Booty-full!
TREASURE CHESTS OF SUNKEN WRECKS
Titanic (£150million)
The RMS Titanic struck an Atlantic iceberg in 1912 and sank, with its wreck found in 1985. Over £200million worth of diamonds alone is reckoned to have been lost aboard and the jewels already brought up from the site are worth a mint.
Silver Steamer (£165m)
British ship the SS Gairsoppa was torpedoed by a U-boat in 1941 during World War Two, with 200 tons of silver on board. The wreck was located in 2012, off the coast of Ireland. Thousands of silver ingots have been salvaged.
Ship of Gold (£236m)
The SS Central America sank in the Atlantic in 1857 while carrying over 20 tons of gold. Much of it has been recovered since the wreck was found, including an 80lb ingot that sold for over £6m.
Pirate Galleon (£315m)
The Whydah Gally was a ship captured by English pirate “Black Sam” Bellamy – known as the wealthiest pirate in history. But it sank, along with its captain, in a storm off the US coast in 1717. It wasn’t discovered until 1984 – along with 200,000 artefacts, including silver and gold.
Atocha “Motherlode” (£354m)
The Spanish ship Nuestra Senora de Atocha, sank off Florida in 1622. It was discovered in 1985 by treasure hunter Mel Fisher. It contained 40 tons of gold and silver, emeralds and over 100,000 “Pieces of Eight.” That’s only half of what’s down there!
Black Swan (£390m)
The Black Swan project was a name for 17 tons of silver and gold coins found by American company Odyssey Marine Exploration from a wreck off Portugal. It later emerged it was from the Nuestra Senora de las Mercedes, a Spanish ship which sank in 1804. The booty was later handed to Spain.
Royal Merchant (£1bn)
The English merchant ship sank 30 miles off Land’s End in Cornwall in 1641 stuffed with gold, silver, and 500,000 Pieces of Eight. Despite searches, the ship’s lasting resting place is yet to be discovered, though in 2019 fishermen pulled up an anchor that could belong to it.
Flor de la Mar (£2bn)
The Portuguese ship, loaded up with the spoils of war, sank somewhere off the coast of modern Indonesia in 1511. It is estimated to have been carrying a staggering 80 tons of gold.
RMS Republic (£5.5bn)
A British passenger liner which sank off the US coast in 1909, after colliding with another ship. It had 45 tons of gold, US Navy payroll as well as collectable American Eagle gold coins on board.