JAMES and MARY

The full index of our ship stamp archive
Post Reply
Online
aukepalmhof
Posts: 7771
Joined: Thu Apr 02, 2009 1:28 am

JAMES and MARY

Post by aukepalmhof » Wed Nov 30, 2011 7:45 pm

Turks and Caicos Island issued a stamp in 1973 of 10c with a replica of a medallion
I lost the source, but I believe it was a stamp magazine “Mijn Stokpaardje” in the Netherlands which did say the vessel on this medallion was the JAMES AND MARY.
On one side of the medallion is given an image of James II and his wife, with the inscription “naufraga reperta” (wreck discovered) while on the other side is depict the expedition ship which the Englishman William Phipps used to salvage part of the treasures and the inscription “simper tibi pendeat hamus” and the year 1687.
Could not find much more as given in Wikipedia: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/William_Phips

Phips attempted to get funding from the Admiralty for another expedition, but King James II, who had just taken the throne after his brother's death, refused. Narborough connected Phips with the Duke of Albemarle, who acquired from James a patent authorizing him to search for wrecks. Albemarle assembled a group of investors to fund Phips' third expedition. They acquired and outfitted two ships: the JAMES AND MARY, a 22-gun 200-ton frigate, and the 45-ton HENRY OF LONDON, a sloop commanded by Francis Rogers, Phips' second mate on the previous voyage.
Phips sailed from London in September 1686, and arrived off Hispaniola in November. The weather was bad, and the search consequently did not get under way until January 1687. Phips sent the smaller ship HENRY OF LONDON out to search the banks and reefs northeast of Hispaniola, and she returned in early February with evidence of a major find. The ship they found, the NUESTRA SENORA DE LA CONCEPCION, had wrecked in 1641 in an area known to the Spanish as the Ambrosia Banks, now called the Silver Bank. From then until April the divers and ships' crews worked to recover all manner of treasure: gold and silver bullion, doubloons, jewelry, and other artifacts. Concerned about the possibility of mutiny, Phips guaranteed to the crew, who had been hired for seaman's wages, that they would receive shares in the find, even if he had to pay them from his own percentage. He carefully avoided putting in at any ports before anchoring at Gravesend, where he dispatched a courier to London with the news.
Phips reported recovering £300,000 worth of treasure from the wreck, although modern assessments place the value closer to £210,000. Of this amount much went to Albemarle, who owned at least 25 percent of the venture's shares. Phips, after paying out £8,000 in crew shares, received £11,000. Phips was treated as a hero in London, and the find was the talk of the town. Some economic historians argue that Phips' find significantly changed history because it lead to a major increase in the formation of joint-stock companies, and even played a role in the eventual formation in the Bank of England.
Phips and the crew were rewarded by the investors with medals, and Phips was knighted by James in June. James also rewarded Phips with the post of provost marshal general (chief sheriff) of the Dominion of New England, serving under Sir Edmund AndrosIn September 1687 Phips returned to the wreck, though he did not command the venture. Admiral Narborough elected to personally lead the expedition, which was supported by King James, who purchased shares and provided a navy frigate for security. The expedition was not very successful. The wreck had been discovered by others, and the arrival of the English scattered more than 20 smaller ships. Treasure worth only £10,000 was recovered before Narborough's death in May 1688 brought the expedition to an end. Phips had by then already left the wreck site in early May, sailing for Boston to take up his post as provost marshal general.
Not depict on a stamp, but below is given the details of the wreck
She was built in 1620 in Havana, Cuba as a nao.
Launched as the NUESTRA SENORA DE LA PURA Y LIMPIA CONCEPTION.
Tonnage 600 ton, with a length on the waterline of 42.67m.
Armed with 36 guns.
Crew 250 including soldiers.

1630 When she was chartered by the La Contratacion was she converted in a galleon and used as an escort vessel for the India fleet.
She was the flagship of Vice Admiral Juan Luis de Villavicencio
23 July 1641 she together with a fleet sailed from Vera Cruz, Mexico loaded with treasures of the New World and the Orient, 23 days later she arrived in San Cristobal, Cuba, where she underwent repairs, some of her planking got rot in it and had to be renewed.
13 September left San Cristobal but most of the ships were in a bad shape, and it was decided to return to Havana for repairs.
28 September 1641 the fleet loaded with treasure at least set sail from Havana to Spain, September is at the height of the hurricane season, and not a good time to sail out.
Shortly after the fleet had left she encountered a hurricane.
The fleet was scattered and the NUESTRA SENORA DE LA PURA Y LIMPIA CONCEPTION was badly damage and lost many sails, under a jury rig she drifted around for many days badly leaking while her crew pumped day and night to get rid of the water in the holds.
Eight ships of the fleet were lost in this hurricane.
01 November she grounded on a reef north of Hispaniola was refloated but grounded again, the next day she sank by the bow, while the stern still was above water.
She grounded on the Los Abrojos reef, now known as the Silver Reef.
324 persons lost their lives in this disaster only a few persons survived the disaster and reached Hispaniola the present Dominican Republic, but they were unable to tell the position were the vessel had been grounded.

1687 The wreck was discovered by the Englishman William Phipps and he salvaged a large quantity of silver and gold.

Turks & Caicos Islands 1973 10c sg376, scott261.

Source: The all mentioned Dutch stamp magazine and Internet.
Attachments
tmp157.jpg

Post Reply