Odyssey Marine Exploration have discovered another valuable wreck at the bottom of the sea, this time a British military vessel.
In 2007, OME salvaged gold and silver coins worth $500m from a shipwreck in the North Atlantic, only to become embroiled in a legal battle with the Spanish government. The Spanish claimed the sunken ship was actually a famous 19th-Century Spanish galleon.
The latest discovery is believed to be HMS Victory, the forerunner of Lord Nelson’s famous flagship and reputed, at the time, to be the finest warship in the world.
HMS Victory sank in a storm in the English Channel in 1744 with the loss of over 1,100 lives. The boat was equipped with 100 brass cannons and was rumoured to be carrying 100,000 gold coins, all of which make it a very valuable discovery.
Many attempts have been made to locate the vessel, but it would seem that everyone had been looking in the wrong place according to OME. Although the wreck was found in international waters, being a military vessel it would automatically belong to the state.
Another legal battle could be in the offing if it does turn out to be HMS Victory, this time with the British Government.