Old Sails: Ship of Paris on Beat Jeton.

Old ships from the sixteenth century never fail to captivate me.

This one has just the right look for a necromancer: it was held, passed around, put away, and taken out again. The surfaces are warmly colored with daubs of red, orange, and yellow -- the last rays of a setting sun. The ship is highlighted where worn. The porous fields disperse the light. Yes, it is beat. But beautiful.

In the late 1600s, a jeton like this was one of the few ways a land-lover could enjoy the marvel of a a fully-rigged ship. This was the Age of Discovery.

Nuremberg Jeton with Ship of Paris, late 1500s.

The main and aft sails are billowing in the wind, whereas the foresail is furled. Pennants fly from every masthead. The ship appears to be on a port tact. I imagine that it is leaving the harbor and heading out on an adventure far beyond the horizon.

This ships appears to be an early Carrack, similar to the one that I profiled in November 2015. It has moderately sized fore- and aft-castles with shallow U-shape from bow to stern.

The vessel represents the "Ship of Paris" -- the central feature on the city's arms. The legend -- FLVCTVAT NEC MERGITVR -- is the motto of Paris since the 14th century; it translates to read: "Tossed, but not sunk." It is an adage that resonates with me; life has it challenges, but we keep on, getting on.

It is amazing how little things change in life.

On the reverse (not shown) the motto -- PROSPERATVM EST OPVS IN MANNIIS EIVS -- translates: "Work prospers in his hands." There is a view of Paris with divine figures in the clouds above the city.

All told, a neat ship piece.

If you look close, you can see the makers initials below the waves: CK. This stands for Killian Kock. He was the mint master from Nuremberg (1580-1608). On the obverse the abbreviation -- NORIBE -- stands for his city.

This ship is scarce but available. There are several variations on this theme, some without waves. By the way, this is the 15th Old Sails thus far in the blog ... and I see more ships appearing on the horizon. As always, if you see an error, please post it so we all can benefit.