Did Mel Fisher keep the treasure?

Did Mel Fisher keep the treasure?

He hunted doggedly for years for the cargo of a single treasure-packed galleon, the Nuestra Senora de Atocha, which sank in 1622 near the Florida Keys. Eventually his son Kane located the underwater bounty in 1985, and treasure worth roughly $400 million was recovered.

Can you keep treasure you find?

If the found property is lost, abandoned, or treasure trove, the person who found it gets to keep it unless the original owner claims it (so actually, unless the original owner claims it, the rule is “finders keepers”).

What is the biggest treasure ever found in the ocean?

The largest monetary treasure haul found was on the wreck code named Black Swan, discovered by Odyssey Marine Exploration in 2007 off of Gibraltar. The salvage team reportedly found 17 tons of coins valued at $500 million; an amount that is both staggering and said to be “unprecedented” in the treasure hunting world.

Can anyone claim a shipwreck?

A country may claim ownership of a wreck if it owned the ship in the first place. Even if a vessel was sunk and abandoned for hundreds of years the original owner can still claim ownership rights.

Are Abandoned Ships Finders Keepers?

No, the luxury cars aboard the on-fire cargo ship are not legally ‘finders keepers’ The crew of the Felicity Ace abandoned ship when it caught fire in the Atlantic, but that doesn’t mean the ship or the luxury cars on board are free for the taking.

How much money did Mel Fisher get?

The estimated $450 million cache recovered, known as “The Atocha Motherlode,” included 40 tons of gold and silver; there were some 114,000 of the Spanish silver coins known as “pieces of eight”, gold coins, Colombian emeralds, gold and silver artifacts, and 1000 silver ingots.

Who is the richest treasure hunter?

Blackbeard was one of the most successful and notorious pirates of the golden age of piracy and he is undoubtedly the most well-known today. He is believed to have amassed fabulous riches during his long reign over the seas, but treasure-hunters have had little luck locating any of that wealth so far.

What happens if you find shipwreck treasure?

If the shipwreck has been submerged for a period of years during which the vessel’s legal owners have not been actively trying to retrieve its contents then the law of finds may apply. A discoverer who finds a shipwreck pursuant to the law of finds is entitled to the full value of all of the goods that are recovered.