Lourdes enamel cross hoard

[monacoauctions]

New to this site, only came across it today. Pictures of a hoard i found in the Pyraneese Mountains near the holy catholic shrine of Lourdes where devout catholics go to take in the water which is supposed to have healing powers. This hoard of over 6000 enamel crosses were under the floorboards of a derelict house that had just been sold. Many of them were still in the original brown paper packaging from the maker.They date from the late victorian era when the shrine was first built and were probably made to sell to visitors, no idea how they came to be under the floor of a house in the hills very near the village. All are gold plated and enamel and are in mint condition, as good as the day they were made. They are in 2 sizes, i assume an adult and a child size ? Today there are modern souvenirs for sale to visitors to Lourdes, these must have been amongst the first to be produced. I still have all of them , still trying to work out the best way to market them. This is a great site, wish i had seen it before !

 

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[civil war hunter]

wow wee, nice crosses.

 

[Dirty WhiteBoy]

Holy Smokes! Now that is a find! What are you going to do with all of them? They are neat!

 

[allen]

nice finds ...
stolen and hidden maybe ?

 

[Lucky Jack]

interesting find but it looks like those packages have plastic tape on them. I don't believe they had tape like that in Victorian times. Maybe 1950's-60's

 

[Moonshadow]

Cool find.......EBAY!

HH,
Moon

 

[monacoauctions]

i havn't worked out what to do with this lot yet, they have been sitting here while i work out the best way to market them. They are too good to waste away so i'm waiting until a use for them comes up. The brown paper packaging isnt sealed with selotape, its a paste that has been brushed on and a strip of material then put over the joints. They are from the victorian era. Anybody with an idea of how best to market them please feel free to get in touch. I'm not keen on ebay these days, since they started to force people to use Paypal i've stopped selling there . Too many problems with that firm, see www.paypalwarning.com or www.paypalsucks.com for typical examples ! Thanks for all the e mails thus far .

 

[txkickergirl]

that's an interesting find, very cool, and what a bundle.

I do have some questions though, because if I had found them I would never relate them to being in the Victorian age. Did you take them to someone to verify the age? I know they had enamel jewelry back then but it had a different type look to it from what I have seen. Also what kind of paper are they wrapped in. Seems it holds up really really well for being so old. Not doubting you, just really curious because like I said had I found them it would never cross my mind that it was that old, sure maybe 1960's or 70's but that would be the farest I would think to date it. Do they have any type makers mark on them? If these are that old I really need to go back and look at some of the stuff that I have found because if this dates back 1837-1901, then I might have some items that are older then what I originally thought and I need to take another look at them.

 

[woody50]

Nice finds for sure, I wonder what you thought when you first saw the packages.
But I have to agree with some others that they don't look so old....

 

[pippinwhitepaws]

i want one...

by the silk screen type and the paper, clear tape was invented in 1930...maybe they were hidden during WWII.

http://inventors.about.com/od/sstartinventions/a/Scotch_Tape.htm

 

[monacoauctions]

it isnt clear tape, the packages have been sealed up with a strip of paper that has been stuck on with glue applied with a brush. the glue has dried and reflects like tape but it ISNT SELOTAPE ! these have been looked at by quite a number of people and they are well over 100 years old. the quality and gilding is really top quality. paper will remain almost as new if it is kept in the right conditions , these packages have been under a dry floor with no water/damp or moisture .

 

[pippinwhitepaws]

oh...that is different...i still want some...
too bad...i really liked the idea of the priests hiding the loot from the nazi...

 

[edflower]

Nice crosses-- Looks like you have found yourself a "goldmine" for purposes of marketing... I have a question. You mentioned "...over 6000 enamel crosses... Many of them were still in the original brown paper packaging..." yet the paper packaging in your photos appears undisturbed-- How do you know there are at least six thousand of the crosses? Are you weighing these paper packages without opening them?

Thanks,

EF

 

[monacoauctions]

hello- when they were found @ 50% them were still in the paper, in the photos you can see some of the still sealed up ones. The other packages had been opened and then wrapped up without being sealed again. Each package is the same, inside the brown paper is a layer of waxed paper with a layer of tissue underneath. The crosses are 12 side by side then rolled over and another layer on top. I cant remember exactly but i think there were 144 in each package. All the opened ones were collected up and those packages still sealed have been left as found. There are @ 4500 loose ones and 1700 still wrapped up.

 

[romeo-1]

Cool...I'd take one...do you accept PayPal?

 

[Marc(NB)]

that is awesome!! Religious metals are a terrific find,i just love 'em

 

[ringfinder]

Neat finds, now matter how old they are, Congrats!!

HH<Ringfinder

 

[lucky d]

very cool find......i would like a couple of those ....if and when you sell ? please keep me posted.....thankshh

 

[savant365]

Great find! I would think some of the shops around there would buy them from you in lots to resell to the tourists. If you could determine who produced them originally it would help. Are there any markings on them or the packaging that would give you a clue as to who manufactured them? Good luck and congrats on finding a great cache.

HH Charlie