BVI Hunter
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I will tell all my friends. Ah Yes, BVI Hunter, I knew him before he became famous
I will tell all my friends. Ah Yes, BVI Hunter, I knew him before he became famous
YOU are invited to my party on my new Super Yacht.....
Just don't shipwreck it, otherwise someone might be salvaging it in another 300 years! I can see the Headlines now "Super Yacht that shipwrecked in 2014 found with thousands of 600 year old Spanish Coins onboard". LOL!!!!
Frank
And a load of drunken TN-ers on board too.....
I am glad that I found this Thread and may still have time to offer some advice! IMHO, you should seriously and quickly seek out some legal advice, the laws concerning salvaging a shipwreck, filing a claim on the wreck as an unknown (name to be determined later) to secure the soul rights to it's salvage from the beaches out to a mile or even more if you think it is needed and look into security to protect the wreck, what it was carrying and the salvage operation. I spent 6 years in Key West with my job and knew Mel Fisher personally as well as his wife and one of his underwater salvage photographers (sold him my' maroon/red 1977 Pontiac Grand Prix). If you have been in contact with anyone with the Mel Fisher Maritime Museum or their' salvage operations, I can't understand why they would not advise you of doing these things. If you don't, a Salvage Company can come in, file claims and take everything right out from under you! The next thing you have to worry about is when the wreck is identified, is whether or not Spain will file a claim demanding that everything that was found concerning the shipwreck be returned to them, with the old argument that Spain never abandoned the wreck because they did not know where to look.
Anyway, super nice find, congrats on the Banner and I hope that you are able to salvage and keep or sell the entire contents of the wreck!
Frank
This weekend should tell - although I have booked in my PADI so I can explore for the next few months (still have the issue of finding a dive buddy I can trust)
I plan to set me underwater camera to "timer" and lower it on a weighted line to try to find this "item" or anything else down there!
Any other suggestions??
Good luck and be careful not to draw too much attention! Oh, if you just had a magnetometer or a really good underwater metal detector! A cannon with identifiable markings could lead to the origin of the ship and who knows, maybe the name of the ship. Due to the weight of cannons, they don't move very well on the sea floor even during hurricanes, so if you find more than one, then you may be on top of the shipwreck and the Mother lode.
Oh and I almost forgot, if you haven't already metal detected from the water's edge to several hundred yards inland, don't neglect to do so! In the Florida Keys, pieces of eight coins from a shipwreck on the Atlantic side were moved by the many hurricanes over 300 years and blown into and across the sand dunes and some ended up on (that should be in, right?) the sea floor on the Gulf side. A friend found 2 pieces of eight (don't remember the denomination) at this spot, then later working with a partner, they found over thirty 1, 2, 4 and 8 Reale pieces on their first trip together. They found more on another trip but then my friend found that his partner was sneaking back at night, digging more pieces of eight and had totally destroyed the Sea Oats in the sand dunes. Due to this, it wasn't long before the authorities put the site off-limits.
Frank
This weekend should tell - although I have booked in my PADI so I can explore for the next few months (still have the issue of finding a dive buddy I can trust)
I plan to set me underwater camera to "timer" and lower it on a weighted line to try to find this "item" or anything else down there!
Any other suggestions??
If it's not someone that you know well, then you can't trust them. Sometimes even people you know well will screw you over. Not trying to sound negative but you can't be too careful. I don't know anything about making claim to a shipwreck sight but it would be great if you could get the rights to it then when you find someone you feel is trustworthy you have them sign a confidentiality agreement and put it in a contract how the finds are divided. I've been a certified diver since 1981 and I'm trustworthy . Too bad I'm so far away.
Have not been back to the site too much, as I don't want to draw attention to it - its a very small island that no one has reason to go to (not god fishing, quite barren, not tourist activities, rocky with little beach etc)
I have pulled up some musket and flintlock pistols parts, as well as more shot and canon balls, plus a few items I don't want to reveal just yet.
I have started plotting these finds on a GPS, and have mapped on Google Earth, a distinctive "line" of finds, heading in a curve toward a small lagoon / bay.
In talking to the old locals etc, one or two said they used to swim there as kids while there fathers were fishing and they talk of seeing "the big occurs"......
(I have not spelt that right, its a creole word which roughly translates into PEN*S) but asking others it seems they have seen something man-made on the sea bed but cant say what it is.
Its too deep for me to snorkel or free dive, and I need to get out there without drawing attention to it, once I get my PADI this month.
I'm thinking its a canon.
[video=vimeo;25522395]http://vimeo.com/25522395[/video]
Around 10 0r 11 minutes in ....great video similar coins
maybe we need a dive consortium!!!
LOL!!! I ain't much for diving but I don't mind getting my' a$% wet! Aarrgh me matey.
Frank
YOU are invited to my party on my new Super Yacht.....
I will take you up on that, first round on me Oh btw did I mention I am a certified PADI Search and Recovery expert diver ?
Now suddenly EVERYONES a diver...
Ok, Ok,... your in the consortium too.....