In 1715, a fleet of Spanish ships returning from the New World was caught in a hurricane off the coast of Florida, losing an estimated $400 million worth of gold, silver, and jewels to the storm.
The area in Florida is now aptly nicknamed the Treasure Coast. This summer, over 300 years after the fateful wreck, more than 1,000 silver coins and 5 gold coins were recovered from the wreckage by the "1715 Fleet Queens Jewels" shipwreck salvage company. The 1,000 coins are estimated to be worth more than $1 million.
Director of Operations for 1715 Fleet Queens Jewels, Sal Guttuso, said in a statement,
This discovery is not only about the treasure itself, but the stories it tells. Each coin is a piece of history, a tangible link to the people who lived, worked, and sailed during the Golden Age of the Spanish Empire. Finding 1,000 of them in a single recovery is both rare and extraordinary.
The coins are pieces of eight coming from Mexico, Peru, and Bolivia and are believed to have all come from a single chest, which likely spilled out during the storm that caused the shipwreck.
The coins will go through a lengthy conservation process, and then Florida's law requires that 20% of the findings be donated to museums. The remaining 80% will go to the company and its subcontractors (also known as treasure hunters) who found the coins.
Guttuso went on to say,
Every find helps piece together the human story of the 1715 fleet. We are committed to preserving and studying these artifacts so future generations can appreciate their historical significance.
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