Spanish monarchs best known as the sponsors and patrons of Christopher Columbus. Manuscript DS in Spanish, signed “Yo el Rey,” (I the King) and “Yo el Reyna,” (I the Queen), one page, 8.25 x 7.75, September 15, 1492. Document reads, in full (translated): “Don Juan de Ribera there we have given orders concerning matters relating to San Sebastián and especially as regards the provost and goal of the said town, as you will see by our letters in which we command you, for our service, to repair to the said town, and carry into execution the orders we give you in this matter, and to work for the establishment of the said town and its residents in peace and concord, as benefits our service, Zaragoza, XV day of September of ninety and two years.” Signed at the conclusion by the king and queen, and countersigned by Fernand Aluares, secretary to the king and queen. In fine condition, with intersecting folds, a couple lightly passing through the signatures, and some scattered light foxing to blank areas. All writing is extremely bold.
In the Basque town of San Sebastian, disputes over the provost’s conduct of the jail had been raging since 1487. Busy reconfiguring the nation after their recently completed Catholic Reconquista of the Iberian Peninsula, Ferdinand and Isabella hoped to clear this issue up once and for all, ordering Don Juan de Ribera, captain-general of Guipuzcoa, to “repair to the said town, and…work for the establishment of the said town and its residents in peace and concord, as benefits our service.” The following week, de Ribera was called to council to report on ongoing issues with the small groups of Jews who remained in Spain despite the passing of the Alhambra Decree, which expelled the majority of the population. A remarkable document from a volatile time in Spain’s history, just one month after Columbus began his first voyage to the New World. Pre-certified John Reznikoff/PSA/DNA and RR Auction COA.
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