History of the Seal of the State of Pennsylvania Symbols play an important role in all of our lives. One of the most significant symbols in the history of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania is the Great Seal. Though currently kept by the Secretary of the Commonwealth in the Department of State, the Great Seal has a rich and varied history all its own, dating from March 4, 1681, and the signing of the Charter of King Charles II of England to William Penn. From this date, the Great Seal has traversed over 300 years, numerous changes in appearance and use, and a revolution. The seal we have today is certainly not the same seal that existed in 1681; however, the idea of using a seal to legitimize all official documents originated in that year. Prior to the Revolutionary War, there were three types of seals in use in Pennsylvania. These were the Great Seal, the Lesser Seal and the Seal at Arms. The Provincial Great Seal was composed of the arms of the Penn family (a shield crossed horizontally by a fess or band, bearing three torteux or biscuit, and the motto, "Mercy, Justice") with the shield and motto surrounded by the words, "William Penn, Proprietor and Governor of Pennsylvania." The counterseal displayed three radiating ears of Indian corn within a circumferential band bearing the words: "Truth, Peace, Love, Plenty," surrounded by another band of olive branches. The Lesser Seal was exactly the same as the Great Seal, only reduced, and having no counterseal. Very little is known about the Seal at Arms. It appears to have varied from administration to administration according to the fancy of the governor. The Great Seal has not always been in the Possession of the Secretary of the Commonwealth and was never held by the Provincial Secretary. Prior to 1776, there was an office called, "Keeper of the Great Seal." This office originated on October 27, 1683, and was first held by Thomas Lloyd. The first mention of the Great Seal is contained in the Constitution of 1776. Section sixteen of that document provided for a seal of the General Assembly to be affixed to all bills as soon as they were enacted, and used for no other purpose. The seal was given the title "seal of the laws of Pennsylvania." Section twenty-one provided for a state seal, to be used on all commissions, under the authority of the freemen of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, and kept by the Supreme Executive Council. Neither of these seals were the Great Seal; though together they fulfilled all of the duties of the current seal. The Great Seal was given official recognition in 1790. Although the constitution of the same year contained no provision for a state seal, Article 6, Section 4, recognized its existence and the first bill passed under the new constitution itemized its uses. `Be it enacted therefore...Great Seal, lately in custody of the Supreme Executive Council, is hereby constituted the State Seal, and shall be affixed to all patents, proclamations, and other public rolls, commissions and papers of state, which require the Great Seal of the Commonwealth, and to which the same has heretofore been usually applied.' The Great Seal did not remain in the possession of the Supreme Executive Council for very long after it was constituted. On March 12, 1791 a bill was passed enumerating the duties of the Secretary of the Commonwealth. Possession of the Great and Lesser Seals were contained in the first duty assigned to the secretary, along with the responsibility to, "affix them, respectively, to all public instruments to which the attestation of the governor's signature now is or shall hereafter be required by law." It was not until 1893 that the design for the Great Seal was stabilized. The symbols which make up the seal include an eagle, representing the State's sovereignty; a plow, standing for generosity and devotion; and wheat, illustrating the abundance of harvests. The Great Seal continues to be kept in the office of the Secretary of the Commonwealth and authenticate official documents, as it has since 1791. Any seal found on anything but an official document is either not the Great Seal, or a misuse of the Seal. Reprinted from "A History of the Office of the Secretary of the Commonwealth and the Department of State and the Great Seal of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania." Published by the Pennsylvania Department of State, 1986. Reprinted from "PA History of the Office of the Secretary of the Commonwealth and the Department of State and the Great Seal of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania." Published by the Pennsylvania Department of State, 1986.