Shipwreck’s “Chest of Gold” Discovery Might Uncover a Mysterious 16th-Century Mystery
When a laborer stumbled across a number of large artifacts in Africa, it prompted the call for archaeologists and led to what may be one of the most significant shipwrecks ever discovered.
More than a century ago, a German treasure hunter shot a diamond in the Namibian Desert, creating the “forbidded territory” or Sperrgebiet. De Beers, an international corporation that specializes in mining, and the Namibian government assumed control of the region, which later came to be known as an off-limits zone during the mouth of the Orange River.
Nevertheless, one of the workers found something even more valuable than diamonds while working his shift, uncovering a treasure that had been missing for at least half a millennium.
He called in archaeologists since he had no idea what the pieces of metal, wood, and pipes were doing there.
Dieter Noli recalls surveying the scene for the first time and discovering a 500-year-old marketplace and ancient tasks.
In 2016, he remarked, “It just appeared to be a deserted beach, but lying outside of it were bits and pieces.
“Well, this is definitely a shipwreck,” I said.
Archaeologists discovered what they believe to be one of the most significant shipwrecks ever found after excavating the area.
Evidence suggests the ship is The Bom Jess (The Good Jess), a Portuguese ship on its route to India that has ever traveled outside of the Southern Atlantic, even if they are unable to unequivocally establish it.
Histories date the ship to between 1525 and 1538 since it was loaded with tons of precious metals, including gold coins from Spain and Portugal.
The Bom Jess’ cargo, including a chest packed with coins, matches the description of the vessel in the rare 16th-century book “Memorias Das Armadas,” which also describes the ship as lost.
We assumed that as soon as the ship arrived, it collided with a rock and capsized, Mr. Noli continued.
The box containing the coins was in the captain’s cabin when the ship began to break up; it broke loose and sank to the sea floor.
“When I broke free, a pretty substantial portion of the ship’s side collapsed into that chest and crushed some of the crew members.
You can see how hard the chest was pounded, yet it also served to protect it.
There were 44,000 pots of copper ingots mixed in among the gold, ivory, and other precious metals, and according to marine archaeologist Bro Werz, these pots could have held the key to the ship’s lock and safe.
He stated, “Organic organisms would typically have consumed wood.
Nonetheless, a portion of those materials would have been safeguarded by the poiso.
The shipwreck’s remnants are safeguarded by the diamond mine’s secrecy. As they have been for hundreds of years, wood, mockets, caoballs, and swords are kept moist. Most of them continue to remain hidden from public view, much like the secluded spot where it was found.
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