5 CIA Challenge Coin Mottos That May Surprise You

Custom challenge coins, long a valued part of military life, have become popular among businesses, schools, nonprofits and civilian government agencies. The Central Intelligence Agency is no exception. If you’ve ever you’ve ever seen or received a CIA challenge coin, you know the coins reflect the various mottos, special projects, and intelligence initiatives the organization uses on a daily basis. 

While many of the agency’s projects are classified, and as such won’t ever be on a coin, with a little searching, you shouldn’t have any trouble finding a CIA coin on sale or display on the internet.

Given the nature of the organization and what it does, many of these coins may seem a little bit cryptic. Let’s take a look at the agency and a few slogans and mottos we’ve seen on CIA coins.

Origins of the CIA

The CIA owes its origins to World War II. During the war, the Joint Chiefs of Staff ordered the creation of a CIA predecessor agency, the Office of Strategic Services. The OSS was to coordinate espionage activities behind enemy lines for every branch of the U.S. military.

As the war progressed, U.S. leaders foresaw a need for ongoing agency to keep track of information and offer guidance on intelligence data from other countries. By 1947, Congress passed legislation that President Harry Truman signed, creating the Central Intelligence Agency. In the decades since, the agency has been involved in political intelligence operations all over the world.

The secretive world of covert operations is a risky business. A memorial wall inside CIA headquarters in Langley, Virginia contains 140 stars, each one a memorial to an agent who lost his or her life in the line of duty. An adjacent memorial book lists the name of 108 of them. Due to the nature of their work, the remaining 32 agents remain anonymous, even in death.

New agents are sworn in at a ceremony held in front of the memorial wall. It’s a somber reminder of the responsibility they’re taking on by joining the CIA.

CIA Challenge Coin Mottos

Let’s take a look at some of the best-known (or at least publicly known CIA mottos)

“The Work of a Nation. The Center of Intelligence.”

Let’s start with the official CIA motto. It reflects the core principles of the Central Intelligence Agency. These principles are reflected in the vision, found on the CIA website: “One Agency. One Community. An Agency unmatched in its core capabilities, functioning as one team, fully integrated into the Intelligence Community.”

The official CIA motto and vision reflect the agency’s place in the American political system as an intelligence-gathering service with America’s interests at its core. This is a fairly well-known motto. The CIA’s unofficial motto, however, is perhaps even more famous.

“And ye shall know the truth and the truth shall make you free.”

The CIA’s unofficial -- but very well-known -- motto is a quote from the Bible – John 8:32, to be specific. The verse features heavily in CIA memorabilia. You can even find it engraved on the wall at the original CIA headquarters in Langley, Virginia. 

The verse is an appropriate motto for the CIA, which expends plenty of time, resources and manpower to bring the truth to light. When the headquarters was undergoing construction in the 1950s and ‘60s, Director of Central Intelligence Allen Dulles insisted that the verse be engraved in stone on the wall of the original headquarters building. Since then, the verse has greeted CIA employees and visitors, and displays the ideals of the agency for the world to see.

“We accomplish what others cannot accomplish and go where others cannot go.”

This phrase effectively summarizes the CIA’s mission statement, and it is a common sight on CIA challenge coins. The phrase (along with the previous motto) highlights the CIA’s role in world politics and what it stands for as an agency.

The CIA handles sensitive missions and hazardous tasks that aren’t appropriate for civilians or the military. Agents do tasks that others are not able to do, in areas that are dangerous or closed off to most individuals. This statement certainly adds an aura of mystery and intrigue to the agency that many major Hollywood films or popular television shows attempt to capture.

“Nowhere to Hide”

A coin featuring this particular slogan was the topic of a fairly popular Reddit post several years ago. The phrase “Nowhere to Hide” emphasizes the reach and influence the CIA has around the world. The CIA is known for having spies embedded in many countries as well as using top-of-the-line surveillance technology, so there truly is nowhere to hide, no matter where you go. Of course, in a world of GPS tracking, smartphones and ubiquitous surveillance cameras, that’s true for most of us anyway.

“We Shall Reap What Ye Have Sown”

This one is definitely on the cryptic side, especially when paired with a Punisher skull in a jester hat, as seen on this CIA challenge coin from a Washington Post article. We interpret the phrase to mean something along the lines of no matter what you do or where you go, the CIA will find out. Regardless of what you “sow,” the CIA will “reap” it.

These are just a few examples of CIA challenge coins we found around the internet, but we’ve heard stories of even more coins out there. It’s no surprise that people tend to hold on to a CIA coin when they receive one, as they’re definitely difficult to come by.

Do you have a CIA challenge coin you’d like to share? Post it in the comments or on Facebook. We’d love to see!

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Want to find out more? Call us toll free at (855) 272-8451, or email us at [email protected]. We’ll be glad to answer any questions you might have about challenge coins. If you already have a design in mind, we’ll send you a free digital proof of your design once you fill out our no-obligation free quote form. You don’t have to be a spy to get the best in custom coins. Let us show you how fast and easy it can be to get them!