Has anyone heard anything about a shipwreck being found in the Atlantic recently? My wife just called me and said that she heard it on the news. Just wanted to see if anyone could confirm this.
Eli Stepp
Eli Stepp
500 Million shipwreck found in the Atlantic???
- Thread starter elistepp
- Start date
kenb
Bronze Member
Shipwreck yields estimated $500M haul
By MITCH STACY, Associated Press Writer
TAMPA, Fla. - Deep-sea explorers said Friday they have mined what could be the richest shipwreck treasure in history, bringing home 17 tons of colonial-era silver and gold coins from an undisclosed site in the Atlantic Ocean. Estimated value: $500 million.
A jet chartered by Tampa-based Odyssey Marine Exploration landed in the United States recently with hundreds of plastic containers brimming with coins raised from the ocean floor, Odyssey co-chairman Greg Stemm said. The more than 500,000 pieces are expected to fetch an average of $1,000 each from collectors and investors.
"For this colonial era, I think (the find) is unprecedented," said rare coin expert Nick Bruyer, who examined a batch of coins from the wreck. "I don't know of anything equal or comparable to it."
Citing security concerns, the company declined to release any details about the ship or the wreck site Friday. Stemm said a formal announcement will come later, but court records indicate the coins might come from a 400-year-old ship found off England.
Because the shipwreck was found in a lane where many colonial-era vessels went down, there is still some uncertainty about its nationality, size and age, Stemm said, although evidence points to a specific known shipwreck. The site is beyond the territorial waters or legal jurisdiction of any country, he said.
"Rather than a shout of glee, it's more being able to exhale for the first time in a long time," Stemm said of the haul, by far the biggest in Odyssey's 13-year history.
He wouldn't say if the loot was taken from the same wreck site near the English Channel that Odyssey recently petitioned a federal court for permission to salvage.
In seeking exclusive rights to that site, an Odyssey attorney told a federal judge last fall that the company likely had found the remains of a 17th-century merchant vessel that sank with valuable cargo aboard, about 40 miles off the southwestern tip of England. A judge signed an order granting those rights last month.
In keeping with the secretive nature of the project dubbed "Black Swan," Odyssey also isn't talking yet about the types, denominations and country of origin of the coins.
Bruyer said he observed a wide range of varieties and dates of likely uncirculated currency in much better condition than artifacts yielded by most shipwrecks of a similar age.
The Black Swan coins — mostly silver pieces — likely will fetch several hundred dollars to several thousand dollars each, with some possibly commanding much more, he said. Value is determined by rarity, condition and the story behind them.
Controlled release of the coins into the market along with their expected high value to collectors likely will keep prices at a premium, he said.
The richest ever shipwreck haul was yielded by the Spanish galleon Nuestra Senora de Atocha, which sank in a hurricane off the Florida Keys in 1622. Treasure-hunting pioneer Mel Fisher found it in 1985, retrieving a reported $400 million in coins and other loot.
Odyssey likely will return to the same spot for more coins and artifacts.
"We have treated this site with kid gloves and the archaeological work done by our team out there is unsurpassed," Odyssey CEO John Morris said. "We are thoroughly documenting and recording the site, which we believe will have immense historical significance."
The news is timely for Odyssey, the only publicly traded company of its kind.
The company salvaged more than 50,000 coins and other artifacts from the wreck of the SS Republic off Savannah, Ga., in 2003, making millions. But Odyssey posted losses in 2005 and 2006 while using its expensive, state-of-the-art ships and deep-water robotic equipment to hunt for the next mother lode.
"The outside world now understands that what we do is a real business and is repeatable and not just a lucky one shot deal," Stemm said. "I don't know of anybody else who has hit more than one economically significant shipwreck."
In January, Odyssey won permission from the Spanish government to resume a suspended search for the wreck of the HMS Sussex, which was leading a British fleet into the Mediterranean Sea for a war against France in 1694 when it sank in a storm off Gibraltar.
Historians believe the 157-foot warship was carrying nine tons of gold coins to buy the loyalty of the Duke of Savoy, a potential ally in southeastern France. Odyssey believes those coins could also fetch more than $500 million.
But under the terms of a historic agreement Odyssey will have to share any finds with the British government. The company will get 80 percent of the first $45 million and about 50 percent of the proceeds thereafter.
By MITCH STACY, Associated Press Writer
TAMPA, Fla. - Deep-sea explorers said Friday they have mined what could be the richest shipwreck treasure in history, bringing home 17 tons of colonial-era silver and gold coins from an undisclosed site in the Atlantic Ocean. Estimated value: $500 million.
A jet chartered by Tampa-based Odyssey Marine Exploration landed in the United States recently with hundreds of plastic containers brimming with coins raised from the ocean floor, Odyssey co-chairman Greg Stemm said. The more than 500,000 pieces are expected to fetch an average of $1,000 each from collectors and investors.
"For this colonial era, I think (the find) is unprecedented," said rare coin expert Nick Bruyer, who examined a batch of coins from the wreck. "I don't know of anything equal or comparable to it."
Citing security concerns, the company declined to release any details about the ship or the wreck site Friday. Stemm said a formal announcement will come later, but court records indicate the coins might come from a 400-year-old ship found off England.
Because the shipwreck was found in a lane where many colonial-era vessels went down, there is still some uncertainty about its nationality, size and age, Stemm said, although evidence points to a specific known shipwreck. The site is beyond the territorial waters or legal jurisdiction of any country, he said.
"Rather than a shout of glee, it's more being able to exhale for the first time in a long time," Stemm said of the haul, by far the biggest in Odyssey's 13-year history.
He wouldn't say if the loot was taken from the same wreck site near the English Channel that Odyssey recently petitioned a federal court for permission to salvage.
In seeking exclusive rights to that site, an Odyssey attorney told a federal judge last fall that the company likely had found the remains of a 17th-century merchant vessel that sank with valuable cargo aboard, about 40 miles off the southwestern tip of England. A judge signed an order granting those rights last month.
In keeping with the secretive nature of the project dubbed "Black Swan," Odyssey also isn't talking yet about the types, denominations and country of origin of the coins.
Bruyer said he observed a wide range of varieties and dates of likely uncirculated currency in much better condition than artifacts yielded by most shipwrecks of a similar age.
The Black Swan coins — mostly silver pieces — likely will fetch several hundred dollars to several thousand dollars each, with some possibly commanding much more, he said. Value is determined by rarity, condition and the story behind them.
Controlled release of the coins into the market along with their expected high value to collectors likely will keep prices at a premium, he said.
The richest ever shipwreck haul was yielded by the Spanish galleon Nuestra Senora de Atocha, which sank in a hurricane off the Florida Keys in 1622. Treasure-hunting pioneer Mel Fisher found it in 1985, retrieving a reported $400 million in coins and other loot.
Odyssey likely will return to the same spot for more coins and artifacts.
"We have treated this site with kid gloves and the archaeological work done by our team out there is unsurpassed," Odyssey CEO John Morris said. "We are thoroughly documenting and recording the site, which we believe will have immense historical significance."
The news is timely for Odyssey, the only publicly traded company of its kind.
The company salvaged more than 50,000 coins and other artifacts from the wreck of the SS Republic off Savannah, Ga., in 2003, making millions. But Odyssey posted losses in 2005 and 2006 while using its expensive, state-of-the-art ships and deep-water robotic equipment to hunt for the next mother lode.
"The outside world now understands that what we do is a real business and is repeatable and not just a lucky one shot deal," Stemm said. "I don't know of anybody else who has hit more than one economically significant shipwreck."
In January, Odyssey won permission from the Spanish government to resume a suspended search for the wreck of the HMS Sussex, which was leading a British fleet into the Mediterranean Sea for a war against France in 1694 when it sank in a storm off Gibraltar.
Historians believe the 157-foot warship was carrying nine tons of gold coins to buy the loyalty of the Duke of Savoy, a potential ally in southeastern France. Odyssey believes those coins could also fetch more than $500 million.
But under the terms of a historic agreement Odyssey will have to share any finds with the British government. The company will get 80 percent of the first $45 million and about 50 percent of the proceeds thereafter.
Mercury dude
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I just wants 4 coins, can I have them, please LOL
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let's see....
Jeff K; It looks like the value of our investment has more than doubled in value just in this mornings trading alone.
StickShift
Full Member
Go to
http://www.drudgereport.com/
and scroll one third down on the left and follow the link to see
the square buckets full of silver coins.
StickShift 8)
http://www.drudgereport.com/
and scroll one third down on the left and follow the link to see
the square buckets full of silver coins.
StickShift 8)
START COUNTING: Odyssey Marine Exploration co-founder Greg Stemm, left, examines coins recovered from the "Black Swan" shipwreck.
Deep-sea explorers said Friday they have mined what could be the richest shipwreck treasure in history, bringing home 17 tons of colonial-era silver and gold coins from an undisclosed site in the Atlantic Ocean. Estimated value: $500 million.
Deep-sea explorers said Friday they have mined what could be the richest shipwreck treasure in history, bringing home 17 tons of colonial-era silver and gold coins from an undisclosed site in the Atlantic Ocean. Estimated value: $500 million.
Attachments
Re: 500 Million shipwreck found in the Atlantic
- CNN link also
http://www.cnn.com/2007/US/05/18/treasure.ship.ap/index.html
same story on CNN.
Nice score! Congrats to all involved.
- CNN link alsohttp://www.cnn.com/2007/US/05/18/treasure.ship.ap/index.html
same story on CNN.
Nice score! Congrats to all involved.
F
fighton
Guest
was this out of left field for anyone else? i had my eye on the sussex mess hopefully being cleared up, and then this news came along. i wonder what other projects they have under the radar...
Blacksheep 6
Jr. Member
Wreckdiver....
Wreckdiver...didn't know you were in OMR too...congrats to all us longs...caught wind of them just before they went public and am averaged in at 2.78...used to see you on 1715 Plate Fleet thread that I started 2 years ago...alas, work temporarily steered me away from here...but naturally came here after hearing of find...possibly a sweet job setting up in Ft. Pierce...would love to relocate there...Anyhow, enough jibbering...congrats on the spike today!!!
Wreckdiver...didn't know you were in OMR too...congrats to all us longs...caught wind of them just before they went public and am averaged in at 2.78...used to see you on 1715 Plate Fleet thread that I started 2 years ago...alas, work temporarily steered me away from here...but naturally came here after hearing of find...possibly a sweet job setting up in Ft. Pierce...would love to relocate there...Anyhow, enough jibbering...congrats on the spike today!!!
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Thanks Blacksheep6, I've been watching OMR since 2002, they we're still in the pink sheets trading at 0.15 per share. My total average in is near 3.00 as well. So it's a good day for all of us who have believed in OMR. We have had to put up with a lot of folks who don't share our vision, and a lot of political bull from many in the UK who don't like the idea of a company from the colonies recovering the Sussex. Of course it's too early to pop the cork on Sussex. However, we don't have long to see if that's going to drive our profits even further. Since I am a gambling man, I'm going to say let it ride.
Salvor6
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To buy shares, go to Scott Trade. I believe the wreck they found is the British ship "Merchant Royal" that sank in 1641. The MR went down in a storm about 40 miles S.W. of England. She carried 300,000 British pounds in silver and 100,000 in gold from Mexico.
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racerx said:
First you have to establish an account with a trading house. I have online accounts at Charles Schwab, and TD Ameritrade. Then you just search for the stock symbol for the stock you want and hit the buy button. Not very hard to do once you play with it a while. A note of caution though, investing like gambling involves risk and there are no guarantees. I have lost lots of money on some investments over the years. But I use a method called dollar cost averaging, and have managed to pick more winners than losers over the years.
I am not a stock broker, so please don’t rely on my opinions on investing. Do your homework or hire a professional. I would not buy OMR stock at the opening bell on Monday! My guess is that it will fall in price as some investors sell the stock to take profits. However, keep an eye on it because there will be lots of folks scrambling to get on board with this one once the price falls a few points.
Good hunting and good investing.
Tom
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That would create an excellent buying opportunity for all that missed the last ride on Friday (that is not yet over). In any case, it always seems that when someone finds the big one, there are plenty of people waiting in the wings to claim that it belongs to them.
The State of Florida did it to Mel Fisher, and he beat them, and Odyssey Marine has been down this road with the Republic wreck, and I am sure they will beat that unjust legal action as well.
With all the anti Odyssey folks watching Odyssey Explorers every move in and out of the port of Gibraltar, you think they would already know the exact location of this new wreck. It must be that the cloaking device is working well.
So I have a question, why does this handfull of people want to see Odyssey Marine fail?
The State of Florida did it to Mel Fisher, and he beat them, and Odyssey Marine has been down this road with the Republic wreck, and I am sure they will beat that unjust legal action as well.
With all the anti Odyssey folks watching Odyssey Explorers every move in and out of the port of Gibraltar, you think they would already know the exact location of this new wreck. It must be that the cloaking device is working well.
So I have a question, why does this handfull of people want to see Odyssey Marine fail?
Salvor6
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Hey Tom,
I asked the Director of History Hunters the same question and here is his reply: Solomon wrote to me and said he thought History Hunters was being used as a pawn to drive up Odyssey's stock price. He also said Odyssey refused to publish the documents that supported their claim that the Sussex had 9 tons of gold on board. Solomon pointed out that his interest is in maritime archaeology, not marine salvage and said none of Odyssey's archaeologists were qualified in that field. The professional bodies - CBA, NAS, AAA and so on are opposed to the salvage of the Sussex and the directors of HH are members of those bodies. Finally he claims that some of Odyssey's investors hired a team of professional hackers to attack his web site! I don't agree with his views, I'm just telling you what Solomon said.
I asked the Director of History Hunters the same question and here is his reply: Solomon wrote to me and said he thought History Hunters was being used as a pawn to drive up Odyssey's stock price. He also said Odyssey refused to publish the documents that supported their claim that the Sussex had 9 tons of gold on board. Solomon pointed out that his interest is in maritime archaeology, not marine salvage and said none of Odyssey's archaeologists were qualified in that field. The professional bodies - CBA, NAS, AAA and so on are opposed to the salvage of the Sussex and the directors of HH are members of those bodies. Finally he claims that some of Odyssey's investors hired a team of professional hackers to attack his web site! I don't agree with his views, I'm just telling you what Solomon said.
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Salvor 6, thanks for the reply. I find his statements to you some what enlightening.
1. Somehow I have a hard time seeing how a company like that would resort to using a web site like this, or his to hype up the stock price. First of all their daily hit rate on that web site are very low, well it just does not make sense. They would reach a bigger and slightly wealthier audience if they took an add out in our weekly paper the Satellite Beach Orbiter. But OK that's what they think. Oh! Yea, that’s the purpose of Press Releases to get people excited about the stock, well, that and pulling 500 million dollars of booty off the bottom, that works well towards getting investors excited about a stock as well. Just a thought! I could be wrong, but I am not.
2. Odyssey refused to provide them with copies of the documents showing proof that the HMS Sussex was loaded with 9 tons of Gold. I can hear Gregg Stemm now. Sure, this is our research, oh and would you like the GPS coordinates to the other wreck we just recovered as well, oh yea, here are another half dozen wrecks we found while twiddling our thumbs, waiting on diplomacy to work itself out for the Sussex project. Please, give me a break. With the amount of money that is riding on this venture, its best to keep all of that information as secret as possible. IMHO
3. That bunch at the HHI site are institutional archaeologists; of course they do not support the Sussex project. If they did it would be adding legitimacy to a bunch of "American Treasure Hunters", plundering a British warship, and we can't have archaeologists and treasure hunters working side by side, now can we?
4. Why would Odysseys investors waste there time, energy, and money paying professional hackers to attack the HHI site? Well… I guess it’s possible, but I doubt it’s very probable. I think that’s how HHI got the idea to launch a handful of disrupters into the TreasureNet system? Damn, I just had to ban Grubby, again, the second time in as many months. If you ask me that speaks volumes about the character of these alleged professionals. They cry because someone attacks their web site, but turn around and try the same bull on this site. Give me a break!
Try this link for more "Treasure Hunter -v- Archaeologists" http://forum.treasurenet.com/index.php/topic,28688.0.html
Tom
1. Somehow I have a hard time seeing how a company like that would resort to using a web site like this, or his to hype up the stock price. First of all their daily hit rate on that web site are very low, well it just does not make sense. They would reach a bigger and slightly wealthier audience if they took an add out in our weekly paper the Satellite Beach Orbiter. But OK that's what they think. Oh! Yea, that’s the purpose of Press Releases to get people excited about the stock, well, that and pulling 500 million dollars of booty off the bottom, that works well towards getting investors excited about a stock as well. Just a thought! I could be wrong, but I am not.
2. Odyssey refused to provide them with copies of the documents showing proof that the HMS Sussex was loaded with 9 tons of Gold. I can hear Gregg Stemm now. Sure, this is our research, oh and would you like the GPS coordinates to the other wreck we just recovered as well, oh yea, here are another half dozen wrecks we found while twiddling our thumbs, waiting on diplomacy to work itself out for the Sussex project. Please, give me a break. With the amount of money that is riding on this venture, its best to keep all of that information as secret as possible. IMHO
3. That bunch at the HHI site are institutional archaeologists; of course they do not support the Sussex project. If they did it would be adding legitimacy to a bunch of "American Treasure Hunters", plundering a British warship, and we can't have archaeologists and treasure hunters working side by side, now can we?
4. Why would Odysseys investors waste there time, energy, and money paying professional hackers to attack the HHI site? Well… I guess it’s possible, but I doubt it’s very probable. I think that’s how HHI got the idea to launch a handful of disrupters into the TreasureNet system? Damn, I just had to ban Grubby, again, the second time in as many months. If you ask me that speaks volumes about the character of these alleged professionals. They cry because someone attacks their web site, but turn around and try the same bull on this site. Give me a break!
Try this link for more "Treasure Hunter -v- Archaeologists" http://forum.treasurenet.com/index.php/topic,28688.0.html
Tom
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