A dam is pictured, which is a symbol of power generation at the reservoir Nam Ngum.

It was modified in August 1991 to deemphasize Communism as a reaction to the fall of the Soviet Union, at which time the red star and hammer and sickle were replaced with the national shrine at Pha That Luang.

A description of the coat of arms is specified in the Laotian constitution: The National Emblem of the Lao People's Democratic Republic is a circle depicting in the bottom part one-half of a cog wheel and red ribbon with inscriptions [of the words] "Lao People's Democratic Republic", and [flanked by] crescent-shaped stalks of fully ripened rice at both sides and red ribbons bearing the inscription "Peace, Independence, Democracy, Unity, Prosperity".

A picture of Pha That Luang Pagoda is located between the tips of the stalks of rice.

A road, a paddy field, a forest and a hydroelectric dam are depicted in the middle of the circle.