Seal is a device with a design or lettering for impressing (stamping) on paper, wax, or metal. Seals are often attached to official and important documents to prove that they are trustworthy. Most countries in the world and many cities, states, provinces, important officials, and commercial enterprises have seals.
The matrix (mold) of a seal may be made of paper, metal, or gem. It may consist of two pieces, the baso (bottom) and alto (top). The matrix is used for stamping one design on paper. It can also be used to stamp different designs on the obverse (front) and the reverse (back) of wax or lead. In early times, kings and other officials wore signet rings. They pressed the design of the ring on hot wax to make a seal.
