Treasure hunter after $1.7b in gold bullion

URUGUAY: Since it was sunk more than 250 years ago by Spanish cannon fire, the Lord Clive has lain off the southwest coast of Uruguay.

But next month a treasure hunter from Argentina will attempt to haul the British privateer out of the water – and with it, he hopes, £1 billion (NZ$1.73b) of gold bullion thought to be on board.

Ruben Collado, who discovered the wreck in 2004, is leading the operation to raise it.

On February 10 he will send a team of divers into the estuary of the River Plate to begin the recovery of the 64-gun vessel.

The ship was sunk by cannon fire in 1763 at the end of the Seven Years’ War during an attempt to retake Colonia del Sacramento, a former colony of Britain’s ally Portugal, which had been seized by the Spanish.

The Spanish had been tipped off, however, and when Robert McNamara, the captain of the Lord Clive, launched his attack, the ship was bombarded from the shore, and 272 people on board died.

The wreck, which lies 380 metres off the coast, is just five metres down.

But the Spanish loaded rocks on top of its hull to prevent it from floating to the surface, complicating its recovery.

Collado estimates the operation will require a team of 80 divers, technicians and support staff and cost £4 million.

He said the effort is worth it not only for the ship’s riches, but also for its cultural significance, arguing that its sinking changed the course of Latin American history.

‘‘If that ship had not failed in its attempt to retake the city of Colonia del Sacramento, today we could be speaking English throughout Latin America.’’

– Sunday Times