- The treasure includes 500 bars of gold bullion, half a million coins and jewelry
A hunt has been launched to find a ship sunk in 1641 that was carrying £1 billion worth of gold, silver and jewels.
The shipwreck lying just out of reach and undiscovered off the coast of Cornwall has baffled experts and confused salvage companies who have been trying for years to find the exact location.
All attempts to locate the shipwreck have failed, but the most recent clue emerged in 2019 when a giant, rusty 17th-century anchor was found, narrowing the search area.
Dive companies and rescue missions are now expected to descend on the coast around Land’s End to hunt for the wreck dubbed ‘the El Dorado of the seas’.
According to reports, the treasure included 500 bars of gold bullion, 400 ingots, half a million coins, jewelry and countless gemstones and pearls.
Groups have regularly scoured the seabed, looking in vain for the remains of the 17th-century ship the Merchant Royal, which sank after the leak occurred
It is said that around £1 billion worth of treasure has been lost, including gold bars, coins and jewelery dating back to the 1640s
The latest discovery was an anchor just off the Cornish coast, which helped narrow the search area
But Mark Milburn, who runs a diving company, Atlantic Scuba, and has been diving in the area for years, fears a gold rush could ensue as amateur divers try to locate the site of the extraordinary mystery.
Called the Merchant Royal, she was built in London in 1627 and was owned by English merchants.
Under the command of John Limbrey she sailed around the West Indies and Spain.
It is said that the ship began leaking badly in 1640, but after it was repaired it was decided that it would carry the Spanish colonial loot to Antwerp, in Belgium, before returning to London.
The Merchant Royal left for the expedition in August 1641, followed by the Dover Merchant. But along the way she started leaking again and nothing could be done to save her.
Eighteen men were killed, while 40 others, including the captain, were rescued by the Dover Merchant.
The treasure, believed to have been worth a third of England’s government funds at the time, was lost in the sea.
The glittering jewels and gold bars are thought to be worth hundreds of millions of pounds at today’s prices.
Mark Milburn has been diving in the area for years and fears a gold rush could ensue as amateur divers try to locate the site of the extraordinary mystery.
The rusty anchor is estimated to date from the period between 1600 and 1800 and could have belonged to the Merchant Royal.
Teams of divers searched for the ship and an American company even went on the TV show Treasure Quest, but could not find the treasure trove worth millions
After years of searching, 600,000 silver coins, hundreds of gold coins and other artifacts were found on the seabed in the Atlantic Ocean in 2007.
US company Odyssey Marine Exploration has recovered the horde, which was worth more than £300 million.
The treasure was rumored to have been part of the Merchant Royal and was taken to the United States, but after a lengthy legal wrangling, Odyssey was ordered to hand over the coins recovered from the wreck to Spain, indicating that the ship was actually a Spanish frigate. not the mysterious Merchant Royal.
Two years later the company continued its search on the TV show Treasure Quest, but all attempts to find the ‘El Dorado of the seas’ were unsuccessful until a huge anchor was found just off Land’s End in Cornwall in March 2019 by the fishing vessel Spirited. Lady.
It was estimated to date from a period between 1600 and 1800 and belonged to the Merchant Royal.
The discovery has limited the area where salvage companies can search for the treasure.