The flag was first flown the day of independence, October 12, 1968, and it showed the national emblem in the center. However, in 1973, during the regime of Francisco Nguema, a different national emblem was used on the flag. Under Nguema's rule, the coat of arms consisted of several tools, a sword and a cockerel. The modified national motto Trabajo (work), and Unidad, Paz, Justicia (Unity, Peace, Justice) was written in two stripes. The original coat of arms was restored after Nguema was deposed on 21 August 1979. The arms consists of a silver shield with a silk-cotton tree, or Ceiba in the local language, which was derived from the arms of Rio Muni. Above the shield is an arc of 6 six-pointed yellow stars, that represent Rio Muni and the offshore islands. Beneath the shield is a silver scroll with the national motto, Unidad, Paz, Justicia ("Unity, Peace, Justice"). It is considered that under a silk-cotton tree a treaty was signed between Spain and a local ruler that marked the beginning of the colonial rule.
