A coiled snake appears beside Metallica’s logo on the cover of the 1991 album known as The Black Album.
The snake is derived from the Gadsden flag, an American historical flag associated with the motto “Don’t Tread on Me.” That motto also appears as the title of one of the album’s songs, creating a direct connection between the artwork and the track list.
On the original release, the band logo and snake were embossed so subtly that they were difficult to see against the black background. This restrained design helped inspire the album’s widely used nickname, The Black Album, even though the official title is Metallica.
The cover is sometimes discussed alongside Spinal Tap’s fictional black album artwork and Status Quo’s black Hello! cover. Metallica acknowledged those visual comparisons humorously, but the snake itself is specifically connected to the Gadsden flag.