With the Declaration of Independence sent to King George, the new Commonwealth of Virgina was born. A committee, including Richard Henry Lee, George Mason, George Wythe, and Robert Carter Nicolas, was tasked with creating its seal. To distance from British influence, Mason and his team opted for a Roman classical design. It featured Virtus, the goddess of virtue and peace, standing triumphantly over tyranny, represented by the British crown. Her spear points downwards, and she holds a sheathed parazonium, symbolizing her completed mission. The chosen motto, "Sic semper tyrannis," translates to "Thus always to tyrants" and is famously exclaimed by Brutus as he killed Julius Caesar.