There are those who fear the ocean because of the possible creatures that may be in it, but there are others whose greatest interest is to go down to the depths of the sea to dive. And it is incredible that, being so large, there is 80% of its waters that we still don’t know! And in this underwater world, “treasure hunters” have also emerged, just as you read. Groups of divers who go down to the depths trying to find remains of ships that sank in the sea. The latter have been lucky enough to have found a loot, almost like The Little Mermaid (except that they will know what a fork is). 214 silver coins that are more than 300 years old, hardly anything, right? It was on the coasts of Florida and below we will tell you everything they have discovered.
Where did they find the treasure?
This loot was part of the 1715 Indian Fleet, a ship of the Spanish navy that transported riches from the New World (the American continents) to Europe, but one of those huge hurricanes that usually affect the American coast caused it to sink near Vero Beech, burying all its riches at the bottom of the sea for three centuries!
What did the divers find?
It was in June of this past year when the explorers found the remains of the shipwreck. Grant Gitschlag, one of the divers, said that the moment was paralyzing because they did not expect such a discovery, or at least, although he had dreamed many times about the moment, he did not expect that one of his dreams would come true, and in what a way!
Another of the divers, Corinne Lea, commented that she loved having been one of the first people in 309 years to see and touch objects that were lost in a tragedy of that calibre.
And the lot they found?
The loot from this ship were silver coins of four and eight “reales”, at the time, they were worth a lot, and even today, if these coins are well preserved they can reach historic values in international auctions (even a few years ago, a similar coin was sold for $588,000!!)
What will happen now with the treasure?
As soon as they surfaced, the divers contacted 1715 Fleet-Queen Jewels, LLC, an exploration group that specializes in salvaging ships that have been shipwrecked off the coast of the United States in the past.
Now, once they have been removed from the sea, these coins and the rest of the objects they found (as well as other artifacts) are undergoing a process of conversion to clean them and be able to analyse them properly, because we have to remember that for three centuries they have been subjected to corrosion by salt water and sand, so experts are working to preserve every detail that can be recovered.
What were the “reales”?
The 4 reales and 8 reales were silver coins used in the Spanish Empire during the 18th century, especially in global trade. The 8 real, is also known today as the Spanish dollar.
This coin had a high silver content (24-25 grams) and was one of the most influential coins in history, accepted in Europe, America, Asia and even in the United States before the creation of the dollar!
Its value was equivalent to two 4 reales, which was just half of its denomination, but you’d be surprised to know that this coin, if it were in use today, wouldn’t outweigh our dollar bill by much, gosh, inflation!
So, these “reales” were the most important coin of the time, imagine finding 300 of these in a sunken ship!
What other things and treasures will our seas hide?