Some of the artifacts from the San Jose wreck, a ship worth an estimated $20 billion off the coast of Colombia, will be recovered by robots from April.
Part of the San Jose wreck off the coast of Colombia, filmed in June 2022. Photo: AFP/Colombian Presidency
The Colombian government announced on February 23 an expedition to recover valuables from the famous San Jose shipwreck, which sank in 1708 while carrying a cargo of gold, silver and emeralds. Colombian Culture Minister Juan David Correa said that about eight years after the discovery of the shipwreck off the coast of Colombia, an underwater robot will be sent to recover some of the treasure.
Between April and May, the robot will salvage items from the outside of the ship to see how they fare when brought out of the water and consider how to recover the rest of the treasure. The operation is expected to cost more than $4.5 million. The robot will operate at depths of 600 meters to salvage items such as ceramics and wooden objects, without altering or damaging the wreck, according to Correa.
After about three centuries submerged, most of the items on board have undergone physical and chemical changes and could disintegrate when pulled from the water, according to naval researcher Alexandra Chadid. The location of the expedition is being kept secret to protect the wreck – considered one of the greatest archaeological discoveries in history – from treasure hunters.
The San Jose, owned by the Spanish crown, was sunk by the British navy near Cartagena in 1708. Only a handful of its 600-man crew survived. The ship was returning to Spain from the New World, laden with treasures such as chests of emeralds and some 200 tons of gold coins.
Explorers had been hunting for the wreck long before Colombia announced its discovery in 2015. The discovery has led to a dispute over who owns the treasure. Spain claims the treasure belongs to it because it was on a Spanish ship, while Bolivia's Qhara Qhara community says they should get the treasure because the Spanish forced their ancestors to mine it.
The salvage plan was announced amid an ongoing lawsuit at the Permanent Court of Arbitration of the United Nations between Colombia and the US salvage company Sea Search Armada, which claims to have found the wreck more than 40 years ago. Sea Search Armada is asking for $10 billion, half of the wreck’s current estimated value.
Thu Thao (According to AFP )
Source link
Comment (0)