27. 5. 2007 Divers discover thousands of pearls

The real treasure was discovered fourteen years ago by divers off the coast of Florida. They recovered several thousand pearls from the water. They're valued at around one million dollars.

The divers recovered the pearls from the wreck of the Santa Margarita, which was sailing from the New World to Spain when it was sunk by a hurricane off Florida in 1622. "We discovered several thousand pearls, ranging from three to 19 millimetres in diameter," said Duncan Mathewson, who specialises in underwater archaeology.

Experts say the find is rare because of the age of the pearls and their preservation. "It is unusual for pearls to last this long in seawater after being removed from a pearlfish," added James Sinclair.

The pearls were in a small lead box that contained an unexpected bonus. "Thanks to the box they were kept in, the fine mud that went inside protected the contents from the aggressive salt water," Sinclair added.

Divers had previously discovered more than $1 million worth of gold and artifacts in the wreck. Specifically, it included a gold bar, eight gold chains and several hundred other items. The pearls could have doubled the final amount.

The pearls underwent expert conservation at the Key West Archaeological Laboratory, and experts then took photo documentation. This was necessary to determine the true value of the pearls. "We also have a theory about the origin of the pearls. We think they may have belonged to a wealthy jeweler who traveled on the Santa Margarita," Mathewson outlined.

Mel Fisher discovered the shipwreck back in 1980 and recovered the first part of the treasure from the sunken ship. The pearls and other beautiful artifacts were then found by Blue Water Ventures, which spent two years searching for the rest of the wreck. They entered into a cooperative agreement with the group Fisher, which is now led Fisherby his son Kim Fisher.

Mel Fisher is one of the most famous treasure hunters. He's also a visionary and a dreamer. He's also the man who has won over 100 lawsuits over treasure from discovered shipwrecks. For example, he became rich thanks to the discovery of the wreck of the Spanish galleon Nuestra Senora de Atocha, which he discovered in 1985...

You can read more about Mel Fisher here:

https://www.lovecpokladu.cz/home/mel-fisher-legenda-26
Sources: https://fla-keys.com/, www.nbcnews.com