The Roman numerals MDCCLXXVI on the Great Seal of the United States represent the year 1776.
They appear at the base of the pyramid on the seal's reverse side. The date refers to the Declaration of Independence and the founding moment represented by the seal, rather than to the date when the seal itself was finalized.
The Great Seal was adopted in 1782 after several committees and design proposals. Its reverse includes the pyramid, the Eye of Providence, Annuit Coeptis, and Novus Ordo Seclorum. The seal's obverse shows an eagle carrying a shield, arrows, and an olive branch.
The numerals are sometimes mistaken for a date connected with the Constitution, which was drafted in 1787. The seal's 1776 inscription instead anchors the symbolism in the revolutionary founding of the United States.