Two more shipwrecks have been found while monitoring a sunken vessel in the Caribbean Sea that was believed to be carrying lost treasure worth billions.
Two sea vessels, which were recently discovered near the ruins of the famous sunken San Jose galleon (sometimes called the “holy grail of shipwrecks”), are laden with gold worth $17 billion. The 62-gun San Jose was a three-masted galleon and was sunk by the British in 1708.
It was discovered in 2015, and the Spanish government has released new footage of the shipwreck which contains cold and other valuable items.
The video was captured by a remote-controlled vehicle and shows a boat and a schooner near the main shipwreck. Both the vessels are believed to be 200 years old. The remotely operated vehicle was sent to a depth of 3,100 feet off the country’s Caribbean coast.
Colombian President Ivan Duque said in a statement:
“We have already found two additional vessels: one vessel that is from the colonial period and another that, from the point of view of preliminary analysis, corresponds to the Republican period of our history.”
President Duque unveiled new photos and footage Monday of the two now discovered wrecks as well as the San Jose’s treasure.
You can watch the footage below:
Watch it here: APnews/Youtube
The operation also procured photos of some of the San Jose’s treasure, believed to be one of the largest ever for a shipwreck.
The president stated:
“The equipment that our army has acquired and the level of precision have kept this treasure intact, but at the same time, we will be able to protect it for later extraction.”
Daily Wire reported:
The Colombian Navy also announced that they do not believe that the wreck of the San Jose, first discovered in 2015, had been disturbed.
“Under the guidelines of the Presidency of the Republic during the last two years, the Colombian Navy and the General Maritime Directorate, in a non-intrusive observation work carried out at the site where the Galleon San José rests, has verified that it has not suffered intervention or alterations by human action,” the Navy said.
Who gets the treasure of San Jose is still a question up for debate with Spain, Colombia, and others all claiming the rights to the valuable discovery.
Swords, hand-minted coins, crockery, and 17th-century cannons were among the items viewed by Colombian authorities.
“What we are talking about is an important wealth that has a lot to tell us about our past,” Colombian Maritime director Jose Joaquin Amezquita said.
Duque also said that the Colombian Navy is investigating the possible locations of approximately 12 other vessels in the area.
Artifacts discovered at the San Jose shipwreck also include intact crockery from the period bearing the galleon’s insignia and the cannon – made in Seville and Cadiz in Spain in 1655, and coins called “macuquinas,” which were minted by hand at the time, a gold ingot and the crew’s swords.