"There would have been no point or purpose in Washington's having a seal such as the Dorsett seal until he became President. Thus presumably it was cut after his inauguration in 1789. While he occupied that office it would have been a fitting symbol, as the President's seal is today. The transfer of the arrows, with their military significance, to the eagle's right talon would have been peculiarly appropriate for President Washington, who had previously won fame as Commander in Chief. "