History of the United States in 100 Objects -- 6: Bronze Cannon with Fleur-de-Lis Emblem, 1540s

Unlocked for all listeners after one year for patrons only: -about 10 ft. long -made in France, ca. 1540s -lost in shipwreck, ca. 1562-5 -located on bottom of the Atlantic Ocean near Cape Canaveral We examine the mysteries surrounding a French bronze cannon recently discovered on the bottom of the Atlantic Ocean near Florida, amidst the wreckage of an unidentified sixteenth-century fleet. The cannon and other artifacts are rare, priceless remnants of French Protestants’ ill-fated attempts to colonize North America before the Spanish, and their discovery sparked a heated international legal dispute. The mysterious shipwreck gives us a window into a rare moment when Europe’s vicious religious wars spilled over into the Americas. Image courtesy of Bobby Pritchett., Pres., Global Marine Exploration Inc. Introductory music: Domenico Scarlatti, Sonata in D, played by Wanda Landowska on harpsichord.