Peruvian coat-of-arms

From its creation in 1825, versions of the national coat-of-arms were commissioned to be placed in different public buildings. But the oldest example we know of is this one, painted by Leandro Cortés in 1832 for the Lima Mint. It shows the national symbol as it was devised by the geographer José Gregorio Paredes and the painter and cartoonist Francisco Javier Cortés. The vicuña, the quinine tree, and the cornucopia or horn of plenty feature in the design, alluding —respectively— to the natural riches of the country across the animal, vegetable and mineral kingdoms. Although these components evoke the commercial potential of Peru, at the time they were not viewed in purely economic terms.