Coast of Florida Treasure Hunters Discover One Million Dollar Rare Coin Hoard

Rare coin hoard worth $1m discovered by 

treasure hunters off the coast of Florida

"Treasure hunters exploring the waters off the coast of Florida, USA, have discovered a hoard of long forgotten treasure that has been lying on the seabed for at least 300 years. At a depth of about 15 foot beneath the surface, 1,000 feet (305 meters) offshore of Fort Pierce, Florida, Eric Schmitt’s metal detector picked something up. He was expecting it to be a beer can or something like that, but instead it was something infinitely more valuable – a long lost hoard of Spanish treasure.

Schmidt is the captain of a salvage vessel called the Arr Booty which was subcontracted by a company called 1715 Fleet Queen Jewels, LLC, owned by William Brisben and his son Brent. According to Brisben, talking to Live Science, the company owns salvage rights to five of the eleven ships lying on the sea bed. They were originally part of a fleet of 12 ships that sunk in the area in 1715 after being hit by a hurricane. Around 1,000 people died when the ships sank.

The cargo was being transported from Cuba, then a Spanish colony, back to Spain to fund a war that the country was fighting against France (The War of the Spanish Succession). The ships have been known as the “1715 Fleet” ever since.

The discovery is worth nearly $1 million dollars and consists of gold coins and gold chains and also includes an extremely rare Spanish coin called a “Tricentennial Royal”. This item was minted for King Philip V of Spain and was distinguished from other coins of the period, which are cruder, by its perfectly round shape, created when molten gold is poured into a mold. According to Brent Brisben it is worth around $500,000 due to its rarity – only around six of the coins were ever made.

“These things were known as presentation pieces not meant to be circulated as currency,” Schmitt explained, speaking to The Orlando Sentinel.

Philip V held the Spanish throne from 1700 to 1746. In 1724, he abdicated briefly, being succeeded by his son, Louis. However, Louis died in September that same year, forcing Philip to take the throne for a second term. Philip was a member of the House of Bourbons and inherited the condition known as melancholia from them. At times it was even described as a form of madness, characterised by long periods of isolation, manic depression and a suspicious and fearful nature. Philip was placed on the Spanish throne by his grandfather, but this was contested by the Austrian Archduke Charles VI, resulting in the War of the Spanish Succession (1701 to 1714). The 1715 Fleet was carrying so much treasure in order to fund the war that some of it still washes up on Florida beaches occasionally. One of the ships, the Urca de Lima, is protected by law for its archaeological value.""

There may be a lot more treasure lying off 

the coast and it could be worth at least $____:

http://www.ancient-origins.net/news-history-archaeology/rare-coin-hoard-worth-1m-discovered-treasure-hunters-coast-florida-003516

Incredible Treasure Find in Northern Israel's Galilee Region Dating Back to the Time of Alexander the Great

""Hidden treasure found by amateur explorers in a cave is being described as one of the most important discoveries in northern Israel in recent years. Members of the Israeli Caving Club have uncovered a rare cache of silver coins and jewelry dating to the reign of Alexander the Great. The explorers spotted the ancient finds tucked into a narrow crevice of a stalactite cave in the Galilee region of northern Israel. The glint of a shiny, silver object caught the attention of Hen Zakai and his spelunking partners. According to The Jerusalem Post the men found two ancient silver coins, minted in the late fourth century B.C. The remains of a pouch cloth contained jewelry – rings, earrings and bracelets. The items were well preserved and intricately detailed. CNN reports, “On one side of the coin is an image of Alexander the Great, while on the other side is an image of Zeus sitting on his throne, arm raised as if ready to wield his fearsome lightning bolts. The coins allowed archaeologists to date the find.” Alexander the Great, ruler of the ancient Greek kingdom of Macedonia, led a military campaign throughout the Middle East and parts of Asia. He is credited with founding some 20 cities that bore his name, including Alexandria in ancient Egypt, and spread Greece's culture east. He died in Babylon, the present day Iraq, in 323 B.C.""

""Realizing they’d found historically significant items, the cave explorers immediately contacted Israel Antiquities Authority officials (IAA), and a joint investigation of the cave was held. Remnants of pottery were discovered, but some of the ancient vessels have fused with the limestone stalactites of the cave, and cannot be removed. Mail Online adds that agate gemstones and an oil lamp were also found. “After analyzing the findings in IAA’s laboratory, archeologists determined that some of the artifacts date back to the Chalcolithic period 6,000 years ago, Early Bronze Age 5,000 years ago, Biblical period 3,000 years ago, and the Hellenistic period, approximately 2,300 years ago,” writes The Jerusalem Post. This find comes after the discovery of a massive hoard of almost 2,000 gold coins by divers in the ancient harbor in Caesarea, Israel. These coins, which are over 1,000 years old, constitute the largest find of its kind in the country. It is believed the treasure belongs to a shipwreck of an official treasury boat on its way to Egypt with collected taxes.""

Counting Coins:

http://www.ancient-origins.net/news-history-archaeology/explorers-find-hidden-treasure-cave-coins-and-jewelry-020251