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Made in Texas

La Belle Artifact Replica Sun King Symbol Bronze Pin

Item #: 400326 In Stock

Description

Timeless inspiration, contemporary style. Our yellow bronze brooch evokes the mysterious allure of Louis XIV of France, the self-styled Sun King, and commemorates La Belle and the expedition of French explorer Robert Cavalier, Sieur de La Salle. The Sun King symbol, which identified the kings power with the ancient god Apollo, is found on artifacts unearthed from the La Belle shipwreck in Matagorda Bay.

La Salle was the first European to venture to the Ohio River as well as the first to descend the Mississippi, thus claiming the vast territory of Louisiana for France. In 1685, La Salle led 280 settlers from France to the Gulf of Mexico to establish a French colony. The expedition met with disaster, leaving the intrepid Frenchman with only one ship, La Belle, which wrecked near Matagorda Bay in 1686. Despite these setbacks, La Salle explored Texas as far west as the Pecos River. In 1687, he was killed in a mutiny of his own men. Most of the colonists were killed by the Karankawa, with only a few children surviving to tell the tale.

La Salles tragic, compelling story had consequences far beyond his own fate. The French adventure caused the Spanish to hasten their own settlement of Mexico and Texas. In 1803, the French sold the territory claimed by La Salle to the United States. The Louisiana Purchase more than doubled the size of the country and opened the entire continent to American expansion.

In one of the most heralded archaeological finds of the century, La Belle was rediscovered by a team of Texas state archaeologists in 1995. Over a period of years, the entire shipwreck was painstakingly raised and restored. Today the ship and hundreds of artifacts are on permanent display at the Texas State History Museum. With an antiqued patina that combines elegance and elan, our brooch features a locked hinged back pin. Proudly made in Texas.

Details

2" diameter

Shipping & Returns

Shipping

The Bullock Museum Store offers several shipping options for orders within the contiguous 48 States . The standard shipping rate is a flat rate based on the combined weight of the items in your cart in conjunction with carrier weight based shipping tables. Orders that qualify for flat rate shipping will ship either through USPS or FedEx at our discretion. Orders with the selected methods of FedEx Ground, FedEx 2 Day or FedEx Next Day will only ship via FedEx.

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Alaska, Hawaii and APO orders are shipped via USPS and are handled on a case by case basis due to various factors such as: weight, size and total cost of the items being shipped. Please call 1-(888)-678-5556 between the hours of 7:30 a.m. and 4:00 p.m. CST or send us an email at By email at [email protected] for more information.

Returns Policy

Returns are accepted within 30 days of purchase with an original packing slip. Refunds are issued in the form of original payment for the amount of the returned merchandise (not including shipping or service fees).

Purchased items that are later offered at a discount may not be returned and re-purchased at the lower price.

For health and safety reasons, pierced earrings are not returnable or exchangeable.

Damaged or defective CDs, DVDs, and other multimedia products can be exchanged for the identical item but cannot be returned for a refund. New unopened multimedia products in their original plastic wrap may be returned within 30 days of purchase for a refund with an original packing slip.

All Art of Texas custom print sales are final and are not eligible for return or exchange.

If your order arrives damaged, missing items, or we shipped the incorrect item; please contact us immediately at 888-678-5556. In the case of damage, it is important that all packaging be saved so UPS can determine how the damage occurred.

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