Treasures From the Sea : Exhibit Features Gems, Jewelry, Artifacts and Coins Recovered From 1622 Shipwreck

Imagine holding a piece of history in your hand, a golden treasure culled from a Spanish galleon that was driven by a hurricane onto the deadly coral reefs off the Florida Keys in 1622.

The Nuestra Senora de Atocha, laden with the heaviest consignment of royal and private treasures from the New World, was buried by the forces of nature and shrouded in secrecy by the sea for more than 3 1/2 centuries before being discovered by explorer Mel Fisher in 1985.

Pieces of the past, “Treasures of the Atocha,” featuring emeralds, artifacts and ornamental jewelry, will be on exhibit Nov. 12 through 15 at Shreve & Co. in South Coast Plaza, Costa Mesa. Following the long tradition of coin jewelry, the exhibit also features mounted and unmounted silver and gold coins.

The exhibition, valued at $40 million, will have many items from the personal collection of Mel and Dolores Fisher. The full estimated worth of the Atocha treasure is more than $400 million, with 900 silver bars, 161 gold bars or disks and 255,000 silver coins among its bounty.

Highlights of the exhibition include a gold rosary encrusted with red coral, an emerald-studded gold cross, lengths of gold link “money chains” and an emerald brooch from the late 1500s that was considered an heirloom at the time of the wreck.

There also will be an extensive collection of precious emeralds for sale ($550-$275,000), including a 12.72 carat emerald ($230,000), as well as re-creation jewelry.

All re-creation jewelry is made with a percentage of actual Atocha gold or silver bars and cast from authentic molds.

Handmade treasure chains resemble those created in the New World in the 17th Century. The chains’ design consists of tiny florets called olive blossom because they are believed to have been inspired by the spring blossom of the olive tree in Southern Spain.

Today, the Olive Blossom Treasure Chain is re-created by master craftsmen in Portugal. Each inch of the chain requires more than 40 individual steps, all of which are done by hand. The chain is available in both 18 karat and sterling silver, a percentage of which is from the Atocha (gold 18- to 30-inch necklaces ($2,230-$3725), bracelets ($925-$1,115) and earrings ($625); silver necklaces ($540-$900), bracelets ($225-$270) and earrings ($150)).

In addition to treasures from the Atocha, items from the wreck sites of the 1715 Spanish Treasure Fleets also will be on display.

Treasure rings such as the “Crisscross” or the sculpted “Decorative Band” (starting at $250) mimic designs of rings found on the fleets, as do re-creations of pendants and chains.

Slide presentations on the Atocha’s history and discovery will be offered at 11 a.m., 2 p.m. and 7 p.m. next Thursday through Saturday and at 2 p.m. and 4 p.m. Sunday.

Pat Clyne, chief videographer of the expeditions for 18 years, will narrate the presentations, and treasure hunter and Atocha expedition leader Kim Fisher, eldest son of Mel Fisher, and his wife, Lee, will answer questions. For more information, call (714) 754-7071.