Allen Exploration, together with marine archaeologists and divers, has discovered jewelry that sank 350 years ago along with the Spanish galleon Nuestra Señora de las Maravillas.
The discovery was made in the waters of the Marawil Islands. The researchers studied 13 km of the area over which the wreckage of the ship was dispersed. Concentrating on the western side of the Little Bahama Shoal.
The attention of marine archaeologists was attracted by pendants inlaid with precious stones and gold chains. They were surprised by the level of preservation of the find and their wealth. Probably, all this was carried to very wealthy persons or representatives of the royal court.
Jewelry that can surprise even the most demanding collectors can be found in the section of the Violity website "Jewellery made of precious metals, stones and bijouterie".
According to marine archaeologist and Wreckwatch editor Sean Kingsley, such “miracles” are especially dramatic because they were off the beaten path, under dense sand.
It is believed that the ship was named after the church of the same name and the monastery of the Carmelite nuns. The galleon was heading home to Spain from Havana with treasures from America.
It was assumed that on board were exquisite jewelry and private cargo. It also carried a generous cargo previously salvaged from another Spanish galleon that had been wrecked off the coast of Ecuador.
But due to a navigational error, the galleon Nuestra Señora de las Maravillas on the night of January 4-5, 1656, collided with the flagship of her fleet, crashed into a reef. The underwater part of the hull was damaged, the ship ran aground. The galleon broke into two parts and sank at a depth of 10 to 15 meters.
The wreckage of Nuestra Señora de las Maravillas was rescued by expeditions from different countries - Spaniards, French, Dutch, British, Americans in the 17th and 18th centuries.
In our time, the search has continued since the early 1970s. In May 1972, they discovered the first wreckage of the ship, raised a significant part of the treasure. However, due to disagreements with the government, the search stopped. The right to save the jewels and resume work was obtained only towards the end of the 1980s.
Since the release of the report on the Nuestra Señora de las Maravillas by the Smithsonian Institution, the ship has been placed under special protection.
As for the treasures recently discovered by Allen Exploration, they have been transferred to the Grand Bahama Museum and the Bahama Maritime Museum.
