Mysterious Oak Island up for sale

WESTERN SHORE, N.S. -- Oak Island's famous modern-day treasure hunters, Dan Blankenship and David Tobias, say they're willing to sell their Nova Scotia island properties and help inject millions of dollars into the tourism industry.

But their asking price is too high for the Oak Island Tourism Association, which has asked the principal landowners whether they'd sell their land or open it up for public access.

Mr. Blankenship and Mr. Tobias, both in their late seventies, own 78 per cent of the island.

Nobody knows what, if anything, is buried there, but theories abound. They range from the crown jewels of France to the pirate treasure of Henry Morgan or Captain Kidd.

For more than 200 years, hordes of treasure hunters have flocked to the 13-hectare island in Mahone Bay and millions of dollars have been spent trying to unlock its mystery.

The island has been closed to the public since 1995, but people still visit the area, asking questions about the legend and gazing across the water at the island.

Tourism association president John Chataway said that tourism, not gold, is the island's biggest hidden treasure.

"Oak Island is considered to be one of the top 10 mysteries in the world," he said. "Nearly everyone knows stories about Oak Island and people literally come here from around the world but can't get on the island. Therefore, we should do something that brings people to us."

Mr. Blankenship, who lives on the island, confirmed he would sell his land. Mr. Tobias, contacted at his home in Quebec, also said he is willing to sell and is co-operating with the tourism association.

Famed Nova Scotia treasure hunter Fred Nolan, a minor landowner on the island, said he hasn't been contacted by the group and couldn't comment until he sees its proposal.

Update

OTTAWA, July 5 (Xinhuanet) -- A legendary "treasure island" in Canada's eastern province of Nova Scotia is to be sold for about six million US dollars after the two estranged business partners agreed to give up their hunt for the buried treasure.

Dan Blankenship, 82, and David Tobias, 81, who own most of the Oak Island, located off Nova Scotia's South Shore, have decided to shut down their business, Oak Island Tours Inc., and offered to sell it to the provincial government for seven million Canadian dollars, Canadian Broadcasting Corporation (CBC) said on Tuesday.

The island was rumored for two centuries as the home of hidden treasure including pirates booty, the royal jewels of France, the treasures of King Solomon's temple, and the Holy Grail.

A court-appointed liquidator hoped to wind up the business at the end of August, CBC said. At that time, the island could change hands, provided that the partners and the court approve the sale.

First discovered by a teenager in 1795, the mysterious money pit of the Oak Island, has stymied treasure hunters for decades, but 200 years of searching has failed to yield any thing. Blankenship and Tobias have spent almost 40 years in their search.

Modern engineering has failed to crack the mystery of various layers of logs and metals, mysterious inscriptions on stones, and booby traps that have either flooded the pit or caused it to collapse inward. Enditem

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