The USDA seal was created in 1895. It was adapted for use as a general identifier in 1980, but those usages were replaced with the USDA Logo in 1996. The seal has been withdrawn from use as a departmental identifier, though it is still used on legal materials and other internal uses.
The seal is defined as:
Two and three-eights inches in diameter (azure), a shock of corn (or), upon a base (vert) an American plough proper. All within a double annulet (argent), outer roped, inner beaded, charged with the inscription: UNITED STATES DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE, and at the base, a scroll bearing the legend: "1862.AGRICULTURE IS THE FOUNDATION OF MANUFACTURE AND COMMERCE. 1889." (or). A diapered background of 44 stars (argent) for the States of the Union.
The dates on the scroll represent the year the Department was founded by act of Congress (1862), and the year the Department was made an Executive Office headed by a Secretary of cabinet rank (1889). The 44 stars represent the states in the Union in 1889.
Public domain, though other legal restrictions apply.
USDA Symbols or logos are intended for the official use of the United States Department of Agriculture only. They are expressly excluded from use to imply endorsement of a commercial product or service. The symbol or logo may not be used by anyone outside of USDA without permission.[2]
Dette biletet er sett saman av eit flagg, eit våpen, eit sigill eller eit anna offisielt insignium. Bruken av slike symbol er avgrensa i fleire land. Desse restriksjonane er uavhengige av den opphavsrettslege statusen.
Public domainPublic domainfalsefalse
The copyright situation of this work is theoretically uncertain, because in the country of origin copyright lasts 70 years after the death of the author, and the date of the author's death is unknown. However, the date of creation of the work was over 120 years ago, and it is thus a reasonable assumption that the copyright has expired (see here for the community discussion). Do not use this template if the date of death of the author is known.
For å kunne lagres på Commons må verket både være offentlig eiendom i USA og i opphavslandet. Vernetiden kan i noen tilfeller være lengre enn 80 år i USA, så i tillegg til dette merket trengs det et eget merke som forklarer hvorfor verket er offentlig eiendom (public domain) i USA.
Note that a few countries have copyright terms longer than 70 years: Mexico has 100 years, Jamaica has 95 years, Colombia has 80 years, and Guatemala and Samoa have 75 years. This image may not be in the public domain in these countries, which moreover do not implement the rule of the shorter term. Honduras has a general copyright term of 75 years, but it does implement the rule of the shorter term. Copyright may extend on works created by French who died for France in World War II (more information), Russians who served in the Eastern Front of World War II (known as the Great Patriotic War in Russia) and posthumously rehabilitated victims of Soviet repressions (more information).
{{Information |Description=Seal of the United States Department of Agriculture. The USDA seal was created in 1895. It was adapted for use as a general identifier in 1980, but those usages were replaced with t