Update: Gold Pelican of the 1715 Fleet

[Jones Indiana]

Another example of the untold story. Greg Brooks wanted us to find lead sheathing. His theory was that anything with lead (done by the Spanish) contained massive amounts of platinum. He was willing to pay heavy for a location to this lead.

Robert Weller said more lead could be found in a number 2 pencil then the sea. So after that I lost interest.

Maybe this is why Brooks went after platinum? Figured he had a edge over the gold hunters? It's human nature to want to hedge bets. He sure wanted the biggest "platinum jackpot" he could get his hands on. Maybe he was sold the winning lottery ticket or not? Anyways Gregg tried selling me a unopened WW2 U Boat. He lost me when he said it was never opened.

Over the years I have had people trying to sell me unopened ships/caves in return for brand new cars or cash.

I love the untold stories. I can only imagine the wealth (historically/monetary) that people are sitting on. Never to be told or maybe one day to be shared............

So Alexandre like it or not your part of the story of the gold bird............Maybe you want to share a bigger piece of the story in it or not? In a way you effected history and changed it's course.....That's truly is amazing.

Indy

 

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[Brewer]

off topic, but i think its a peacock.

 

[Bum Luck]

Re: Alexandre, can you help?

Anyhow, it looks like a reliquary. Maybe some rock crystal is missing there..

Hmmmm. Back to the site .........

 

[Alexandre]

Another example of the untold story. Greg Brooks wanted us to find lead sheathing. His theory was that anything with lead (done by the Spanish) contained massive amounts of platinum. He was willing to pay heavy for a location to this lead.

Robert Weller said more lead could be found in a number 2 pencil then the sea. So after that I lost interest.

I once excavated and dismantled, piece by piece, a late 16th century silver galeon. Although it was fully sheathed in lead (look at that sternpost) and it had a lot of mercury, there was no platinum around..

 

[Donovan]

Dr. Eugene Lyon identified the object as "a Pelican in her Piety. " The same Heraldic symbol is on the State flag of Louisiana as well as several universities in England and the U.S.
Dr. Lyon was Knighted by Spain in the Order of Isabella for his Columbus scholarship.
See,
http://cathcandy.wordpress.com/2010/01/06/the-pelican-in-her-piety
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pelican

 

[Jones Indiana]

Fascinating Alexandra. Very nice pictures by the way.

I'm not a metallurgy expert but Brooks thought the Spanish came across platinum and didn't know what to do with it and just threw it in lead
mixtures.

I consulted several expert divers like Robert Weller and a few people into metallurgy. Brook's theory wasn't holding up.

Brooks likes to create "Ghost Ships" and theories. Sometimes theories pay off other times they don't.

Tradition holds the Captain of the ship responsible for everything aboard ship. He's also the last to go down with the ship.

I wish Brooks the best of success along with his investors.

Indy

 

[Darren in NC]

off topic, but i think its a peacock.

That's actually more on topic than Greg Brooks.

The peacock is symbolic in much of Buddhism, but not Christendom, though I can certainly see why you would say that. The head in particular is strikingly like a peacock. I'm curious about the appearance of vulning (piercing the chest to draw blood). Note the symbol at the tip of the beak. Is it a sacred heart? (Suggested by Elle on this forum) Is it just another feather?

More photos and discussion can be seen on the main thread here...

http://forum.treasurenet.com/index.php?topic=343468.200

 

[Alexandre]

I read the topic and I do agree with ellen.

I also think Lyon has got it all wrong.

 

[Jones Indiana]

Enough about Brooks anyways............ I won't forget the time Kane Fisher was looking for Atlantis

The burden of proof is the obligation to shift the accepted conclusion away from an oppositional opinion to one's own position.
The burden of proof is often associated with the necessity of proof which always lies with the person who lays charges.

Indy

 

[Darren in NC]

The burden of proof is the obligation to shift the accepted conclusion away from an oppositional opinion to one's own position.

Agreed. I see no compelling evidence showing why it is not a Pelican in Her Piety. After looking at hundreds - maybe 1000+ renderings of pelicans and phoenixes, I see no phoenix in a vulning position. All renderings of a curved head and neck to the breast is stated as a pelican. Here are two wooden carved pelicans the 1st is a German piece from the 1600s (280 in the pic) and the 2nd is a Italian piece from the 1700s. Interesting. Both were being sold at Christie's.

Also interesting is the fact that there is a myth that states that a pelican and phoenix came together to make a two-headed bird. I cannot establish a connection to Bonnie's gold pelican, but interesting nonetheless. Supposedly the pelican represents the female (queen in this pic) and the phoenix represents the male (king). I have to wonder if the artist had the queen in mind when he sculpted Bonnie's pelican. Was she standing on the French heritage (fleur de lys was originally a French symbol) of Philip V?

Interpretive art is so much fun! ...and definitely speculative.

 

[captbonnie]

Alexandre very interested in your mention of linking to a family crest - I have been following that same idea. the image of the pelican vulning is widespread in the heraldry texts - and yes I do find the image of the pelican to be similar to our bird - I don't have the expertise to say without a doubt - but the wing form, the head embowed etc. I have a limited list of names from the Fleet - it is complicated also by the lack of specific identity of the ship. I have messaged you.

As far as the area we work - 2010 season the area of my first choice was held under an exclusive by another salvor -- Bill Moore and I were looking over the charts and Bill said - how about in here?? Focused in on an area on the general trail to the North that i am most interested in. Some finds showed up in the grid in question and some intriguing blank or unworked areas. The third day of work filling in (digging out!) the blanks we found the bird. So yes Bill Moore put us on the spot and the discipline of working a chart and trying to cover the area systematically paid off. Lady Luck smiled also.

 

[piratediver]

If you haven't done so already I would contact Christie's in NYC at 212-636-2000. They have some of the world's leading experts in just about any kind of object ever created by man.


Pirate Diver

 

[captbonnie]

[FONT=lucida grande, tahoma, verdana, arial, sans-serif]I've posted on my page (Gold Hawg Treasure) on Facebook: [/FONT]

[FONT=lucida grande, tahoma, verdana, arial, sans-serif]We have not put in many days at sea this season, but our time ashore has been productive. Gold Hawg Treasure is pleased to announce that the Gold Pelican of the 1715 Fleet, our big find of 2010, has been sold to a private collector. We will always hold the day and the emotions of the find in our hearts; it is a great satisfaction to know that we have also been able to realize the goal of having the treasure go on and continue its journey. We could not hold it; the new owner is one of great integrity and appreciation; from out of the sea, the Gold Pelican has a new life. More to come ashore![/FONT]

[FONT=lucida grande, tahoma, verdana, arial, sans-serif]to all my friends on treasure net I haven't written much lately - sometime i will try to explain how the finding of the Pelican and the sale has affected us. with me there became almost an obsession for the hunt, to the exclusion of common sense, and then the find, and then the whatever you would call it .. attachment, obligation to see a conclusion...I still believe in the dream, the research, the hunt (the very physical work and commitment), and the obligation to conclude the deal once ashore -- again the research, the work, the hopefully successful conclusion. In this case, we have been fortunate. the work that I started, and the research, and the artifact will live on and I believe the knowledge gained on the Gold Pelican will be more than I could ever find. I will keep you posted of any further information on this artifact. You were all so very helpful to assist with photos and info when we found it. Thank you and God Bless.[/FONT]​

 

[Darren in NC]

Wonderful update, Bonnie. I do hope the Gold Pelican will be on loan to a museum(s) so I and others can see it soon. Thanks for your heart and passion that shines through!

 

[cuzcosquirrel]

Glad you sold it. I have independantly in the last year ran into a few vulning bird depictions in Italy and France, and admittidly, this is what it is. It was a popular symbol for Catholocism at the time. I bet it held a reliquary of some kind.

 

[bikerlawyer]

Hey Bonnie, get back out there and find that missing wing and sell it to the buyer!