Great Seal of the State of Maryland | |
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![]() The reverse of the seal of Maryland | |
Versions | |
![]() The obverse of the seal of Maryland | |
![]() The coat of arms of Maryland | |
![]() Obverse of the former state seal of Maryland used from 1794 to 1817. It was designed by Charles Willson Peale. | |
![]() State seal of Maryland from 1817 to 1854. | |
Armiger | State of Maryland |
Adopted | 1969 |
Use | To represent the government of the State of Maryland in official contexts and to authenticate certain official documents |
The Great Seal of the State of Maryland is the official government emblem of the U.S. state of Maryland. Its official service is to authenticate acts by the General Assembly of Maryland (state legislature), but it is also used for display purposes at most state buildings. Although the state seal has been changed in design several times throughout history, the current model represents the reverse side of the original seal.
The seal consists of two sides, a reverse and an obverse. In official contexts, only the reverse side is used.
The first seal of Maryland when it was an English colony was stolen in 1645 by Richard Ingle during a rebellion, but a similar one was sent as a replacement by Cecil Calvert, 2nd Baron Baltimore (1605-1675). This seal was used except for a period from 1692 to 1715 until a new one designed by Charles Willson Peale was adopted in 1794. That seal used republican imagery, such as a woman holding scales of justice on the obverse and on the reverse the motto "Industry the Means, Plenty the Result". [1]
In 1817 and 1854, symbols of the eagle were used along with a version of the original reverse on the 1854 version. The original Calvert seal was brought back into use in 1874 and 1876, [2] and has been refreshed through various modifications and corrections made to its design and meaning in 1959 and 1969.
Maryland has the distinction of having a dual-sided seal, rare among U.S. states and the world. The obverse side of the state seal, which was described by statute in 1959 (Chapter 396, Acts of 1959), shows Lord Baltimore as a knight in full armor mounted on a charger with a drawn sword in hand. The caparisons of the horse on which Lord Baltimore is mounted bear his family coat of arms. The inscription on the rim of the seal shows the phrase, Cecilius Absolutus Dominus Terræ Mariæ et Avaloniæ Baro de Baltimore, which translates to "Cecil, Absolute Lord of Maryland and Avalon, Baron of Baltimore" (Chapter 79, Acts of 1969; Sections 13-101 through 13-105 of the State Government Article of the Annotated Code of Maryland).
The reverse of the seal shows the Calvert arms, described as follows:
The supporters are a plowman (dexter) and a fisherman (sinister), the former holding a spade and the latter a fish; the mantling of ermine (reverse Gules) is entire and surrounds the whole composition. The crest is a crown with two pennants, the dexter Or and the sinister Sable. [3]
The state motto, Fatti maschii, parole femine (pronounced [ˈfattiˈmaskipaˈrɔːleˈfeːmine] ), has its origin in the archaic Italian. [N 1] It literally translates as "Deeds are males, words are females", [4] but Maryland's official translation has variously been "Deeds are manly, words are womanly" and "Manly deeds, womanly words." [5] The current official translation, "Strong deeds, gentle words," was established during the 2017 legislative session. [6] Maryland is the only state with a motto in Italian. The saying is the motto of the Calvert family (the Barons Baltimore), who first founded the Colony of Maryland. George Calvert, 1st Baron Baltimore (1579–1632), made it his family's motto in 1622 and it appears that the saying was well known in 17th-century England.
The Latin text encircling the seal, Scuto bonæ voluntatis tuæ coronasti nos, is from verse 12 of Psalm 5 from the Vulgate; it translates to "With favor Wilt Thou Compass Us as with a Shield" [7] The founding date of 1632 completes the circle.
Though the reverse side has been the only part of the seal to be cut and is the part that is primarily used on official government documents, the obverse side can be found displayed around the state, especially on state government buildings, including the Maryland State House in Annapolis.
The Great Seal is the seal of the United States of America. The phrase is used both for the impression device itself, which is kept by the United States secretary of state, and more generally for the impression it produces. The obverse of the Great Seal depicts the national coat of arms of the United States while the reverse features a truncated pyramid topped by an Eye of Providence. The year of the U.S. Declaration of Independence, 1776, is noted in Roman numerals at the base of the pyramid. The seal contains three Latin phrases: E Pluribus Unum, Annuit cœptis, and Novus ordo seclorum.
Cecil Calvert, 2nd Baron Baltimore was an English politician, peer and lawyer who was the first proprietor of Maryland. Born in Kent in 1605, he inherited the proprietorship after the death of his father, George Calvert, 1st Baron Baltimore, for whom it had been intended. Calvert proceeded to establish and manage the Province of Maryland as a proprietary colony for English Catholics from his English country house of Kiplin Hall in North Yorkshire.
Sic semper tyrannis is a Latin phrase meaning "thus always to tyrants". In contemporary parlance, it means tyrannical leaders will inevitably be overthrown. The phrase also suggests that bad but justified outcomes should, or eventually will, befall tyrants. It is the state motto of Virginia.
E pluribus unum – Latin for "Out of many, one" – is a traditional motto of the United States, appearing on the Great Seal along with Annuit cœptis and Novus ordo seclorum which appear on the reverse of the Great Seal; its inclusion on the seal was suggested by Pierre Eugene du Simitiere and approved in an act of the Congress of the Confederation in 1782. While its status as national motto was for many years unofficial, E pluribus unum was still considered the de facto motto of the United States from its early history. Eventually, the U.S. Congress passed an act in 1956, adopting "In God We Trust" as the official motto.
The obverse and reverse are the two flat faces of coins and some other two-sided objects, including paper money, flags, seals, medals, drawings, old master prints and other works of art, and printed fabrics. In this usage, obverse means the front face of the object and reverse means the back face. The obverse of a coin is commonly called heads, because it often depicts the head of a prominent person, and the reverse tails.
The flag of the State of Maryland is the official flag of the U.S. state of Maryland and the 17th-century heraldic banner of arms of Cecil, 2nd Baron Baltimore. It consists of the arms of his father George, 1st Baron Baltimore (1579–1632), quartered with those of his grandmother, heiress of the Crossland family. The flag was officially adopted by the Maryland General Assembly in 1904.
The United States one-dollar bill (US$1), sometimes referred to as a single, has been the lowest value denomination of United States paper currency since the discontinuation of U.S. fractional currency notes in 1876. An image of the first U.S. president (1789–1797), George Washington, based on the Athenaeum Portrait, a 1796 painting by Gilbert Stuart, is currently featured on the obverse, and the Great Seal of the United States is featured on the reverse. The one-dollar bill has the oldest overall design of all U.S. currency currently being produced. The reverse design of the present dollar debuted in 1935, and the obverse in 1963 when it was first issued as a Federal Reserve Note.
The Great Seal of the State of Hawaii was designated officially by Act 272 of the 1959 Territorial Legislature and is based on the territorial seal. Modifications to the territorial seal included the use of the words "State of Hawaii" at the top and "1959" within the circle. Provisions for a seal for the state of Hawaii were enacted by the Territorial Legislature and approved by Governor William F. Quinn on June 8, 1959. The passage of the Admission Act in 1959, admitted Hawaii as the 50th State of the United States of America on August 21, 1959.
The Seal of the Commonwealth of Virginia is the official seal of the Commonwealth of Virginia, a U.S. state. The state flag of Virginia consists of the obverse of the seal against a blue background. A state flag was first adopted at the beginning of the American Civil War in April 1861, readopted in 1912, and standardized by the General Assembly in February 1950. The standing allegorical female figure of virtue is shown having vanquished tyranny, symbolized by a fallen king at her feet. She has an exposed breast in the manner of classical depictions of Amazons, making this the only state flag in the U.S. depicting a form of toplessness. The motto Sic semper tyrannis means "Thus always to tyrants." The flag may be decorated with a white fringe along the fly edge; this is usually done when the flag is displayed indoors.
The Great Seal of the State of West Virginia was adopted in September 1863. The obverse center of the seal contains a boulder that has been inscribed June 20, 1863, the date West Virginia became a state. In front of the boulder lie two crossed rifles and a liberty cap as a symbol of the state's fight for liberty. The two men on either side of the boulder represent agriculture and industry. On the left stands a farmer with an ax and plow before a cornstalk. On the other side stands a miner with a pickaxe, and behind him an anvil and sledge hammer. The outer ring contains the text "State of West Virginia" and the state's motto "Montani Semper Liberi",. The reverse of the seal, also called the lesser seal, is the official seal of the governor. Its motto reads "Libertas E Fidelitate".
The coat of arms of Alabama depicts a shield upon which is carried the symbols of the five states which have at various times held sovereignty over a part or the whole of what is now Alabama. These are the ancient coat of arms of France, the ancient coat of arms of Crown of Castile for Spain, the modern Union Jack of the United Kingdom and the battle flag of the Confederate States. On an escutcheon of pretence is borne the shield of the United States. The crest of the coat represents a ship which brought the French colonists who established the first permanent European settlements in the territory. Below is the state motto: Audemus jura nostra defendere, meaning "We dare defend our rights."
The Seal of Baltimore is the official government emblem of the city of Baltimore, Maryland. The current City Seal was adopted for use in 1827, possibly inspired by a famous speech and toast made by sixth President John Quincy Adams (1767-1848) / [served 1825-1829], on a visit and tour in 1827, in which he dubbed the city with its most well-known nickname of "The Monumental City", with the recent erection of several monuments, including this for the War of 1812 and the new Washington Monument column, nearing completion in a wooded park, just north of the booming city.
The flag of the city of Baltimore features the "Battle Monument", which is also the central motif on the city's seal.
The Maryland Army National Guard is the United States Army component of the U.S. state of Maryland. It is headquartered at the old Fifth Regiment Armory at the intersection of North Howard Street, 29th Division Street, near Martin Luther King, Jr. Boulevard in Baltimore and has additional units assigned and quartered at several regional armories, bases/camps and other facilities across the state.
The Maryland Tercentenary half dollar was a commemorative fifty-cent piece issued by the United States Bureau of the Mint in 1934. It depicts Cecil Calvert, 2nd Baron Baltimore on the obverse and the Coat of Arms of Maryland on the reverse.
The Confederate Soldiers and Sailors Monument was a monument in Baltimore, Maryland, installed in 1903 and removed in 2017.
The Woman’s Literary Club of Baltimore (1890–1941) grew out of the tradition of women’s clubs that flourished in late nineteenth-century America. A number of literary societies founded throughout the country during this time provided women a chance to read and discuss literature in a supportive setting. These clubs originated to fill a void left by the limited educational opportunities for girls. The Women's Literary Club of Baltimore differed from the majority of women's clubs, however, in focusing on getting their work published. The group provided mutual support for one another, not just in their study of literature but to support each other’s efforts in pursuing literary careers. Over the course of its existence, hundreds of works by Club members were published in magazines, newspapers, and by major book publishers.
The Great Seal of Somerset County, Maryland, is the official county seal of Somerset County, Maryland, United States. The seal was created in 1666 but fell out of use in 1707 before being restored in 1957.
Crescite et multiplicamini is a Latin phrase meaning "increase and multiply" in English.