Jesús María de la Limpia Concepción

The final voyage

Jesús María de la Limpia Concepción — known as La Capitana — was built at Guayaquil between 1641 and 1644 as flagship of Peru's Armada del Mar del Sur, the squadron that carried Crown and merchant silver from Callao to Panama for trans-shipment to Spain. On 18 October 1654 she departed Callao under Captain General Francisco de Sosa, accompanied by the almiranta San Francisco Solano and a small escort vessel, carrying two years of accumulated silver following an inspection that had earlier uncovered contraband and led to the arrest of her previous captain. [1](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/La_Capitana_Shipwreck_of_1654)[2](https://www.cambridge.org/core/journals/americas/article/abs/loss-of-the-flagship-of-the-armada-del-mar-del-sur-1654-and-related-aspects-of-viceregal-administration/7028EE57D2DFB2CF1DCC001239DF4394)

On the night of 26–27 October 1654, a navigational error brought the heavily laden galleon close inshore off Chanduy, near Guayaquil; she struck a reef and was lost. Silver recovered from the wreck by contemporary Spanish salvors was later trans-shipped north; the site itself was not relocated until November 1996, when Subamerica Discoveries Inc., led by Gustavo and Maria Cristina Moro, identified the wreck and began a licensed archaeological excavation shared with the Ecuadorian government. [1](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/La_Capitana_Shipwreck_of_1654)

What was aboard

No single surviving passenger/cargo manifest is cited in the academic sources used here. A 1997 archaeological inspection of material recovered from the site (reported in a period industry account) documented specific coin dates and mint origins, which is the firmer evidentiary basis used below.

Silver coin: A 1997 on-site archaeological inspection recorded over two thousand silver coins and one gold coin recovered during that period, the large majority minted at Potosí.

Silver bar: At least one large silver bar was recovered and inspected during the same 1997 visit.

Ceramics and fittings: Pottery shards, copper-based cannon balls, and iron fasteners were also documented at the site.

How to collect

Check for Ecuadorian export documentation: Material legally on the market should trace to the Subamerica Discoveries excavation and its division of finds with Ecuador's cultural authorities.

Confirm mint and date: The documented 1997 inspection found coins dated no earlier than 1649 and no later than 1654, predominantly from Potosí — a useful check against a claimed date range.

Distinguish from La Almiranta: Material sold under a separate 'La Almiranta' shipwreck name for this period should be treated with particular caution — see that entry.

Do not assume religious or luxury goods: The rigorously documented finds are coinage, a silver bar, ceramics, and ship fittings; claims of associated jewelry or religious artifacts should carry their own separate evidence.