It would seem appropriate at this juncture to ask whether there ever was an imperial chancellery under Gattinara that attempted to function not simply for the Holy Roman Empire but for the entire Habsburg monarchia. What constitutes evidence? Ordinances, although they can provide valuable information as to the intended, ideal organization of the chancellery, do not by themselves suffice to prove the existence of an imperial secretariat that embraced both the empire proper and all the dynastic lands. The use of a seal conveying the idea of just such a larger conception of empire certainly makes its reality more tangible. Here we need to remind ourselves that Gattinara had early devised just such a seal of empire universel. A further aid in trying to embody this elusive institution is the development of its personnel, together with the tasks performed and the ideas entertained by individual members of its staff. Another valuable type of evidence, only recently made available by the opening of the Gattinara family archive, is the series of tax receipts providing a breakdown of the emoluments derived from the individual territorial seals. Ultimately, the most satisfactory evidence can be provided by series of registers that chart the continuous activity and operation of the chancellery. In this last respect, however, the investigator is thwarted by the decimated condition of the Estado section at the archives of Simancas for this early period.