Image: US-NARA-Seal

Description: Seal of the United States National Archives and Records Administration. The seal is described in 36 C.F.R. § 1200.2 as:

The seal is centered on a disc with a double-line border. The words NATIONAL ARCHIVES AND RECORDS ADMINISTRATION encircle the inside of the seal and the date 1985 is at the bottom center. A solid line rendition of a heraldic eagle displayed holding in its left talon 13 arrows, in its right talon a branch of olive, bearing on its breast a representation of the shield of the United States. Displayed above the eagle's head is a partially unrolled scroll inscribed with the words LITTERA SCRIPTA MANET one above the other.

The Latin phrase translates to "The written word lasts". It is often seen in the phrase Vox audita perit, littera scripta manet (The spoken word perishes, the written word remains), often but incorrectly attributed to Horace. The date 1985 is when the National Archives and Records Administration was created, which returned the National Archives regained to independent agency status (it was independent from 1934 to 1949, and part of GSA from 1949 to 1985).

NARA has two other seals nearly identical to this one; the center design is the same but the inscription and date are different. The first is the seal for the National Archives itself, with the inscription THE NATIONAL ARCHIVES OF THE UNITED STATES and a date of 1934. The second is for the Trust Fund Board, with an inscription of NATIONAL ARCHIVES TRUST FUND BOARD and a date of 1941. Examples of both can be seen in 36 C.F.R. § 1200.2.

According to 36 C.F.R. § 1200.4, the NARA seal is used for official agency documents, to authenticate copies of Federal records in NARA's temporary custody and copies of NARA operational records, and for agency informational purposes. The National Archives seal (dated 1934) is used to authenticate copies of documents in NARA's permanent legal custody.
Usage Terms: Public domain