Spain Claims Sunken Treasure from Florida Deep-Sea Explorers

AP ^ | Thursday, May 08, 2008

[Joiseydude]

MADRID, Spain — Spain formally laid claim Thursday to a shipwreck that yielded a US$500 million treasure, saying it has proof the vessel was Spanish.

Officials demanded the return of the booty recovered last year by a U.S. deep-sea exploration firm, saying the 19th-century shipwreck at the heart of the dispute is the Nuestra Senora de las Mercedes — a Spanish warship sunk by the British navy southwest of Portugal in 1804 with more than 200 people on board.

[TexasRepublic]

What do you call a bus of lawyers that goes over a cliff with two empty seats?

A waste.

[TXnMA]

"What is the basis for Spain’s claim?"

Greed. And covetousness of that which was derived from the work of others (the salvors)...

[illiac]

Exactly!

[Polynikes]

“In return, modern day Incas demanded that Spain return all Incan gold, saying that they have proof that the gold came from what is now modern-day Mexico.”

Uhh.... The Incas were in South America I believe. Ecuador,Peru etc. The Aztecs were in Mexico,but I do see your point.

[Nuc1]

What do you call a bus of lawyers that goes over a cliff with two empty seats?

Missed opportunity.

[Wavrnr10]

Possession is 9 tenths. To the victor goes the spoils of war.

[Jonah Hex]

If you call a gathering of fish a school and a gathering of ravens a murder, then what do you call a gathering of lawyers?

(Hint: Begins with "C" and ends with "Y".)

[Finalapproach29er]

We’ll take the booty they attempted to steal, they can have their crappy ship back.

How’s that?

[weegee]

Inca are Peruvian.

[weegee]

Put it all back and let them retreive it.

[RightWhale]

If you say so.

[Natural Law]

"I think that a strong argument could be made that the gold and silver belongs to the Indians, who owned it long before the Spanish ever stepped foot into South America."

The Nuestra Senora de las Mercedes was sunk in 1804. That is more than 270 after the conquest of the Incas in 1532. By this time all Inca gold had already been confiscated, melted down and shipped to Spain. The gold aboard the Nuestra Senora de las Mercedes was most likely recently mined in South America (by descendants of the Incas).

[lafroste]

So the salvage crew locates it, retrieves it from the sea, and the Spanish government want it ALL? Wow!

If I were Odessey and lose the case, I'd throw every damn bit of it back into the sea and tell the Spanish to get it themselves.

[from occupied ga]

I guess the question is who had the mineral rights.

[montag813]

Better melt that gold fast!

[weegee]

[RightWhale]

Nope. No Irish down there in S America. Nevermind the red hair.

[Tallguy]

What is the basis for Spain’s claim?

There is an international treaty that prohibits the plunder of naval wrecks. Spain has a case. OTOH, I think the treaty is too broad. What connection does the current Spanish government have with the old Spanish Monarchy? Could not Peru lodge a claim as a 'successor state' an the originator of the shipment? Cuba pulls this stunt all the time with Spanish wrecks found in the Caribbean.

[Tallguy]

Reminds me of an old joke... ...what do you call 1,000 lawyers at the bottom of the sea?

Recalling that John Edwards may be involved in this, I'd say the answer is "Investors"?

[thundrey]

The ship was sunk off the coast of portugal, how could one of Spain’s former colonies claim it as a successor state? BTW, you were aware that the Spanish Monarchy was restored on the death of Franco in 1975 and still exists in constitutional form?

As for in this case, I think the treasure is the rightful property of the Spanish Navy and Government. IMHO they should negotiate a finders fee and a share of the treasure’s value with the finders, but the treasure itself should be at the disposal of the Spanish Government.
Unless you want to apply this principle universally so that say, Australian salvagers have free reign to pillage American shipwrecks at Guadalcanal and sell off all they find to the highest bidder......