Pendant. Gold filigree and pearls; 11 x 11,5 cm. Spain, circa 1670. Photo courtesy Deborah Elvira

A two part filigree structure in a bow shape, covered in pearls, with a cluster of bigger gems in the middle. This type of jewel, known in Spanish as corbatas were popular towards the end of the 17th century, set either with pearls or gemstones (see the portrait of María Luisa de Orléans, by Carreño de Miranda, in the Royal Monastery of Guadalupe ). However, examples like this are rare as such delicate work is so fragile that it has only survived in the treasuries of convents, where it was presented to the Virgin as a proof of devotion or as a dowry by the nuns joining the congregation.

Provenance: Private collection

Literature: Pearls, Beatriz Chadour - Sampson and Hubert Bari, V&A Publishing, London 2013. p. 79

Exhibitions: Pearls, Victoria and Albert Museum, London (September 2013 - January 2014)

Pendant with miniatures by Valerio Marucelli (1563 - 1626) The Virgin of the Santissima Annunziata and the Angel Gabriel. Gold, enamel, crystal, copper, vellum; 6,5 x 4,5 cm. Miniatures 3,1 x 2,4 cm. Florence, 1618. Photo courtesy Deborah Elvira.

The small images set in this pendant are copies of the heads of the Virgin and Angel Gabriel in the Annunciation fresco of the Santissima Annunziata church in Florence. The image had great fame due to some reported miracles and during the late 1500’s and the early 1600’s the Medici grand dukes of Tuscany promoted the cult of the miraculous fresco by sending replicas to relevant personalities across Italy and Europe. There is ample documentation concerning these gifts in the Medici correspondence and account books which belong to the Florence State archives. A great number of the replicas were painted by Alessandro Allori (1535 - 1607) and his son Cristofano Allori (1577-1621). Some scholars have attributed this pendant to Cristofano Allori but it is quite sure that the author is a lesser known Florentine artist, Valerio Marucelli, active in Florence in the last decades of the 1500’s and the first of the 1600’s. The archival sources refer to him as a copist in the service of the Medici family, specialized in miniatures of famous works of art: almost forty different miniatures painted by him are mentioned in the inventories and account books of the Galleria dei Lavori, the court’s workshops on the second floor of the gallery of the Uffizi and the registers of the Guardaroba, the department responsible for the administration of the grand duke’s possessions.
These miniatures can be identified with those described in an inventory of the Medici Guardaroba of November 8 1618, when they were delivered to Cosimo II. The description does not however include the size of the ovals so we are are forced to conclude that even if we are sure about the author, we have a margin of doubt about the identification of the miniatures in the inventory.

A full report on the research by Dr. Lisa Goldenberg - Stoppato is available for consultation.

Provenance: Private collection

Ring. Gold and amethyst. The bezel 1.7 x 1.7 cm. Spain, before 1724. Photo courtesy Deborah Elvira.

Recovered from the Spanish galleon Conde de Tolosa

In the early morning of August 25th 1724, hit by an hurricane, the Guadalupe and the Tolosa sank on the northern coast of La Española. Both ships were loaded with 400 tons of mercury, used to refine the silver from the mines of Potosí. They were known as the 'Quicksilver fleet' and their loss was a catastrophy for the Spanish crown: 600 lives were lost and a severe crisis in the silver production led to serious consequences in both continents. However, after an extraordinary ordeal, through rivers, cliffs and mangroves, about 40 survivers from the Tolosa and more that 500 from the Guadalupe were rescued in a huge operation that lasted till September 27th, nearly a month after the shipwreck.
The Tolosa was found in 1979 and after the identity of the ship was established with a thorough research in the Archivo de Indias, in 1994 a multidiscipline and international team launched the excavations on the site of the Guadalupe, setting the standard for modern day underwater archeology.

Provenance: Private collection

Literature: P.J. Borrell, Pérez Montás, Cruz Apestegui et al., Huracán, 1724, Fundación La Caixa, 1996; Tracey Bowden, Quest for Adventure, Miami, 2004, page no.?

Exhibitions: Madrid, CosmoCaixa, Huracán, 1724. Navegantes y náufragos de la ruta del mercurio, 1997-1999

A set of buttons and a jewel. Gold and crystal, some remains of enamel in the jewel. Jewel 4.6 x 3 cm. Buttons 1 x 1 cm. Spain, before 1641. Photo courtesy Deborah Elvira.

Recovered from the Spanish galleon Nuestra Señora de la Pura y Limpia Concepción.

On September 20th 1641 the Spanish galleon Nuestra Señora de la Pura y Limpia Concepción set sail from Havana, heavily armed as the Almiranta of the twenty-one-ship fleet of Nueva España, and loaded with one of the richest cargoes ever to embark from the New World. Eight days later, the fleet met a hurricane, was scattered and many ships sank. The Concepción survived the storm, only to run aground on the Abrojos reef, approximately 70 nautical miles north of the present - day Dominican Republic.
Repeated voyages to locate the wreck site were launched by the Spanish Crown in the following decades but it was found only in 1687 -with its treasures, by William Phips, a young sea captain from New England, with financial support of the English King James II.
In 1978 Burt Weber became the modern-day discoverer of the Concepción, after thorough research in the Archivo de Indias of Seville. It was a spectacular engineering feat, as the ship sank in a very dangerous reef maze. In 1993, Tracy Bowden and his companions received the rights to the Concepción site from the government of the Dominican Republic. In an amazing archeological adventure and with the support of National Geographic, the wreck was found in what is now known as the Silver Bank, in the Dominican Republic territorial waters. This set of jewels was found in an almost obliterated wooden chest, together with 3000 silver coins, a Ming jar and ambergris, and it was probably the personal possession of a lady passenger.

Literature: Tracey Bowden, Quest for Adventure, Miami, 2004, page??; Tracey Bowden, 'Gleaning Treasure from the Silver Bank', National Geographic, Vol. 190, no. 1, 1996, pp. 90-105; P.J. Borrell, Pérez Montás, Cruz Apestegui et al.,, Huracán, 1724, Fundación La Caixa, 1996, p.70

Exhibitions: Barcelona, Museo de la Ciencia, 1995-1997; Madrid, CosmoCaixa, 1997-1999; Louisville, The Frazier International History Museum, 15 May- 7 September 2010; Key West, The Mel Fisher Maritime Heritage Society, 1 December 2010-16 July 2012

A pair of shoe buckles. Gold and iron; 7 x 6,7 x 3 cm. Porto goldmark, 1784. Photo courtesy Deborah Elvira.

Necklace, Silver, pearls and diamonds. Chain 43 cm long, pendant 4,5 x 3 cm. The Netherlands, end of the 17th C. Photo courtesy Deborah Elvira.

Deborah Elvira (stand 267). TEFAF Maastricht. 2014 14-23 march - http://www.tefaf.com/