Spain disputes Colombia’s claim on sunken treasure trove

BOGOTA—Billions of dollars in gold and silver from an 18th-century shipwreck have left Spain and former colony Colombia at odds over who rightfully owns the loot.

The disagreement is over the “San Jose,” a treasure ship wreck that Colombia located recently off the coast of Cartagena de Indias.

The “San Jose” sank in June 1708 near the Islas del Rosario, during combat with British ships attempting to take its cargo, as part of the War of Spanish Succession.

The galleon was the main ship in a treasure fleet carrying gold and silver—likely extracted from Spanish colonial mines in Peru and Bolivia—and other valuables to King Philip V.

President Juan Manuel Santos announced in early December that experts had found the “San Jose” on Nov. 27 in a place never searched before.

So who owns the estimated $2 billion in loot?

“There are discrepancies on the issue of legal ownership,” said Spain’s Foreign Minister Jose Manuel Garcia-Margallo. He met on Saturday with his Colombian counterpart María Angel Holguin in Cartagena.

Spain in part based its arguments on United Nations’ Law of the Sea rules. But Colombia is not a signatory to the treaty and, as such, not subject to those regulations.

The Spanish diplomat said he hoped a “road map for an understanding” could be hammered out given the countries’ excellent relations.

Treasure hunters had searched for the ship, described by some as the holy grail of wrecks, for decades.

The loot is estimated to be worth at least $2 billion, its value having dropped significantly due to the falling price of silver, according to US-based company Sea Search Armada.