One of Bermuda’s most enduring mysteries has been celebrated with the creation of an almost exact replica of the Tucker Cross by the jeweller Astwood Dickinson.

The gold and emerald-encrusted Tucker Cross, thought to be from the Spanish galleon San Pedro that wrecked in 1594, was discovered by the late treasure hunter Teddy Tucker in 1955 but vanished mysteriously 20 years later and has never been recovered.

Now, Astwood Dickinson has paid homage to this lost piece of Bermudian history to mark the 50th year of its iconic Bermuda Collection of jewellery.

The piece was created in collaboration with New York-based Suna Bros, a specialist producer of fine jewellery, and Mr Tucker’s daughter, Wendy Tucker.

It is made of 22-carat gold with 39.39 carats of emeralds sourced from the Muzo emerald mine in the Andes mountain range of Colombia.

The piece, which was unveiled tonight at a customer appreciation event at Astwood Dickinson, is on sale for $100,000.

“It’s a serious piece,” said Ian Smith, managing director of the Front Street business. “I keep getting told off by my staff, who say I have vastly underpriced it.”

Mr Smith, who said “two or three people” have already shown an interest in the piece, added: “I want it to go to a Bermudian who knows Bermudian culture and history. We’re never going to do this again.”

Astwood Dickinson is also creating a limited edition of ten smaller sister pendants. Featuring 18-carat yellow gold with five carats of emeralds, they are offered at $19,500.

Mr Smith said a portion of the proceeds from the sale of the pieces will go to support the Teddy Tucker Marine Education Scholarship at the Bermuda Underwater Exploration Institute.

Working from photographs and information from Ms Tucker’s archives, Astwood Dickinson said it was able to closely replicate the specifications and design of the gold cross and the seven emeralds adorning it.

Mr Smith said Ms Tucker “has been a phenomenal support through the whole project”.

He added: “The Tucker Cross is such an important part of Bermuda’s history — the mystery, the intrigue, the value — so to recreate it by being as true to the original as possible has been a very exciting process.”

That process began with a sketch, drawn to scale, followed by the creation of a wax carving that featured every component – gems, bezels and body, front and back. From there the parts of the body were cast in silver to ensure the design satisfied the specifications, before being cast in 22-carat gold.

Astwood Dickinson said great lengths were taken to find the seven emeralds needed to match the original.

Mr Smith said: “Hundreds were examined for colour and quality before selecting the stones that went into the new cross. Each then had to be recut to the exact size and shape.

“The likelihood is that they are from the original mine that the Tucker Cross emeralds came from.”

On the back of the cross, the creators added a commemorative stamp “TT 100” as Mr Tucker would have turned 100 next year, and “AD” for Astwood Dickinson.

Once complete, the piece went through a sandblasting process to achieve a weathered appearance.

The history of the Tucker Cross and the year-long process to create the almost exact replica of it has been captured in a book, Treasure Reborn, written by Danielle Barber, who handles marketing, gem buying and designing at Suna Bros.

A copy of the book will be given to the purchasers of the main piece and the smaller pendants.

Ms Barber said: “A piece such as this transcends fine jewellery; it is an object of art.

“The significance of this to Bermuda is mind-boggling to me. Doing this book, and researching, I learnt so much. It’s a fascinating story.”

Beginning tomorrow, the piece will be put on display at Astwood Dickinson.