Sunken Spanish galleon’s plunder that’s worth up to $1.5BILLION: First look at the wreck of wreck of the San Jose, 300 years after it sank
This is the first look at the wreck of a Spanish galleon that sank off the coast of Cartagena that is thought be laden with emeralds and gold and silver coins.
The San Jose was found submerged off the coast of Baru in what is now Colombia, near the Rosario Islands.
Experts sent down a deep-sea camera to examine the wreckage ahead of a planned salvage operation.
The first photos of the San Jose, a Spanish Galleon that sank off the coast of Cartagena more than 300 years ago, have been revealed
Finally found: Colombia’s president says searchers have found the wreck of the San José, a Spanish galleon that was sunk more than 300 years ago while carrying a big cargo of gold and precious stones
Experts sent down a deep-sea camera to examine the ship’s wreckage ahead of a planned salvage operation
Thus far, sonar images have spotted bronze cannons made specifically for the ship, arms, ceramics and other artifacts
Though no treasure has been found yet, it is believed that items found on the ship could be worth as much as $1.5billion.
Thus far, sonar images have spotted bronze cannons made specifically for the ship, arms, ceramics and other artifacts.
The San Jose sunk during an attack by the British in 1708 in the Caribbean Sea close to the walled port city of Cartagena.
It was discovered by a team of international experts, the Colombian Navy and the country’s archaeology institute.
Colombian President Juan Manuel Santos announced at a press conference on Saturday that the ship would be salvaged and showcased in a museum
It is believed that the ship could be holding emeralds and gold and silver coins worth as much as $1.5billion
The San Jose discovered by a team of international experts, the Colombian Navy and the country’s archaeology institute
GROWING AN EMPIRE: HOW SPANISH GALLEONS MADE ENDLESS VOYAGES BETWEEN EUROPE AND THE AMERICAS TO LOAD UP WITH GOLD AND SILVER
It is believed that more than 1,000 Spanish galleons and merchant ships sank off the coast of Colombia during three centuries of colonial rule.
At the height of the Spanish Empire, vessels sailed endlessly between Europe and the Americas, loading up gold, silver and other goods from the New World.
This was seized upon by the British, who tried to capture the ships as a way of cutting off Spain’s war finances.
One of those was the San Jose, which was tracked down 16 miles off Cartagena by English Commodore Charles Wager.
A fight ensued, with Wager planning to take control of the Spanish ship’s crew and cargo, but before the treasure-laden ship could be captured it was blown up. Most of those onboard were killed when the vessel sank more than 300 years ago.
The shipping of large values of treasure back to Spain also coincided with the ‘Golden Age of Piracy’, which began in the 16th century.
Britain, the Netherlands and France, all hostile to Spain, hired pirates to plunder Spanish galleons in the Caribbean Sea. These pirates, called privateers, also joined forces with local raiders from Jamaica, Tortuga and Hispaniola in the Caribbean, who were known as buccaneers.
Galleons were originally built as warships to escort the convoys of cargo ships sailing between Spain and the Americas. But things changed from the 17th century onwards, with all treasure from the New World later transported in the galleons themselves.
The sinking of so many Spanish ships left vast sums of treasure lying on the seabed, with some archaeologists estimating the total value of such wrecks to be worth tens of billions of dollars.
President Juan Manuel Santos said on Saturday that Colombia will build a museum to showcase artefacts found in the wreckage of San Jose.
Approximately 600 people died in the shipwreck, he said.
‘We will build a great museum here in Cartagena,’ Santos said on national television from Cartagena’s naval base.
‘Without a doubt, without room for any doubt, we have found, 307 years after it sank, the San Jose galleon,’ Santos said.
Ernesto Montenegro, Director of the Colombian Institute of Anthropology and History of Colombia, shows a picture of remains of the Galleon San Jose during a press conference in Cartagena, Colombia on Saturday
The ship was sunk in an attack by the British in 1708 and has been submerged off the coast of Baru in what is now Colombia near the Rosario Islands
https://youtu.be/8SmhPKtT7kY
The San Jose was the subject of a legal dispute between Colombia and Sea Search Armada (SSA), a U.S.-based salvage company. SSA said in 1981 it had located the area where the ship sank.
The company and the government agreed to split any proceeds from the wreckage, but the government later said all treasure would belong to Colombia, a view that was backed by a U.S. court in 2011.
Few government spokespeople will be able to speak further on the galleon until more investigations are completed, Santos said.
It was unclear how much of the body of the ship remained and whether it would be brought to dry land.
A Twitter message from President Juan Manuel Santos posted on Friday said more would be announced at Saturday’s press conference
