Great Seal of Scotland

Obverse and reverse (with Coat of Arms) of the Great Seal of Elizabeth II

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The Great Seal of Scotland (Scottish Gaelic: Seala Mòr na h-Alba; also the Scottish Seal; formally the Seal appointed by the Treaty of Union to be kept and made use of in place of the Great Seal of Scotland) is a seal used by the first minister of Scotland to seal letters patent signed by the monarch giving royal assent to bills passed by the Scottish Parliament.

The Great Seal of Scotland is the principal national symbol of Scotland that allows the monarch to authorise official documents without having to sign each document individually. Wax is melted in a metal mould or matrix and impressed into a wax figure that is attached by cord or ribbon to documents that the monarch wishes to make official. The earliest seal impression, in the Treasury of Durham Cathedral, is believed to be the Great Seal of Duncan II and dates to 1094. During the reign of Mary I, the thistle was incorporated into the design of the Great Seal, segmenting the thistle's status as a national Scottish symbol.^[1]

The Privy Seal of Scotland is separate from that of the Great Seal of Scotland. The Privy Seal was the Scottish monarchs private or personal seal, with the earliest known Seal to have been used was during the reign of Alexander III. The Privy Seal of Scotland's last official record of usage was in 1898.^[2] The Privy Seal of Scotland and the associated office of Keeper of the Privy Seal of Scotland have never formally been abolished. The office of Keeper of the Privy Seal has been vacant since the death of Gavin Campbell, 1st Marquess of Breadalbane in 1922.

The National Records of Scotland are responsible for the physical sealing of letters patent, commissions, royal warrants and charters with the Great Seal of Scotland as well as holding the records of the Great Seal of Scotland.^[3] The earliest known records to be held by the Nations Records of Scotland date from 1315.^[4] The first minister of Scotland is the current keeper of the Great Seal of Scotland and it is considered as one of the highest honours of the office of the first minister.