Seal script (Chinese: 篆文; pinyin: zhuànwén) is an ancient style of Chinese calligraphy. It evolved organically out of the Zhōu dynasty script (see bronze script), arising in the Warring State of Qin. Seal script became standardized and adopted as the formal script for all of China in the Qin dynasty, and was still widely used for decorative engraving and seals (name chops, or signets) in the Han dynasty. Ever since, its predominant use has been in seals, hence the English name. The literal translation of its Chinese name 篆文 (zhuànwén) is decorative engraving script, because by the time this name was coined in the Han dynasty, its role had been reduced to decorational inscriptions rather than as the main script of the day.
See East Asian Calligraphy for examples of seal script compared to modern Chinese script.
Most people today cannot read the seal script, so it is generally not used outside the fields of seals and calligraphy.

...To a unified Small seal

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