Vintage Spanish shipyard brass plaque: AE (logo) ASTILLERO

This vintage Spanish shipyard plaque is cast with heavy, solid brass and reads:

AE (logo)
ASTILLEROS ESPANOLES S.A.
FACTORIA DESEVILLA
CONSTRUCCION NO175
ANOS 1975

It is made of the highest quality heavy cast brass, measuring 13 1/2 X 23 1/2 inches and weighs 36 pounds! This builder's plaque is slightly twisted- probably a result caused when removed from its original foundation.

HISTORY:

Navantia (Established in 2005), formerly Baz�n or IZAR, has become Spain's leading shipbuilding firm, offering its services to both military and civil projects. It is the 5th largest shipbuilding company in Europe and the ninth largest in the world (as per date April, 2010). It has shipyards all over Spain. Navantia's career starts in 1730 with the creation of the historic military arsenals of Ferrol, Cartagena and San Fernando, whose shipyards were designed to build and repair ships of the Spanish Armada. In 1908 these shipyards became part of the Society of Shipbuilding (also known as La Naval) who also belonged the civil shipyards of Matagorda or Sestao, subsequently incorporated into Astilleros Espa�oles S.A. (AESA). After the Spanish Civil War, the state took care of the military arsenals and in 1947 founded Empresa Nacional Baz�n, who was born as a shipbuilding company that relied on foreign technology. Subsequently, Bazan began developing its own draft ships. IZAR (between 2000 and 2005) was founded in December 2000 following the merger of Astilleros Espa�oles S.A. (AESA) and Empresa Nacional Baz�n. In 2005 IZAR was taken over by the newly created Spanish Shipbuilder Navantia.