This stone in the center of the east arch on the inside of the Hotel Frontenac in Quebec City was "carved for the priory of the Knights of Malta - 1647." Now I'm not sure if it was carved in 1647 or if that's the date associated with the Knights of Malta. In any event, if it was carved in 1647, that was 250 years or so before the Hotel Frontenac was constructed. If it was carved then, where did it spend its first 250 years?Thursday, October 07, 2010
This stone in the center of the east arch on the inside of the Hotel Frontenac in Quebec City was "carved for the priory of the Knights of Malta - 1647." Now I'm not sure if it was carved in 1647 or if that's the date associated with the Knights of Malta. In any event, if it was carved in 1647, that was 250 years or so before the Hotel Frontenac was constructed. If it was carved then, where did it spend its first 250 years?
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2 comments:
Rob you can find the history of the stone at http://www.orderofmaltacanada.org/html/naval.html
Here is an exerpt from the site mentioned in comment #1 with regards to the stone in the photo posted.
"There is a romantic mystery surrounding an important archaeological stone relict discovered on September 17, 1784 in the rubble of the foundations and ruins of the Château Saint-Louis, the official residence of the governors general of New France. It is a stone in the form of an irregular cone bearing a shield on which is carved a cross of Malta with the date 1647 underneath. When found, the date was complete as evidenced by the Journal kept by James Thompson (1733-1830), at the time the government’s supervisor of works. With the passage of time, the number 7 was eroded; eventually it disappeared entirely.
Montmagny had the central building added precisely in 1647. This building was demolished in 1694 and the entire Château Saint-Louis was destroyed by fire during the 1759 siege of Quebec. Under the care of Thompson, the stone was placed in the exterior wall near the door of the Normal School that was erected on the site. When the present Château Frontenac Hotel was built on the same spot, in 1892, the preserved stone, minus the 1647 date, was placed in the masonry of the principal courtyard where it remains to this day."
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