Written by the TreasureGuide for the exclusive use of treasurebeachesreport.BlogSpot.com.
Shown below are two parts of the same item found 25 years apart. The front part (on the right) was found 25 years ago, while the back (left) was recently found by the crew of the Booty.
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| Treasure Coast Finds. Photo source: Video from Orlando Sentinel link below. |
A truly great discovery was made this summer by a Treasure Coast salvage crew. In fact a lot of discoveries were made, but the one I want to focus on today isn't a gold coin or even a bunch of gold coins, but something more important.
25 years ago a very intricate gold hinged frame was found, or at least that is what they thought it was. This year, last month in fact, another very intricate piece of gold was found by the Schmitt family who operates the salvage vessel Booty. It appears that the new find is the back of the item that was found 25 years ago.
The item appeared to be a frame before, exciting enough by itself, but having the additional part, they now believe the item is not just a frame, but it could be a pyx. A pyx is a small, flat, clamshell type of container made of brass or other metals but lined with gold used in Catholic services.
In the Catholic church a pyx would be used to hold the Eucharistic Host. It would sometimes by carried in a fabric or leather pouch with cords and worn by a priest, deacon or minister of Holy Communion along with a monstrance. When not carried, it would be kept in the church tabernacle.
This pyx would have definitely been owned by someone important. It reminds me of the Pelican of Piety, which was also found on the Treasure Coast, and which I believe could be associated with the pyx. Certainly both are very impressive gold religious artifacts.
I've posted about the Pelican of Piety in this blog back in 2012, and Laura Strolia, researcher and author, sent me a couple of excellent articles on the Pelican which I posted.
You might want to go back and look at my 11/4/12 post, for example.
You can always use the search box on the main page of this blog to look for particular items or topics. Enter either "Laura Strolia" or "Pelican of Piety" as search terms. That should get you there.
Here are two links about the recent find of the back of the pyx. Cool video showing the discovery.
http://www.orlandosentinel.com/news/local/breakingnews/os-sanford-family-finds-sunken-treasure-20140729,0,1244901.story
http://www.wptv.com/news/region-st-lucie-county/fort-pierce/fort-pierce-booty-salvage-discovers-centuries-old-spanish-treasure-off-coast
Congratulations Booty!!
The low pressure area that I've been following for a few days is moving closer to the Lesser Antilles and now has a 60% chance of becoming a cyclone according to NOAA.
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| Source: www.nhc.noaa.gov |
The most read post of this blog for June 2014 is the 6/29/14 Report - National Archives For Research, Detecting Military Shells With a 2-Box Detector, Getting To More Remote Beaches, & US Religious Shrine
I'm going to highlight the most read post of the month at the end of the following month. If I did the current month it would usually be one of the early posts of the month since readers continue to read the older posts for a while after they are posted. This way there is enough time for even the most recent posts of the month to be read. At the end of August I'll see what the most read post of July was.
As I pointed out, you can always go back and read old posts. Using the search box is a convenient way to find particular topics.
Happy hunting,
TreasureGuide@Comcast.net
