesica Piscis in this instance. Proof you can't assume you know what an otherwise common element represents.

JWHammontree wrote:I'd wondered the origin of the Vesica Piscis shape of Guam's seal. The shape is that of the sling stones used by the native Chamorros, not a Vesica Piscis in this instance. Proof you can't assume you know what an otherwise common element represents.

Thanks for that interesting piece of information.

This is the design in question. It was adopted on 4 July 1917, as part of the Guam flag, so it's coming up for its centenary quite soon :

Nouvelle Calédonie (New Caledonia) is a French Overseas Territory. It seems not to have arms, but rather an emblem:

Isla de Pascua (Easter Island) is Chilean. Like Nouvelle Calédonie it has no arms, but an emblem:

These emblems, while certainly not traditional Heraldry in the European sense, were the functional equivalent of arms - that is, distinctive visual identifiers - within the relevant, mostly non-European, local population.

I think an heraldic artist with a "minor" in Polynesian culture, biology and botany, or vice-versa (maybe NZ Pursuivant or someone in that mold) could render these emblems on a shield in a blazonable form...

East Timor/Timor-Leste had Portuguese arms during the last years of its colonial status:



The current arms are what one might describe as "revolutionary":

Tokelau is a dependent territory of New Zealand and lies north of Samoa. It has no coat of arms but a badge depicting a native "tuluma" (fisherman's tackle box).



The "General Fono" or parliament uses the same badge but ensigned with a Royal Crown:



The latter is a proper heraldic badge, having been granted by the College of Arms