The Sceptre of the Armillary, also known as the Sceptre of the United Kingdom of Portugal, Brazil, and the Algarves (

Portuguese Portuguese may refer to: * anything of, from, or related to the country and nation of Portugal ** Portuguese cuisine, traditional foods ** Portuguese language, a Romance language *** Portuguese dialects, variants of the Portuguese language ** Portu ...

: Ceptro Armilar; Ceptro do Reino Unido de Portugal, do Brasil, e dos Algarves), is a piece of the

Portuguese Crown Jewels The Portuguese Crown Jewels (''Jóias da Coroa Portuguesa''), also known as the Royal Treasure (''Tesouro Real''), are the pieces of jewelry, regalia, and vestments that were used by the Kings and Queens of Portugal during the time of the Portugu ...

, originally created for the acclamation of King

João VI , house = Braganza , father = Peter III of Portugal , mother = Maria I of Portugal , birth_date = , birth_place = Queluz Palace, Queluz, Portugal , death_date = , death_place = Bemposta Palace, Lisbon, Portugal , ...

, alongside the

Crown of João VI The Crown of João VI, also known as the Portuguese Royal Crown ( pt, Coroa de D. João VI; ''Coroa Real de Portugal'') is the most recent and only extant crown of the Portuguese Crown Jewels. Description The crown is fashioned out of gold, si ...

and the

Mantle of João VI The Mantle of João VI, also known as the Mantle of the United Kingdom of Portugal, Brazil, and the Algarves (Portuguese: Manto de João VI; Manto do Reino Unido de Portugal, do Brasil, e dos Algarves), is the royal robe, a part of the Portuguese C ...

History

The Sceptre of the Armillary was commissioned in 1817 and was made of pure gold, in the workshop of the Royal Jeweler, Dom António Gomes da Silva, in

Rio de Janeiro Rio de Janeiro ( , , ; literally 'River of January'), or simply Rio, is the capital of the state of the same name, Brazil's third-most populous state, and the second-most populous city in Brazil, after São Paulo. Listed by the GaWC as a b ...

. The Sceptre of the Armillary, along with all the other Portuguese Crown Jewels, are kept in the

Ajuda National Palace The Palace of Ajuda ( pt, Palácio da Ajuda, ) is a neoclassical monument in the civil parish of Ajuda in the city of Lisbon, central Portugal. Built on the site of a temporary wooden building constructed to house the Royal family after the 175 ...

, though they are not on display to the public.

Details

The sceptre bears several symbols of the

United Kingdom of Portugal, Brazil, and the Algarves The United Kingdom of Portugal, Brazil and the Algarves was a pluricontinental monarchy formed by the elevation of the Portuguese colony named State of Brazil to the status of a kingdom and by the simultaneous union of that Kingdom of Brazil ...

, for which João VI was monarch of during João VI's stay in Brazil. *

Armillary Sphere An armillary sphere (variations are known as spherical astrolabe, armilla, or armil) is a model of objects in the sky (on the celestial sphere), consisting of a spherical framework of rings, centered on Earth or the Sun, that represent lines of ...

- Originally a symbol of King

Manuel I of Portugal Manuel I (; 31 May 146913 December 1521), known as the Fortunate ( pt, O Venturoso), was King of Portugal from 1495 to 1521. A member of the House of Aviz, Manuel was Duke of Beja and Viseu prior to succeeding his cousin, John II of Portugal, a ...

, it also became a symbol of

Colonial Brazil Colonial Brazil ( pt, Brasil Colonial) comprises the period from 1500, with the arrival of the Portuguese, until 1815, when Brazil was elevated to a kingdom in union with Portugal as the United Kingdom of Portugal, Brazil and the Algarves. Durin ...

. After the creation of the

, it became the pluri-continental symbol of Portugal and Brazil and appeared on its flag. *

Order of Christ Cross The Cross of the Order of Christ (Portuguese: ''Cruz da Ordem de Cristo''), also known as the Cross of Christ (''Cruz de Cristo'') or the Portuguese Cross (''Cruz Portuguesa''), is a cross symbol of Portugal, originating in the Portuguese Order ...

- A symbol of the Order of Christ, the Portuguese successor of the

Knights Templar , colors = White mantle with a red cross , colors_label = Attire , march = , mascot = Two knights riding a single horse , equipment ...

. A longtime symbol of Portugal, it appeared on the

Portuguese real The ''real'' (, meaning "royal", plural: ''réis'' or rchaic''reais'') was the unit of currency of Portugal and the Portuguese Empire from around 1430 until 1911. It replaced the '' dinheiro'' at the rate of 1 real = 840 dinheiros and was itself ...

, the sails of Portuguese ships during the

Age of Discoveries The Age of Discovery (or the Age of Exploration), also known as the early modern period, was a period largely overlapping with the Age of Sail, approximately from the 15th century to the 17th century in European history, during which seafarin ...

, and various flags and coats of arms of Portuguese institutions.

References

Sources

Jóias da Coroa Portuguesa
{{Portuguese Crown Jewels Portuguese Crown Jewels Portuguese monarchy

History

Details

See also

References

Sources