New Mexico Turquoise Plate
2016–presentNew Mexico · current · “Land of Enchantment”
Turquoise with a yellow serial and the Zia sun embossed at the centre in yellow and red. It began as the state's centennial plate in 2010, carrying CENTENNIAL 1912-2012, and was well enough liked to outlive the anniversary: this version drops the centennial legend, moves LAND OF ENCHANTMENT to the top and adds NEW MEXICO USA below the serial. One of three standard plates a driver may choose between. The plate shown is a reconstruction carrying an invented serial, so no real registration is depicted.
Still on the road
This is a current issue, first seen in 2016 and still being handed out. Nothing about it is settled history: the serial sequence is still advancing, and the design will only stop where the state decides to replace it.
Half stamped, half printed
Run a thumb across this plate and only the serial answers. The registration is still pressed into the metal the old way, while the state name, the slogan and any artwork are printed flat onto the reflective sheeting around it. Most plates issued in America today are made like this: the part that must be legible at speed and survive a decade of weather is stamped, and the part that carries the state's personality is printed, because printing can do colour and detail that a press cannot.
Sources
Reference photograph of an issued plate (CC BY-SA 4.0, DodgeCaravan17). Issue period, serial format, and the centennial plate this design continues (CC BY-SA).
- Issued
- Standard issue
- The plate you received by default when you registered a vehicle.
- Serial format
- AAA-999
- Material
- Embossed aluminium with reflective sheeting
- Source license
- CC BY-SA 4.0
- Reference
- View original