On July 31, 1715, a hurricane wrecked a Spanish fleet against reefs off Florida, and 310 years later, divers found $1 million in treasure, according to 1715 Fleet – Queens Jewels LLC, a Florida company with exclusive salvaging rights.
The company operating as the U.S. District Courts’ custodian announced on Tuesday that divers had recovered more than 1,000 “Reales” silver coins, five “Escudos” gold coins, and other rare gold artifacts during the summer in the area where historians estimate $400-million worth of treasure was lost.
“It is as if when you lose something that you really, really like and you’ve almost come to terms with it just never being found again, and then all of a sudden it shows up, it’s just such an awesome feeling,” Levin Shavers, the captain of the M/V Just Right crew involved as subcontractors, said.
Mike Perna, the former captain of the MV Mighty Mo, and shipmate Milan “Choppy” Kalelkar found the gold “Escudos,” one of which was dated 1714 and minted in Mexico, according to the company. Shavers, Perna, and Kalelkar found three gold coins on May 15, including two Santa Fe De Bogota “Escudos” and a 1698 Cuzco “Escudos” coin.
Sal Guttuso, the company’s director of operations, said in the company’s statement that finding the more than 1,000 “Reales” silver coins in a “single recovery” was both rare and extraordinary.
“This discovery is not only about the treasure itself, but the stories it tells. Each coin is a piece of history, a tangible link to the people who lived, worked, and sailed during the Golden Age of the Spanish Empire,” Guttuso said, adding that the coins were minted in the Spanish colonies in Mexico, Peru, and Bolivia.
More than a decade ago, National Geographic reported Eric Schmitt, a diver contracted by 1715 Fleet – Queens Jewels LLC, found 52 gold coins, 40 feet of gold chain, and 110 silver coins and buttons valued at more than $1 million -- and the state was entitled to 20% of anything found.
“Typically, we excavate empty holes and find beer cans ... It was absolutely unreal,” Schmitt told NatGeo about the finding off a beach in Fort Pierce.
Related social media
Copyright 2025 by WPLG Local10.com - All rights reserved.
