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A gold crown (llauto) formed of a plain band with single riveted seam, fitted at the back with a plume with fringed upper section, the lower part with three pierced circles, two fitted with suspended discs. The crown was excavated in 1854 in Chordeleg in the Cuenca region of the highlands of Ecuador, approximately one hundred and eighty miles south of...

A portrait drawing of Sir Thomas More (1478-1535) The portrait shows his head and shoulders and the sitter faces three-quarters to the right. He wears a hat and fur collar. The drawing has been pricked for transfer. Inscribed in an eighteenth-century hand at upper left: Tho: Moor Ld Chancelour. Hans Holbein was born in Augsburg, trained in Basel and...

Because it incorporates the earliest known example of the lever escapement this unique watch has been described as ‘perhaps the most historically important watch in the world’. With the exception of the balance spring, this was the greatest single improvement that has ever been applied to watches. As such, this watch is the forerunner of...

Photograph of a building with a thatched roof built next to a pond, or a canal. The building is reflected on the water's surface. This photograph is part of an album of prints presented to Queen Victoria and Prince Albert as a memento of their state visit to France from 18-27 August 1855. The album shows landmarks on the route of the Chemin de Fer du...