Monday, 21st May 2007 (2303 views)

A 'massive' haul found off the coast of Gibraltar in which more than £250 million-worth of treasure was found from a shipwreck has resulted in Spanish authorities looking into whether or not the find is part of Spanish heritage.

It was Odyssey Marine Exploration, a US treasure-hunting company, which found the underwater stash last week but initially refused to announce the exact location of the shipwreck.

Back in January, Odyssey were granted permission to explore Spanish waters for the wreck of the HMS Sussex which sank in 1694.

It has been argued by the American firm that the wreck was found in international waters but the Spanish government is understood to be aggrieved that the permission granted only referred to exploration and not extraction of treasure.

Thousands of colonial-era gold and silver coins were found in the ship's hold by Odyssey and historians have suggested that these could have been used as a bargaining tool to curry favour with the Duke of Savoy.

 

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