The Imperial Seal of

Japan Japan ( ja, 日本, or , and formally , ''Nihonkoku'') is an island country in East Asia. It is situated in the northwest Pacific Ocean, and is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan, while extending from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north ...

or National Seal of Japan, also called the , or , is one of the

national seals National may refer to: Common uses * Nation or country ** Nationality – a ''national'' is a person who is subject to a nation, regardless of whether the person has full rights as a citizen Places in the United States * National, Maryland, c ...

and a crest ('' mon'') used by the

Emperor of Japan The Emperor of Japan is the monarch and the head of the Imperial House of Japan, Imperial Family of Japan. Under the Constitution of Japan, he is defined as the symbol of the Japanese state and the unity of the Japanese people, and his positio ...

and members of the

Imperial Family A royal family is the immediate family of King, kings/Queen regnant, queens, Emir, emirs/emiras, Sultan, sultans/Sultana (title), sultanas, or raja/rani and sometimes their extended family. The term imperial family appropriately describes the ...

. It is a contrast to the Paulownia Seal used by the Japanese government.

History

During the

Meiji period The is an era of Japanese history that extended from October 23, 1868 to July 30, 1912. The Meiji era was the first half of the Empire of Japan, when the Japanese people moved from being an isolated feudal society at risk of colonization ...

, no one was permitted to use the Imperial Seal except the

, who used a 16-petalled chrysanthemum with sixteen tips of another row of petals showing behind the first row. Therefore, each member of the Imperial family used a slightly modified version of the seal.

Shinto Shinto () is a religion from Japan. Classified as an East Asian religion by scholars of religion, its practitioners often regard it as Japan's indigenous religion and as a nature religion. Scholars sometimes call its practitioners ''Shintois ...

shrines either displayed the imperial seal or incorporated elements of the seal into their own tag. Earlier in Japanese history, when

Emperor Go-Daigo Emperor Go-Daigo (後醍醐天皇 ''Go-Daigo-tennō'') (26 November 1288 – 19 September 1339) was the 96th emperor of Japan, Imperial Household Agency (''Kunaichō'')後醍醐天皇 (96) retrieved 2013-8-28. according to the traditional order ...

, who tried to break the power of the shogunate in 1333, was exiled, he adopted the seventeen-petalled chrysanthemum in order to differentiate himself from the Northern Court's

Emperor Kōgon was the first of the Emperors of Northern Court during the Period of the Northern and Southern Courts in Japan. His reign spanned the years from 1331 through 1333. Genealogy Before his ascension to the Nanboku-chō throne, his personal name (h ...

, who kept the imperial 16-petalled ''mon''.

Description

The symbol is a yellow or orange

chrysanthemum Chrysanthemums (), sometimes called mums or chrysanths, are flowering plants of the genus ''Chrysanthemum'' in the family Asteraceae. They are native to East Asia and northeastern Europe. Most species originate from East Asia and the center ...

with black or red outlines and background. A central disc is surrounded by a front set of 16 petals. A rear set of 16 petals are half staggered in relation to the front set and are visible at the edges of the flower. An example of the chrysanthemum being used is in the badge for the

Order of the Chrysanthemum is Japan's highest order. The Grand Cordon of the Order was established in 1876 by Emperor Meiji of Japan; the Collar of the Order was added on 4 January 1888. Unlike its European counterparts, the order may be conferred posthumously. Apart f ...

. Other members of the

use a version with 14 single petals, while a form with 16 single petals is used for

Diet Diet may refer to: Food * Diet (nutrition), the sum of the food consumed by an organism or group * Dieting, the deliberate selection of food to control body weight or nutrient intake ** Diet food, foods that aid in creating a diet for weight loss ...

members' pins, orders,

passports A passport is an official travel document issued by a government that contains a person's identity. A person with a passport can travel to and from foreign countries more easily and access consular assistance. A passport certifies the personal ...

, and other items that carry or represent the authority of the Emperor. The Imperial Seal is also used on the standards of the Imperial Family.

Gallery

File:JapanpassportNew10y.PNG, Imperial seal emblazoned on the cover of a

Japanese passport are issued to Japanese citizens to facilitate international travel. As of 2022, with holders able to travel visa-free to 193 countries and territories, it has been ranked as the most powerful passport in the world. History The first travel docu ...

File:Imperial_Throne_Emperor_of_Japan.png, Imperial Throne of the Emperor of Japan File:Ikkyuji Tomb of Ikkyu2 DSCN1301 20101117.JPG, Emblazoned on the doors of a tomb in

Kyōtanabe, Kyoto is a city located in the southern part of Kyoto Prefecture, Japan. As of October 1, 2020 the city has an estimated population of 73,753 and a population density of 1,718 persons per km². The total area is 42.92 km². History Kyōtanabe wa ...

File:Imperial Seal of Japan.jpg, Bow of the battleship ''Mikasa'' File:Garter Banner of Emperor Emeritus Akihito.svg, Imperial Seal on an

Order of the Garter The Most Noble Order of the Garter is an order of chivalry founded by Edward III of England in 1348. It is the most senior order of knighthood in the British honours system, outranked in precedence only by the Victoria Cross and the George C ...

banner when the Emperor is a member of the Order File:Miyajima_stamp.JPG, Miyajima postage stamp (1939)

References

External links

* {{Coats of arms of Asia Japanese monarchy

National symbols of Japan Empire of Japan Japanese coats of arms Japanese heraldry

History

Description

Gallery

See also

References

External links