The Great Seal of the State of Maryland is the official government emblem of the U.S. state of Maryland. Its official service is to authenticate acts by the General Assembly of Maryland (state legislature), but it is also used for display purposes at most state buildings. Although the state seal has been changed in design several times throughout history, the current model represents the reverse side of the original seal. The seal consists of two sides, a reverse and an obverse. In official contexts, only the reverse side is used. (Source: Wikipedia.org, CC BY-SA)