Description

This decorative metal ornament depicts the UK Royal Coat of Arms. The center heraldic shield element, or escutcheon, would change depending on the current monarch. This version features the Stuart Crest, or royal arms of James VI and I. James Charles Stuart was king of Scotland as King James VI from July 1567, beginning his reign at the early age of 13 months. In 1603, when his cousin (Queen Elizabeth I) died childless, his accession to the English throne ushered in the Union of the Crowns which placed England, Ireland and Scotland under one monarch: King James I. This union can be seen in the quadrant symbolism of the royal arms of King James I, with one quadrant representing Ireland, one for Scotland, and two for England (the Scottish version differs in giving the Scottish elements precedence). 

In June of 1606, King James I granted a charter to a group of London entrepreneurs, the Virginia Company, to establish an English settlement in the Chesapeake region of North America. In December of that year, 104 settlers sailed from London with Company instructions to build a secure settlement, find gold, and seek a water route to the Pacific. On May 14, 1607, the Virginia Company settlers landed on Jamestown Island to establish an English colony 60 miles from the mouth of the Chesapeake Bay.

A wooden carving of this crest was presented to the Association for the Preservation of Virginia Antiquities (APVA) by Queen Elizabeth II in 1957.

Ornament measures 2 ¼” x 3” at its widest points, and comes with an approximately 4” long gold hanging loop.