On 30 September 1949, at the first plenary session of the China Communist Party Central Committee, Mao Zedong was elected Chairman of the People’s Republic of China. He officially took office on 1 October 1949. The seal shown here was approved by the Central People’s Government and was used to provide proof of ratification of laws, decrees, policies, treaties and orders.
The square seal is cut with characters in Song script reading ‘Seal of the Central People’s Government of The People’s Republic of China’. It is engraved with the lines, ‘Seal No. 1, 1 November 1949, The Central People’s Government of the People’s Republic of China’. (Ji Ruxun)