New artifacts found on the legendary Spanish galleon San Josethe Colombian government announced on Thursday after the first robotic exploration of the three-century-old shipwreck.
Called “Holy Grail” of shipwrecksThe San Jose was the property of the Spanish crown when it was sunk by the British Navy near Cartagena in 1708. Only a handful of the 600-man crew survived.
In February, the Colombian government announced that it would begin salvaging the ship off the Caribbean coast. The wreck is said to contain treasures worth billions of dollars.
“The results of this exploration have revealed an unprecedented amount of archaeological evidence that has significantly increased our knowledge,” said a statement from the institutions responsible for exploring the wreck.
Colombia’s Ministry of Culture
It was said that a robot had examined the wreck, the exact location of which was unknown since its Discovery in 2015between 23 May and 1 June, and covers an area “equivalent to more than 40 professional football pitches”.
“Although a concentration of archaeological remains was discovered in the area of the shipwreck in 2022, recent explorations have made it possible to characterize these assemblages more precisely and discover new isolated elements,” the statement said.
The new artifacts include an anchor and parts of the ship’s cargo such as jugs and glass bottles. Four observation campaigns were carried out in 2022 by the Colombian Navy using high-tech equipment to check the condition of the wreck.
The reported images included cast-iron cannons, pieces of porcelain, pottery and objects apparently made of gold.
“We believe it is possible to find new remains that would expand the information we have so far,” said Alhena Caicedo, director of the Colombian Institute of Anthropology and History, quoted in the statement.
Colombia’s Ministry of Culture
The exploration also revealed the “biodiversity on the seabed” near the shipwreck, the statement said, with species such as finless sharks and swordfish discovered about 600 meters below the surface.
“The sinking has created a dynamic and vibrant ecosystem on the seabed, providing shelter and food for a diverse range of marine life,” the statement said.
The Colombian government believes that this initial exploration “raises questions about the exact causes of the sinking.”
British documents say there was an “internal explosion” on the ship, which the Colombian government says caused it to sink along with its treasures and hundreds of passengers. Spanish reports, however, suggest a battle.
The ship was on its way back from the New World to the court of the Spanish King Philip V, loaded with treasures such as chests full of emeralds and about 200 tons of gold coins.
Before Colombia announced the discovery in 2015, the ship had long been sought by adventurers.
Spain had laid claim to the ship and its contents on the basis of a UN convention to which Colombia is not a party. The indigenous Bolivians of the Qhara Qhara, however, claim that the riches were stolen from them.
But Petro’s government insisted on raising the wreck for scientific and cultural purposes. The estimated cost of the project is around $4.5 million.
US-based salvage company Sea Search Armada also claims ownership of the wreck, insisting it was the first company to discover it more than 40 years ago and has sued Colombia at the UN Permanent Court of Arbitration seeking $10 billion.
In May, Colombia explained the website of the shipwreck as an “archaeological protection area”. The classification, according to the Ministry of Culture, “guarantees the protection of cultural heritage” through the “long-term preservation of the ship and the development of research, conservation and evaluation activities”.
The exact location of the shipwreck is kept secret to protect what is known as one of the largest archaeological finds in history from malicious treasure hunters.
In June 2022, Colombia announced that a remote-controlled vehicle reached 900 meters below the sea surface and showed new pictures of the wreck.
