The "Beaver" at the top of the Seal is an emblem of the "Beaver Territory" as the Idaho Territory was designated by the early trappers of the Hudson Bay Company.
The ornamental inscription of "Energy-Peril-Success" is the motto of Boise City.
The "Miner" with his pick and shovel depicts the Gold Rush of 1862-1863 to the Boise Basin.
The "Military Officer" significantly indicates the first settlement to have been the military post, known as Fort Boise.
The "Mountainous Scene" with the rising sun in the background and the river, the trees (from which the City of Boise adopted its name - French word for "trees," "Les Bois") - and the cultivated field in the foreground suggests the awesome view beheld by the weary travelers on "The Oregon Trail" as they glimpsed upon the Boise Valley.
The "Medical" emblem is a symbol of the first doctors and medical missionaries assigned to the Fort Boise Military Post.
The "Shock of Wheat" is symbolic of "The Bread of Life" reaped from the verdant fields in the fertile and irrigated valley.
The "Horn of Plenty" typifies the fruition of the gold bullion derived from the rich gold deposits of the Boise Basin.
"1863" is the date of the first townsite, Boise City, occupying a strategic location between the Boise Valley farms and Boise Basin mines.