The Nuestra Señora de Atocha was a Spanish treasure galleon that sank in a hurricane off the Florida Keys in 1622. The ship, which was carrying 40 tons of gold and silver, and 32 kg of emeralds, was found in 1985, after a 16-year search, by the treasure hunter Mel Fisher and his team [2563×4463]
by Fuckoff555
7 Comments
[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nuestra_Se%C3%B1ora_de_Atocha](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nuestra_Se%C3%B1ora_de_Atocha)
[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mel_Fisher](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mel_Fisher)
I’m wearing a small silver coin around my neck from the Atocha, as we speak. 🙂
Sixteen years. Dedication or obsession? Fine line. I’ll stick to my maps of ships that stayed afloat.
In shipwrecks like this, many people drowned because they stuffed their pockets with gold coins and ended up at the bottom of the sea, even though the ship was close to shore.
I’d argue Mel Fisher paid for that “Treasure ” . His oldest son, his son’s wife and a crew member died while trying to find the Atocha. I met him in Key West in ’97 and he was very nice, and very drunk drinking a rum and coke.
I’m glad that UNESCO decided to put in work to stop looters like this in the future. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Convention_on_the_Protection_of_the_Underwater_Cultural_Heritage?wprov=sfti1#
From the pictures, he’s either adorable or insufferable.