That’s the official state seal of Virginia. A few people don’t like it, for the expected prudish reasons, including the Attorney General for the state of Virginia.
Attorney General Ken Cuccinelli apparently isn’t fond of wardrobe malfunctions, even when Virginia’s state seal is involved.
The seal depicts the Roman goddess Virtus, or virtue, wearing a blue tunic draped over one shoulder, her left breast exposed. But on the new lapel pins Cuccinelli recently handed out to his staff, Virtus’ bosom is covered by an armored breastplate.
When the new design came up at a staff meeting, workers in attendance said Cuccinelli joked that it converts a risqué image into a PG one.
The epidemic of young men publicly masturbating to the display of the state seal must be a real problem in Virginia, requiring such action. Or perhaps it’s just that prevert Cuccinelli who feels a disturbing flutter below the belt whenever he sees a 200+ year old icon. Or maybe he’s acting to prevent earthquakes.
There is a poll, but it looks like Virginians already see Cuccinelli as a bit of a nut.
It’s the right call
6%It’s a bad idea
89%No opinion
5%
WTH!!! I suppose next he will have a search for any underclothed statues in Virginia parks and museums and toss a sheet over them.
One of the Bush attorney generals did that to a statue of Justice or someone in one of the federal buildings.
I’m not seeing the point of this even for way out there religious kooks.
PZ, why would you stomp a poll that actually has this below it:
“Disclaimer: This is an unscientific sampling of users.”
I think this is the first online poll that actually acknowledges its own failings.
I would have some actual respect for him if he wanted to replace that HAT she is wearing. What is that? A blue lunch sack?
Next he’ll be claiming the state seal causes earthquakes.
This says a lot more about Cuccinelli than state seals or statues.
Usually these guys are way in the closet about something weird. FSM knows what Cuccinelli’s kinks are. Probably spends a lot of time bug eyed at naked cows or something.
Don’t tell the AG, but she is probably giving her submissive partner quite a show as she is unlikely to be sporting any underwear!
Armored pantaloons in the next design, Ken?
I am glad I was not drinking a soda when I read that.
I’m surprised he didn’t say anything about how she is grabbing the SHAFT of that spear.
Perhaps some intrepid entrepreneur can market alternate lapel pins that have had breast augmentation?
Just FYI: the correct plural form is “attorneys general”. “Attorney” is the noun, while “general” is the modifying adjective.
The reason for this is that, like many legal terms in the English-speaking world, it comes originally from medieval Norman French, in which the noun preceded the adjective. Hence the noun precedes the adjective in many legal terms: “courts martial”, “fee simple”, “fee tail”, “corporation sole” and so on.
“lapel pins Cuccinelli recently handed out to his staff”
They said “staff”. Heh, heh.
“Virtus’ bosom is covered by an armored breastplate”
Make war, not love, I guess.
If Mr Cuccinelli is so worried about outbreaks of immorality he might want to do something about the chap lying under Virtus’ foot copping a peek up her skirt.
@7: It would have made a sticky mess of my laptop.
They knew he was a nut when they elected him… I’ll bet he’ll push for replacing the state seal with something celebrating Virginia’s Confederate heritage.
And they’ve got to get the “Virgin” out of “Virginia”. The whole seal is just indecent, now that I look at it in this new light.
Nah, I think it would take a Roman GOD to do that for him. Somehow I think he’s unlikely to be a rare exception to the rule that Republican homophobes are all closet cases.
Well, I would make some kind of comment about how superior I feel because I’m from Colorado instead of Virginia, but I come from a town that did this: http://www.the-two-malcontents.com/2008/10/statue-of-goddess-kept-under-wraps-at-joe-biden-rally-in-pueblo/
I gotcher state seal right here.
@#17, ron, do we really need a state seal with religious connotations?
And the part of the seal they find most offensive is the nipple, not the lady with the sword standing on the corpse of the man she presumably stabbed to death, of course.
Now, my question is, what the heck are those other 6% of the poll thinking?!
That was going to be my point. Hey, let’s have a dead person on our state seal!
Reminds me of one of our villages in the state that has a seal depicting a wrestling match between a settler and a native American, which had been part of a set of friendly “let’s celebrate the end of hostilities and all get along” compact. However, the way it was depicted was to have the white guy with his hands around the native American’s throat. Enough people didn’t see the problem that it got adopted, and every time it comes up it doesn’t get changed. Supposedly the hands are now on the shoulders rather than around the neck, but it doesn’t really look any different. Picture and history here. Yeah.
It’s the right call
4% (53 votes)
It’s a bad idea
93% (1382 votes)
No opinion
3% (52 votes)
Total votes: 1487
Call that offensive? Look at this old French Delacroix banknote. That’s what I call tits!
Unfortunately someone stole my copy a couple of days ago.
Damn, if only our 100 had a pair like that (with the rumors about Ben Franklin that I’ve heard, it would even be half-appropriate).
A possible upside to having this nutter focus on something so trivial is that he may have less time to do some real damage.
“The epidemic of young men publicly masturbating to the display of the state seal must be a real problem in Virginia, requiring such action. Or perhaps it’s just that prevert Cuccinelli who feels a disturbing flutter below the belt whenever he sees a 200+ year old icon.”
I think he would have the same issue if the seal showed a Roman god with his penis exposed. That doesn’t mean he is aroused by the picture, or that anyone else is for that matter.
I think it’s silly, but I wouldn’t call him a “prevert” (as opposed to a postvert?) because of it. That’s unjustified and unfair. I expect better of you, P.Z. Your blog has degenerated into constant character assassination. It’s the majority of what I see from you nowadays, and it’s disappointing.
For crap’s sake, it’s a fucking nipple*. I have them, you have them, my cats have millions of them, it’s not that big of a deal.
It’s the curse of being a mammal, I guess.
*Not even a really real one!
Has there been an earthquake problem in Virginia?
Demulceo? SIC SEMPER MAMMA!
Of course it should be covered up, because as we all know the founding fathers were all devout Christians and never would have stood for such a prurient display.
The great seal of New York has two ladies on it, but no exposed nips.
I am off to start a letter writing campaign to AG Andrew Cuomo to have this oversight correct post haste!
“. I expect better of you, P.Z. Your blog has degenerated into constant character assassination. It’s the majority of what I see from you nowadays, and it’s disappointing.”
Translation: WAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAH PEOPLE AREN’T PAYING ATTENTION TO ME! WAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAH
The phrase “Sic semper tyrannis” is better known as the most famous line spoken in Ford’s Theater, by an actor uncredited in the program who had just taken performance art to a whole new level (pity he rather botched his exit).
Given the way his fellow teabaggers regard that other president from Illinois, maybe Cuccinelli should produce a dog-whistle version of the Virginia state seal with John Wilkes Booth wearing the armored bra, Abraham Lincoln lying supine, and a top hat fallen to the side.
In a related story, the Bangor Daily News wants to know if you think it’s acceptable for women to appear topless in public.
Are there really people who are unaware of the etymology of “prevert”? Huh, kids today.
He’s just trying to protect against earthquakes.
Okay, I just tried masturbating to the seal and I have found it to be impossible even with the BDSM angle.
Maybe if it was an upskirt shot.
Cheers to the first maniac to successfully bust a nut to the Great Seal of Virginia! You, whoever you may be, are even sicker than I. Congratulations!
My college seal recently changed to something more modern from the old version, which was a square with a goblet (of truth or knowledge or something) inside. Think a curved triangle shape at the top, narrowing to the stem going down from about the halfway point. In one of those visual tricks, it either looked like a dark goblet on a light background, or the business area of a mawashi, to the point that someone at one point punched in a belly button in the appropriate location at the top on the official campus welcome sign. And of course once you see it that way, it cannot be unseen.
“I think you’re some kind of deviated prevert, and I think General Ripper found out about your preversion and that you were organizing some kind of mutiny of preverts. Now move!”
— Col. “Bat” Guano
So it’s already 89% a bad idea. The AG’s a prude, certainly, but the poll does highlight a curious phenomenon: nudity in art is acceptable if the art is old enough. In another two hundred years, maybe those Jane’s Addiction album covers will be uncensored.
“WAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAH PEOPLE AREN’T PAYING ATTENTION TO ME! WAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAH”
If I wanted attention, I would be using cruise control like you.
What is she holding in her left hand? Did she actually stab the tyrant, or perform a different kind of surgery?
#3 That’s not a hat, it’s a Greek helmet, an attribute of Athena.
#19 It’s a metaphor. The motto reads: Thus always tyrrany (see the crown?). Tyranny is always defeated by courage/right.
That’s a breast?
I guess I can kinda see it. Looks a bit saggy to me.
I would think that a Roman Goddess’ breasts would be much perkier…
ecpaulsen @3:
That’s a Corinthian helmet, worn high on the head so you can actually see Virtus’ face. Compare this ancient Greek bust of Athena wearing her helmet in the same fashion.
Damn! Most of the good comments have already been taken. I intended on writing something witty earlier but was too busy masturbating to the hot picture of that seal.
“I think he would have the same issue if the seal showed a Roman god with his penis exposed. That doesn’t mean he is aroused by the picture, or that anyone else is for that matter.”
Then what’s the problem?
“Then what’s the problem?”
The problem is that this Ken Cuccinelli person obviously did something very silly, but that doesn’t make him a pervert.
@cogent46 #14:
Ia… Ia! IA! IA!
That’s a marvellous idea!
Actually, sexualizing (I may be making up words as I go along) an image that is by no means sexual is pretty perverted.
Just for once, the motto of the order of the garter seems relevant: “Honi soit qui mal y pense” – shame upon he who thinks ill of it. (And the story behind it even contains a wardrobe malfunction.)
“The problem is that this Ken Cuccinelli person obviously did something very silly, but that doesn’t make him a pervert.”
I meant what’s the problem that Cuccinelli has with the seal if no one is getting aroused by it?
Maine has a much more civilized approach to topless women:
http://digitalcuttlefish.blogspot.com/2010/05/topless-maine.html
“There is a poll, but it looks like Virginians already see Cuccinelli as a bit of a nut.”
Yes, we do see him as a nut. *sigh*
@jidashdee
…Thanks for reporting the results of your research?
Anyway, there are much bigger problems with that symbol than the breast. The anatomy overall, especially on the legs, could use a lot of work. Also: the color scheme! Who conceived of something so ugly?
Also this.
Another example of a veri-literal interpretation of a symbol, figure or ideal, something that fundamental religious people of our day and age have a hard time with since they commonly misinterpret metaphors as literal truths.
Virtue’s breast is naked because she is a ‘nourishing’ figure; an exposed breast symbolizes an idea of nurturing. (and generally all Roman female genii ‘give birth to’ and ‘nurture’ society with their ideal in some way). Blocking her nourishment with a breastplate is symbolically tantamount to suggesting virtue has no place in Virginia.
I suppose we all knew this, but Mr. Cuccinelli only furthers our perception.
@49: Ia! Ia! Cthulhu fhtagn!
Isn’t that the motto of Massachussetts?
I never actually understood why this iconography keeps showing up. The conversation before hand was something like “We’re going into battle, quick, pull out your boob!”?
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Seal_of_virginia
In May 1776 the Virginia colony declared its independence from Great Britain. On July 1, 1776, a committee of four was appointed to make a proper seal for the Commonwealth of Virginia. The four men were Richard Henry Lee, George Mason, George Wythe, and Robert Carter Nicholas. Four days later the committee’s report for a design of the seal was read, and George Mason presented it to the Virginia government. It was voted on and approved that same day. It is not known for certain which members of the committee were chiefly responsible for the design of the seal, but it is generally believed to be principally the work of George Wythe.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/In_God_We_Trust
A law was passed by the 84th United States Congress (Public Law 84-851) and approved by the President on July 30, 1956. President Dwight D. Eisenhower approved a joint resolution declaring In God We Trust the national motto of the United States.[3] The same Congress had required, in the previous year, that the words appear on all currency, as a Cold War measure: “In these days when imperialistic and materialistic Communism seeks to attack and destroy freedom, it is proper” to “remind all of us of this self-evident truth” that “as long as this country trusts in God, it will prevail.”[12]
one was approved in 1776, one was approved in 1956. Take a wild guess which one is claimed to be a sacred piece of tradition stretching back to our founders and which is considered a tacky symbol that can be altered whenever we wish.
PS: if you want to guess right try to follow #26’s approach and don’t let the slightest bit of logic affect your answer.
@#17, ron, do we really need a state seal with religious connotations?
Heh. Just to complicate things: That’s a female monk seal. If you enlarge the shot, you can tell by the four (brace yourself) nipples around her genital slit.
You might also notice she’s got scars from cookie-cutter shark bites, but I’ll leave that parable to peter out on its own.
Hey, let’s have a dead person on our state seal!
But Carlie, we’re all going to be dead persons someday, whereas nipples are so rare that, um, well never mind.
We’re going into battle, quick, pull out your boob!”?
Frees the sword arm; I guess Virtue is left-handed.
I thought Virgina was for lovers, not sexless prudes.
“I meant what’s the problem that Cuccinelli has with the seal if no one is getting aroused by it?”
Because many in our society take issue with people’s bodies being exposed. They might not get aroused, but they will think it’s inappropriate. I think it was dumb of him, but, like I said, that doesn’t make him a bad person.
They think it’s inappropriate because they think it’s sexual. There’s no other reason to be offended by a nipple. They see human nakedness as lewd and indecent because they cannot ever get their minds out of the gutter.
#55 Wholly Cymbal
Superb link!
(For those who don’t know, the background scene for “New South Wales” is part of the 7 Sisters – chalk cliffs to the West of Beachy Head in S England. Archetypal English coastal scenery.)
Just thought you’d like to know …
[Ed. sigh!]
Why is it, in America nipples are considered more dangerous than guns?
Obviously Boobquake has been around for a long, long time.
The tyrant wears imperial purple. Virtue wears faithful* blue.
*the most likely symbolism here, though I’m speculating
Oh my god, not breasts! Say it isn’t so…
Sure. The goddess Virtue is as offensive as a stick figure chalk drawing labeled Mohammed at the U. of Illinois.
Now, tell me again. What is the difference between Moslem and Xian religious fanatics?
There isn’t any. They just go fruitbat crazy for slightly different but essentially trivial reasons.
you know what else is balls? the fact that I had to look up sic semper tyrannis (no, not THAT part of the fact) AND, when I found the entry on wikipedia, the page was adorned with the same seal…but the picture had been modified!
NO NIPPLE
omg. they even censored the wikipedia page already!
false alarm. my bad. turns out my computer was censoring the image when shrunk for the screen. comprehension fail at 11pm.
still, bloody stupid issue those blokes have. I remember shaking my head mystified about the whole janet jackson boob thing. at least that was a real boob (well, I assume it’s real…)
I’m kind of surprised that he missed out on the fact that it’s a Roman goddess and thus in violation of the first (and second!) commandment.
Does this also violate the first amendment? Or do dead religions get a pass, given that its hard to endorse something no one believes in anymore?
Why not?
A couple of the more recent ones have said “not scientific” in one way or another. That doesn’t stop them from thinking the results are meaningful.
Does anyone know how to say “Nipples Always to Tyrants” in Latin?
I’m going to make my own Facebook event. You thought Boobquake was a laugh? How about we send Ken pics of nipples?
Sic Semper Tyrannis!
Just for once, the motto of the order of the garter seems relevant: “Honi soit qui mal y pense” – shame upon he who thinks ill of it. (And the story behind it even contains a wardrobe malfunction.) – dnebdal
Hence the alternative translation, courtesy of Messrs. Sellar and Yeatman: “Honey, your silk stocking’s hanging down.”
Yea, though I drive through a valley in the Bible Belt,
I will fear no evil: For Virtus art with me;
Her boob and her shaft, they comfort me.
Thou preparest an areola before me in the presence of charlatan theocrats;
Thou annointest my coffee with milk; My dizzle is completely shnizzle.
RAmen
Gee, maybe she should wear a burkha…?
So… when people say that having “In God We Trust” on US currency is a violation of the 1st Amendment, that’s just plain unamerican! But if a state emblem shows a breast, well, we better change that!!!
Maybe they should get rid of the Latin as well, since these morons also think English should be the only language spoken here.
*sigh*
alex.asolis.net:
You’re being on the silly side here. It’s utterly ridiculous to spend time and money on hiding a sac of fat with a nipple on it. A great many depictions of the old gods have various body bits showing. No one in particular seems to get upsetty over it.
Apparently, the Attorney General has nothing better to do than obsess over a simple line drawing of a breast, which elevates this to “more than silly”. People who do things like this tend to have some deep seated biases when it comes to sexuality.
Honestly, as has been pointed out, if this man is going to take issue with the state seal there are other things which would have stood out over a breast. What about there being a non-xtian god on it? Not just that, but a goddess. Oooh, scary pagan stuff. How about the blatant violence? If there was an issue about any of that, then there might have been a discussion in regard to changing the seal altogether. Instead, it’s OMGZ, a breast! With a nipple!!1!
This sort of “silliness” is symptom of deeper issues which have gone a long way to keeping the U.S. backwards.
I live in Virginia. Cuccinelli is, as always, an eejit.
I suggest we organize a great big protest with everyone wearing plastic breasts.
Papillae semper tyrannis
Screw that. I’m thinking of driving to Virginia just to walk around with my left boob hanging out. Anyone with me?
@OurDeadSelves: Don’t – you’ll be ruining Cuccinelli’s new disaster prevention plan – less boobs, fewer earthquakes.
I think it’s hilarious how someone with an Italian name seems terrified of tits; any Italians out there with an opinion on that?
Then again Cuccinelli’s armoring of Virtus puts Va on a slippery slope – in a few years the State Seal will have Optimus Prime with one foot on Megatron.
Admit it, you think that would be a totally rad state seal.
Done!
http://www.facebook.com/group.php?gid=118022548226484&ref=nf
Where are the zealots from Americans United for Separation of Church and State? The State Seal of Virginia is obviously government support for pagan Roman religion, celebrating one of that faith’s goddesses. This clearly violates the First Amendment and calls for a lawsuit.
The Seal also celebrates the feminist overthrow of the patriarchal state, as the goddess has thrown a man to the ground and in standing on his chest asserting, without apparent evidence, that he is a tyrant. Does Virginia intend to encourage such radical behavior in its women?
Left Coast Bernard
Doesn’t the Attorney General have anything useful to do like dealing with crime? Does the man have so much time on his hands that he can worry about something which has absolutely nothing to do with his job?
Seems to me that we ought to give some credit to the artist who over 200 years ago was behind this.
Obviously a great sense of humor, and well beyond his or her time.
This could be viewed as anticipating boob day, but in this case it didn’t cause an earthquake, but rather overthrew a tyrant. And she does it with equanimity, all the while wearing a blue lunch sack (@ecpaulsen :D). Very few people can pull such a thing off.
I think the nipple issue is just a sleight of hand to keep people from noticing the rest of it: her apparel has turned red (Republican) from blue (Democratic) and the dead guy is now looking up at the viewer (women aren’t able to kill men, or shouldn’t kill them?)
Speaking of Cuccinelli. He’s multilooning.
mxh @#13: Back in the Confederate Heritage days, they did not have sex.
btw, statues are somewhat hot, but real people are really hott!
wardrobe malfunction? it’s only a malfunction if it’s not meant to be worn that way.
This jerk should take a look at a 1917 US Quarter (Standing Liberty Quarter)…exposed nipples on US Coins. The horrors!!!!
tresmal, I love the word “multilooning.” And Cuccinelli and his ilk are, well, tres mal.
Even though I agree that it’s stilly to get uptight about nothing more than a boob, I have noticed that the world seems to think that all strong women that might have sharp objects in hand should be topless. If I’m waving something sharp around, I definitely want something between my boobs and that sharp object. It’s even worse with something like a bow. These things get in the way all the time.
Women are no more likely to want to put their boobs into harm’s way than any guy would with their testicles. How come all the statues of men with swords or guns don’t have them in crotchless pants??
Why hasn’t anyone mentioned the giant dildo she’s cradling in her left arm? Surely, that’s far more offensive than a boob.
What’s that you say? It’s some scrolls or something? Well then, as long as we’re interpreting things non-sexually, the boob is actually just some skin tight boob-colored armor. After all, no reasonable person would go into battle wearing just a robe.
Honestly, I was too afraid. She’s standing over a dead man, cradling two shafts. I thought best to let the female gender discuss that.
On a related topic, the boob quake got several minutes of time on “Wait Wait!! Don’t Tell Me!!” today on NPR.
Every little bit helps.
Ms. Crazy Pants:
Because such things didn’t exist then? A great many depictions of old gods a/o heroes have them in nothing but a short, skimpy tunic with nothing underneath. Those tunics were also one shoulder strapped, so the males had one breast, complete with nipple hanging out too.
My husband has a gorgeous – and huge – tattoo of Virtus standing on the tyrant that he adapted from an older version of the state seal. His family has lived in Virginia since at least the mid-nineteenth century, so he’s quite proud of his heritage.
And yes, one of her boobs is hanging out. He likes to poke it and say that he’s touching her boobs. *laughs*
It’s getting more and more and more embarrassing to be living in Virginia these days.
While we may all laugh at this, on a more serious note this Attorney General just served a subpoena to the University of Virgina for all records relating to Michael Mann’s work on the Medieval Warm Period.
Mr. Cuccinelli appears to be on a fishing expedition to find fraud.
I would think that rule #1 of battle is “don’t leave dangly sensitive bits out and exposed”.
Wait, that would be rule #2, given that 1 is about the bald old wrinkly men.
Okay, here’s the scenario. Virtue was strolling around, carrying her spear and scroll and airing her breast like Roman goddesses were wont to do when she stumbled across a Tyrant. What’s a goddess to do but smite the Tyrant? She didn’t have time to cover up her boob because when there’s smiting to be done then that comes first. She smites and the Tyrant falls down smitten. Just then an artist shows up and offers to record the scene for posterity. So she strikes a heroic pose over the Tyrant’s corpse. Her breast still needs airing so remains out. Picture is made. Later the picture is discovered by the Virginia Seal Selecting Committee and becomes adopted as the Virginia Seal.
Ah, it’s just like the good old days when Ashcroft was hiding all the boobs (administration members excepted) from the rotunda of the Justice Department.
I’ve always thought that Christians like this should go to the cradle of their faith and tour the Vatican. All the exposed tits ‘n dicks in the artwork there would kill ’em.
Pharyngulation of this poll has been indirectly noted on ThinkProgres.org:
http://thinkprogress.org/2010/05/01/cuccinelli-virginia-seal/
“An unscientific poll on the website of the Virginian-Pilot finds that 96 percent of the more than 4,000 people who have taken the survey think Cuccinelli’s decision was a “bad idea.””
Reminds me of that wine that was banned in Alabama. Cycles Gladiator. Because of a nude nymph flying behind a bicycle on the label. Oh that 19th Century pornographic artwork.
Kind of makes me wonder if they see the Statue of David as art or heresy.
And you were right. That makes the sketch funnier when you consider the conversation.
That makes perfect sense. It also is an unfortunate choice of symbolism.
More thoughts: I like the idea that a bare breast on a meaningful symbol is titillating and therefore offensive. It implies that there can be no dignity in the female form. I’d call it misogyny, but maybe that’s oversimplifying matters.
I hope so. Feminism would make more progress if anger over mistreatment would supercede fear of job loss, etc. Imagine if a woman who feels she is being underpaid and mistreated at work but is afraid to confront her boss because she thinks she may lose her job just said “Fuck it! I’m sick of this!” and stormed in demanding things be put right.
Imagine if all such women did this.
It’s harmless compared to the witch-hunt against Mann
Reminds me of a quote attributed to Jack Nicholson
“If you suck on a tit the movie gets an R rating. If you hack the tit off with an axe it will be PG.”
The truth in that statement says something about society which is fairly disturbing…
Virginia Seal with Burka!
Hey, he’s just doing his part to stop earthquakes and other natural disasters.
Someone mentioned the exposed breast as a symbol of nurturing, but I’m surprised that in 110 comments nobody noted that the exposed left breast is a symbol of honesty. Funny that a politician is covering it up. With armor.
@TheSciencePundit
It is legal in New Zealand for a woman to topless in public, for sex equality reasons. A local promoter of ‘Gentlemen’s nightclubs’ takes advantage by staging promos where various of his ‘attractions’ ride topless down ‘main street’ in Auckland on the back of motorbikes. It is titled, imaginatively as ‘boobs on bikes’. The council of old crusties has sought for a number of years ways around the law to ban it, without success.
Anyhow, my take on the seal is that the body part in question is revealed because if it were not the gender of the standing figure, a rather martial pose, would be ambiguous and tending towards male. Or maybe Mr Cuccinelli likes his Virginias sexually amorphous, we should be told.