Description
Fideletas, or Loyalty, is illustrated for the first time on the Wyoming 25 Goldback Denomination as a good ol’ Wyoming ranch girl waiting for her groom to show up to their wedding. She is backdropped by the Grand Teton Mountains and the small log Episcopal Chapel of the Transfiguration, completed in 1925 and located in Grand Teton National Park. This depiction of Fideletas lends from the parable of the ten virgins from the Gospel of Matthew, and draws parallels between filling one’s lamp with oil in preparation for a highly anticipated event and actions taken because of loyalty. Part of being truly loyal to someone or something is being ready and prepared to act on its behalf when the correct moment presents itself. In the spirit of this type of loyalty, Fidelitas can be seen sitting on the wooden fence, dressed in simple wedding attire, wearing a bridal wreath, holding a lit oil lamp in one hand and a cruse of oil in the other, and accompanied by the inscription “Faithful to the End”.
She is accompanied by her faithful cattle dog which is laying at her feet next to a loaf of bread, a bottle of wine and a small bowl of salt that is spilling onto the earth. These three items have a deep christian meaning of loyalty both given to and received from Jesus Christ. Behind her is a cow representing plenty and blessings that are resultant of being a loyal person. In the foreground, wheat is growing, ready to be harvested and sifted from the tares, representing both the harvest of that which one’s loyal deeds will yield and that folks who are loyal will also be separated from those that are not.
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