Besides all this, there was a vast quantity of solid
gold ornaments--nearly two hundred massive finger and ear rings; rich
chains--thirty of these, if I remember; eighty-three very large and
heavy crucifixes; five gold censers of great value; a prodigious
golden punch-bowl, ornamented with richly chased vine-leaves and
Bacchanalian[15] figures; with two sword handles exquisitely embossed,
and many other smaller articles which I cannot recollect. The weight
of these valuables exceeded three hundred and fifty pounds
avoirdupois; and in this estimate I have not included one hundred and
ninety-seven superb gold watches, three of the number being worth each
five hundred dollars, if one. Many of them were very old, and as
time-keepers valueless, the works having suffered, more or less, from
corrosion; but all were richly jewelled and in cases of great worth.
We estimated the entire contents of the chest, that night, at a
million and a half of dollars; and, upon the subsequent disposal of
the trinkets and jewels (a few being retained for our own use), it was
found we had greatly undervalued the treasure.
When, at length, we had concluded our examination, and the intense
excitement of the time had in some measure subsided, Legrand, who saw
that I was dying with impatience for a solution of this most
extraordinary riddle, entered into a full detail of all the
circumstances connected with it.
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