Posted on 06/18/2007 12:15:06 PM PDT by BenLurkin
KEY WEST, Fla. - Salvagers discovered thousands of pearls Friday in a small, lead box they said they found while searching for the wreckage of the 17th-century Spanish galleon Santa Margarita.
Divers from Blue Water Ventures of Key West said they found the sealed box, measuring 3.5 inches by 5.5 inches, along with a gold bar, eight gold chains and hundreds of other artifacts earlier this week.
They were apparently buried beneath the ocean floor in approximately 18 feet of water about 40 miles west of Key West.
"There are several thousand pearls starting from an eighth of an inch to three-quarters of an inch," said Duncan Mathewson, marine archaeologist and partner in Blue Water Ventures.
James Sinclair, archaeologist and conservator consulting with Mel Fisher's Treasures, Blue Water's joint-venture partners, said the pearls are very rare because of their antiquity and condition.
Sinclair said pearls don't normally survive the ocean water once they are out of the oyster that makes them.
"In this instance, we had a lead box and the silt that had sifted into the box from the site of the Margarita, which preserved the pearls in a fairly pristine state," he said.
An initial cache of treasure and artifacts from the Santa Margarita was discovered in 1980 by pioneering shipwreck salvor Mel Fisher. The ship was bound for Spain when it sank in a hurricane in 1622.
The pearls will be conserved, documented and photographed in an archaeological laboratory above the Mel Fisher Maritime Museum in Key West.
"Until they're properly cleaned and conserved we don't know their value, but it would seem they would be worth upwards of a million dollars," Mathewson said.
Ahhh, pearls from Maricabo!
Looks like rocks to me.
They don’t look like much to me but I don’t know pearls.
Or British teeth.
What I find curious is that they Spanish placed the pearls in a sealed lead box. What would be their purpose in doing that?
Gravel for your fish tank!
LMAO!
Geez, if I found those, i’d probably discard them as worthless. I better pay closer attention!
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A lot of times, things look really strange in photos, but if you were to hold them, I'm sure the pearls would make themselves known, just by their feel. Interesting article!
Pearls, but no tequila???
Nearby, a slightly newer wreck contained thousands of swine. [rimshot!]
Any word on the welfare of the crew?????
Thanks for that pearl of wisdom.
*snort!*
Howdy!
Just making my daily contribution to the culture.
[rimshot!]
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