Silver Bar

Accession Number1986.008.0065

VesselNuestra Señora de Atocha (1622)

DescriptionA silver ingot from Atocha that was being shipped by Lorenzo Arriola on his own account. His personal “AR” mark is prominent on the surface. A central “scoop” on the face of the ingot is a characteristic of ingots produced at Potosí. The scoop was made by the assayer when he sampled the silver to determine the ingot’s purity. The Roman numerals IIIIUDCCCXXXI indicate it was the 4831^st ingot produced at that Andean silver mining center in (likely) 1621. A smaller set of Roman numerals reads IIUCCCLXXX, or 2380, indicating the silver was found to be 2380 parts of pure silver out of 2400. Multiple shield style tax stamps show the 20% tax had been paid on the value of the silver. A “V” stamp denotes that it was registered on Atocha by silvermaster Jacobo de Vreder.