The Great Seal of the United States was first used in 1782, linking its symbols to America250 history.
Congress approved the final design on June 20, 1782, after three committees and several years of proposals. The seal’s obverse features an American bald eagle holding an olive branch and thirteen arrows, while the reverse shows an unfinished pyramid and the Eye of Providence.
Many elements refer to the founding era. The thirteen arrows, thirteen stripes, and thirteen stars represent the original states, while MDCCLXXVI, or 1776, appears at the pyramid’s base. The Latin motto E pluribus unum means “Out of many, one.”
The seal is used to authenticate certain federal documents. Its reverse design has never been cut as a physical seal, but it appears on the back of the one-dollar bill, where the pyramid and Roman numerals are especially familiar.