Coat of arms of the Cook Islands orators during traditional discourses, respectively symbolizing Christianity and the richness of Cook Islands' tradition, placed in saltire behind the shield. The coat of arms was designed by Papa Motu Kora, a mataiapo, a traditional chiefly title from the village of Matavera in Rarotonga. Coat of arms of the Cook Islands The coat of arms of the Cook Islands has a shield as its focal point. The shield is blue with fifteen white stars arranged in a circle, as found on the national flag, and is supported by a flying fish ("maroro") and a white tern ("kakaia"). The helmet is an
Flag of the Turks and Caicos Islands had been proposed, which retained the Union flag but which was defaced with a white crescent and three stars against a blue background. The crescent would be emblematic of the name of the islands (Turks, referring to the flag of what were then the Safavid Empire or Ottoman Empire) and the three stars would refer to Grand Turk, Salt Cay and the Caicos Group. This alternative was proposed by Melfort Campbell, who was the Council President of the islands from 1869 to 1872 as a simplification, due to the difficulty and expense of emblazoning the coat of arms of the