Seal of Maryland

Maryland State Seal

MDSealreverseAnnapolis.jpg

Reverse of state seal at the State House in Annapolis, Maryland

Reverse of state seal on door to the Capitol in Annapolis, Maryland; photo by Marc Tomik on Flickr (noncommercial use permitted with attribution / share alike).

Official State Seal of Maryland

Maryland is one of the few states in the United States (and in the world) that has a dual-sided official seal. All State Seals

Only the reverse side of the great seal of Maryland has ever been cut (and is the side used by the Governor and the Secretary of State to authenticate Acts of the General Assembly and for other official purposes).

The images displayed on the reverse side of the seal are a plowman, a fisherman, and a shield with Maryland's coat of arms. The Latin phrase encircling the seal ("Scuto bonæ voluntatis tuæ coronasti noss") translates as "With favor wilt thou compass us as with a shield." Maryland's state motto (appearing on a banner below the shield) is in Italian: "Fatti maschii, parole femine," which translates loosely as "Manly deeds, womanly words" (now more commonly expressed as "Strong deeds, gentle words").

The obverse of the great seal of Maryland shows Lord Baltimore as a knight in full armor mounted on a charger. The Latin inscription translates as "Cecilius, Absolute Lord of Maryland and Avalon, Baron of Baltimore."

Maryland

Images

Variation of the state seal (reverse) on the 2nd Maryland Infantry marker in Sharpsburg, MD (missing outer ring). Photo by Tom Dougherty on Flickr (noncommercial use permitted with attribution / share alike).

Sculpture of Maryland state seal

Obverse of Maryland state seal; image from Maryland State Archives (presented there for fair use in the public domain).

Obverse of Maryland seal

Obverse of state seal; State House entrance door in Annapolis, Maryland; photo by Bryan Costin on Flickr (noncommercial use permitted with attribution / share alike).

Obverse of state seal; State House entrance door in Annapolis

Reverse of Maryland's great seal (public domain image on Wikipedia). 

Seal of Maryland