A shipwreck has been found to have $500 million in treasure on board!
Can you believe this?
The richest-ever shipwreck - Black Swan - haul was yielded by the Spanish galleon Nuestra Senora de Atocha, which sank in a hurricane off the Florida Keys in 1622.
Tampa-based company, Odyssey Marine Exploration found the wreck containing hundreds of thousands of colonial-era silver and gold coins. There are about 500,000 coins which are expected to fetch an average of $1,000 each from collectors and investors. The value of coins is determined by their rarity, condition and story behind them.
The find was announced on the same day when Odyssey Marine exploration held its annual stockholder meeting. Four years back, the company found thousands of coins worth $75 million after excavating the Republic - a steamship lost in 1865 off Savannah, Ga. But the company was going in loss from 2005 and 2006, however, this find doubled the stock price of the company when the news hit the Wall Street. Odyssey stock shot up 80.9 percent, closing at $8.32 by the time market close on Friday.
Under the terms of an agreement, Odyssey will have to share the finds with the British government. The company will get 80 percent of the first $45 million and about 50 percent of the proceeds thereafter.
For security reasons the company refused to release any details about the ship or the wreck site. The company is likely to return to the same spot for more coins and artifacts.
Source: ABC News
