Written by the TreasureGuide for the exclusive use of treasurebeachesreport.blogspot.com.
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| Survey Monument Near John Brooks Walk-over. |
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I've also been talking about serial number hunting. Here is a near winner that I got recently in change.
The serial number is 21221912. If the nine was either a one or a two, the bill would have been worth probably at least ten times the face value. It would have been what they call a binary. As it is, it is a tertiary (has three different numbers in the serial number) and still might be worth a little premium.
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It is easy in this day and age to forget about the people and experience of daily life on board a 17th or 18th century galleon. It is difficult, if not impossible, to have much of an idea of what it was like. Below are a couple examples reported by passengers that will give you some idea of the rituals.
The watchglass (sandglass) and the compass box were both maintained with care.
At each half-hour turning of the watchglass, the page on duty calleed out a verse, with words specific to each of the eight turnings in the four-hour shift.
At the first turning, he would say, "Good is what's past,and better what comes; one glass is past and the second is filling; more will be filled if God be willing; to keep the right time makes the voyage fine."
At nightfall after the evening meal those on board heard the Buenas Noches of the page bringing light to the compass box for the night: "Amen and God give us good night; good voyage, good passage for the ship, sir captain and master and good company." Then two pages recited the evening prayers: Pater Noster, Ave Maria, Credo, and Salve Regina. Once finished, the pages on duty went to care for the watchglass, which presumably had been running as usual while the prayers were being said, and recited the nightly blessing;
Blessed be the hour God came to earth,
Holy Mary who gave him birth,
and Saint John who saw his worth.
The guard is posted,
The watchglass filling,
We'll have a good voyage,
If God be willing.
On special occasions, there might be quite elaborate religious ceremonies in a fleet, particularly on the capitana and almiranta. After surviving a thirty-six hour hurricane, one ship returning from the Indies in 1622 held a service of contrition dedicated to Our Lady of Carmen, patroness of mariners. Everyone on board attended, with the image of the Virgin, adorned with what finery they could salvage, presiding over the gathering from a portable alter on the poop. The Jesuit chronicler of this voyage led the service, including in his chronicle the long litany to the Virgin recited by those on board, with Latin phrases chanted by the priest answered by the Latin responses from his floating congregation.
For Holy Week, among other great festivals of the church year, crew and passengers participated more fully in the events, although Holy Week would have been rather early for voyages across the Atlantic. One description of the events noted,
Since there were religious in the fleet, most of the people confessed, and on Holy Thursday, with silks and other things that had been brought along, each ship decked itself out in the manner of a monument , displaying images and crosses, and on many ships there were a large number of penitents attending the persons who carried the images. Holy Saturday at the time of the "Gloria," the capitana first and afterwards the other ships made much rejoicing and fired all their heavy and light artillery, so much that it was quite something to see. Easter Sunday, in the morning, all the ships, led by the almiranta, went to salute the capitana, which displayed its many flags and banners, and they saluted her with much artillery. The capitana returned the salute of the almiranta with seven or eight pieces of heavy artillery and with music and trumpets and other instruments returning the salutes of the other shipwswith music alone.
The above excerpts in blue were taken from Six Galleons for the King of Spain by Carla Rahn Phillips.
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Oscar is now a hurricane but is out in the middle of the Atlantic and headed away from us.
The surf will build Wednesday then start decreasing again Thursday.
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| Source: MagicSeaWeed.com. |
Happy hunting,
TreasureGuide@comcast.net
