Joyce was a member of one of the Tribes of Galway and is credited with the creation of the Claddagh Ring.
In 1675 he left Galway to serve as an indentured servant in the West Indies but his ship was intercepted by pirates from Algeria who enslaved the entire crew.
Joyce became the slave of a man in Algiers, said to be a goldsmith, who made him his apprentice.
In 1689 William III became King of England and enforced a request upon the Algerians to release all of his subjects enslaved in the country.
Joyce's master offered him half the business and his daughter's hand in marriage if he stayed, but he refused and returned to Galway.