Accession Number

1986.008.1495

Alternate object names

Copper

Creation Date

circa 1620

Description

A copper ingot recovered from the wreck of the 1622 galleon Nuestra Señora de Atocha. The Atocha carried 582 copper ingots weighing a total of 15 tons. The copper came from the “El Cobre” mine located in the extreme southeast of Cuba, where it had been mined by African slaves for the Spanish crown. In Spain, the copper was largely used to make bronze artillery. This is a “splash” type ingot formed by molten copper poured into a shallow depression in the ground. It is 44.5 centimeters long and weighs 17.7 kilograms (39 pounds).

Exhibition Label

Case Caption/Object Caption (2023):

Ingots
Copper (c.1620)
Gifts of George & Martha Breed, Jamestown Inc., Lee S. Lasser, Robert Malcom, Demostines "Mo"Molinar, James A. Snyder
1986.008.1491-1492, 1986.008.1494-1495, 1986.008.2502-2503, 1986.012.0002, 1987.011.0002, 1989.004.0001, 1997.012.0001, 2001.004.0059

The Nuestra Señora de Atocha carried 582 copper ingots, weighing a total of 15 tons. The copper came from the “El Cobre” mine located in the extreme southeast of Cuba, where it had been mined by African slaves for the Spanish government. In Spain, the copper had many uses ranging from cookware to pocket change. Importantly, copper would be mixed with tin to make the bronze that would be cast into cannons.

These “splash” type ingots were formed by pouring molten copper into a shallow depression in the ground. Each one weighs about 40lbs.
Previous Exhibit Case Caption: Removed March 29, 2023 Copper Ingots Recovered from the Nuestra Señora de Atocha Gift of Jamestown Treasure Salvors, Inc. The ship’s manifest documents 582 copper ingots, weighing over 30,000, pounds, were loaded aboard the Atocha while it docked in Havana. The copper came from a Cuba mine owned by the Spanish Crown and mined by African slaves. The copper would probably have been used to create bronze cannons once it reached Spain. It’s possible, though, that the Crown intended to use the copper to extend its silver wealth. We now know that Spain had begun to circulate coins made from vellón, an alloy of silver debased with copper. Only three ships in the 1622 Fleet carried the royal copper cargo: the Atocha, Santa Maragita and Rosario. Interestingly, all three ships sank in the September 6, 1622 hurricane.