An Awesome Underwater Find Of Golden Treasure

Fox News: Florida family unearths gold coins worth over $1M from 1715 shipwreck

A Florida man has uncovered gold artifacts worth over $1 million from the wreckage of a Spanish fleet that sank in a storm off the Florida coast three centuries ago.

The find by Eric Schmitt was announced late Monday by a salvage company that owns the rights to the site where the coins and jewels were found.

"The treasure was actually found a month ago,” Brent Brisben of 1715 Fleet — Queens Jewels LLC told Florida Today. Keeping word of the haul from getting out was "particularly hard for the family that found it," Brisben added. "They’ve been beside themselves."

Among the artifacts are 51 gold coins, 40 feet of gold chain, and an extremely rare coin called a "Tricentennial Royal", minted for King Philip V of Spain. Schmitt told the Orlando Sentinel that the "Tricentennial Royal" alone is worth approximately $500,000 due to its rarity and near-perfect condition.

An awesome find and video of the discovery is at the link in it you can hear Eric Schmitt's happy yell when he discovers the treasure.

Congrats and Bravo to Eric Schmitt on his find. Well done indeed.

20% of the find will go to the State of Florida, and the remainder will be split between Schmitt and the 1715 Fleet — Queens Jewels LLC, the company that is running the salvage operation.

Hmm perhaps I should investigate becoming a sub-contractor, after all I've got the diving skills and this could certainly pay off in a big way . . . . You up for a trip ML?