Item number: M26

Year: AD 1771

Material: Sterling Silver, Gilt and Enamel

Size: 60.0 x 103.0 mm

Weight: 15.66 g

Manufactured by: Madrid

Provenance: La Galerie Numismatique 2023

The full name of the Order is the “Royal and Distinguished Spanish Order of Charles III” (Real y Distinguida Orden Española de Carlos III ). Established in AD 1771 by King Charles III to celebrate the birth of his grandson, the heir to the throne, after four years of the crown prince’s marriage. Since AD 1847, this Order has been open to Spanish civilians. The Charles III Order has five classes, and this commissioned miniature version is a silver-gilt replica of the first-level “Collar” insignia and collar set crafted by artisans. (Refer to the table for details.)

The collar is symmetrical, featuring a laurel wreath enveloping the Roman numeral “III” (representing Charles III). On both sides, it is adorned with a sequence of “lion, castle, knight’s helmet, castle, lion, laurel wreath.” Behind the lion and laurel wreath, there is an engraving indicating the purity mark of 925 sterling silver.

As for the insignia hanging below the collar, it features the same design as the official version. It is a blue Maltese cross outlined with white enamel on the edges. Each of the eight tips of the cross is adorned with a gilded small ball, and the four sides are set with royal symbols, the golden fleur de lis.

The central gilded oval section is surrounded by blue enamel and depicts the image of the Immaculate Conception. The inclusion of the Immaculate Conception symbolizes Charles III’s belief that, through the protection of the Virgin Mary, the royal family can give birth to a male heir. In contrast to the official version, which uses enamel for the painted image of the Virgin Mary, the miniature version remains unpainted. Additionally, the back of this miniature version lacks the king’s name surrounded by a laurel wreath, as seen in the official version, and the inscription “VIRTUTI ET MERITO” is also absent.

物件編號: M26

年代: 公元 1771 年

材質: 925純銀, 鍍金和琺瑯

尺寸: 60.0 x 103.0 mm

重量: 15.66 g

製造地: 馬德里

來源: 貨幣畫廊 2023

勳章全名為「西班牙皇家傑出查理三世勳章」(Real y Distinguida Orden Española de Carlos III)。公元1771年時任國王的查理三世為慶祝兒子，即皇太子和妻子結縭四年，總算產下一名男嬰所設立的勳章。自公元1847年起，該勳章已經全面對西班牙平民開放。查理三世勳章依序有五個等級，此件委託工匠額外打造的迷你版，即是以銀鍍金工法仿造的第一級「領級」(Collar)綬章和項鍊組。(見表格)

項鍊以包裹羅馬數字「III」(代表查理三世)的月桂花環為對稱，左右兩側按照「獅子、城堡、騎士頭盔、城堡、獅子、月桂花環」排列順序組成。在獅子與月桂花環的背後，刻有925純銀的品質標誌。

至於在項鍊下方，以鍍金月桂花環裝飾作為連結的綬章，其外觀和官方版本相同，即一枚有白色琺瑯勾勒邊框的藍色馬耳他十字。十字架的八個頂端各有一粒鍍金小球，四邊以特定角度鑲有皇室象徵的金百合花。中央鍍金的橢圓部位，是被藍色琺瑯包圍的無玷聖母形象。之所以出現無玷聖母，是查理三世相信出於聖母的庇護，皇室方能誕生一名男性繼承人。不同於官方版以琺瑯替聖母彩繪，迷你版未加以著色。而且迷你版的背後，也未有官方版以月桂花環包圍的國王名諱，及「美德和功績」(VIRTUTI ET MERITO)字樣。