Over $1 Million Of Shipwrecked Gold and Silver Coins Recovered From Florida's Coast

In 1715, a gang of Spanish ships crashed in a storm off the American coast, sending an eye-watering fortune in gold, silver, and jewels to the bottom of the Atlantic. Now, more than 300 years later, ocean explorers have uncovered a fresh trove from the legendary fleet.

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Over 1,000 silver coins, known as Reales, were recently recovered by 1715 Fleet – Queen’s Jewels LLC, a shipwreck salvage company, from the Atlantic seabed off Florida’s aptly named “Treasure Coast.” This latest haul joins five gold coins, called Escudos, and several rare gold artifacts recovered earlier this summer.

“This discovery is not only about the treasure itself, but the stories it tells,” Sal Guttuso, Director of Operations, said in a statement sent to IFLScience. “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. Finding 1,000 of them in a single recovery is both rare and extraordinary.”

The disaster struck in July 1715, when two Spanish fleets left the Americas laden with gold, silver, and jewels plundered from the colonies of Mexico, Peru, and Bolivia. Just seven days after departing Cuba for Europe, all 11 ships were wrecked along Florida’s east coast along with their heaps of purloined treasure. 

The latest bunch of recovered loot is estimated to be worth $1 million – and there could be more to come. Historians estimate that as much as $400 million worth of artifacts were lost in the storm, making it one of the greatest maritime tragedies in colonial history.

Serving as a major throughway during the European colonization of the Americas, this portion of the Atlantic coast is littered with shipwrecks and long-lost fortunes.

Among the most valuable is a sunken vessel known as the San José, located near Colombia's Atlantic coastline, along with millions – perhaps billions – of dollars' worth of treasure. Some estimates place its value as high as $17 billion, drawing fierce interest from governments, Indigenous groups, and private salvage companies, all wanting a piece of the pie. 

Fortunately for 1715 Fleet - Queen’s Jewels LLC, their Florida operation comes with far fewer legal entanglements. The company holds exclusive rights to recover artifacts from the 1715 wreck site and plans to preserve the recovered treasures before displaying them in local museums for the public to see.

“Every find helps piece together the human story of the 1715 fleet,” added Guttuso. “We are committed to preserving and studying these artifacts so future generations can appreciate their historical significance.”