Coat of arms of the Crown of Aragon

Casa del Rey, Alicante Marble h: 85 cm; w: 71 cm; d: 11 cm Year 1591

Heraldic coat of arms on a rectangular marble plaque. The shield is arranged on the visible side, oval-shaped with a single field, showing the Palos de la Corona de Aragón, also known since ancient times as the "royal sign of Aragon". It is crowned by a crown at the top, unequivocal proof of the lineage of the Aragonese sovereigns. On the outside of the coat of arms there are two borders in relief; the outer one is formed by a chain of links with a ram at the end, representing the emblem of the Order of the Golden Fleece. The second, inner border is made of rocaille. In the lower part, which appears to be hanging from the trunk of one of the links of the outer border. At the bottom and on both sides of the ram, the date is engraved: 1591.

According to the chronicler Viravens, this coat of arms presided over the façade of the old Casa del Rey, one of the customs offices located in the area near the port of Alicante at the end of the 16th century. The building was used to collect the salt cargoes that ships brought from the La Mata wharf. The building was very close to the port and was very large with light coming in from three different points. After the building disappeared, the coat of arms was recovered by General Elizaicín, who kept it in his house until 1924, when he offered it to the Provincial Monuments Commission, along with other pieces that were in his private residence, as part of the founding collection of the Provincial Archaeological Museum.

S.C.: 12254
VIRAVENS, R., 1989.