Imperial Seal of Japan
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The Imperial Seal of Japan is called 菊の御紋 Kiku No Gomon in Japanese, which, literally, means "Noble Symbol of Chrysanthemum" or "Imperial Seal of Chrysanthemum" .
The symbol is a yellow or orange chrysanthenum 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.
The Imperial Seal is used by members of the Japanese Imperial family. Under the Meiji constitution, no one was permitted to use the Imperial Seal except the Emperor of Japan, so each member of the Imperial family used a slightly modified version of the seal. Shinto shrines related to the Imperial family also use the relevant modified versions of the Imperial Seal as their seals, and some other Shinto shrines are not related to the Imperial family but are also permitted to use the chrysanthemum as a part of their seal.
As of 2005, there is no law that specifies what the National Seal of Japan is. As a custom, the Imperial Seal is treated as if it were the National Seal. It is on the cover of Japanese passports, for example. This is similar to the custom in certain other monarchies, such as the United Kingdom, in which the personal arms of the monarch are treated (to a greater or lesser extent) as the national arms of the country.
See also
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