When most people think of treasure, they think of “X” marks the spot, treasure maps, and often pirates. While there are few cases in history of mass golden treasure hordes being found via maps, finding treasure associated with pirates isn’t far off the mark – albeit at sea. In fact, due to Spanish galleons and the pillaging of Central and South America, it is believed that much of the world’s “minted gold” lies under the ocean, scattered in ancient shipwrecks.
As news of the San José’s discovery causes a stir, it’s got everyone talking – who owns sunken gold on shipwrecks? It’s time to take a closer look.
The San José “Holy Grail”
The ownership of sunken gold is back in the limelight of late, largely thanks to the rediscovery of the San José, the so-called “holy grail” of shipwrecks. The British Royal Navy sunk the Spanish galleon back in 1708. It was laden with tons of coins, both silver and gold. In fact, as much as £16 billion worth of gold is believed to have gone down with the ship. Naturally, this has caused quite a stir, with many parties, including the Colombian Government, laying claim to the gold coins, silver and emeralds aboard.
Who Owns Recovered Gold?
There is no 100% foolproof legal answer to the question of who owns recovered gold from sunken shipwrecks. Officially, a UNESCO convention from 2001 aims to provide guidelines, but these often end up the subject of hotly debated legal battles in the courts. For conventional shipwrecks, it isn’t too difficult for countries and parties to come to an agreement on full or shared ownership. When it comes to military assets or shipwrecks with material value ranging into millions, even billions of dollars, things get a little murky. Let’s look at the primary claimants below.
Finders Keepers?
It seems logical that the salvagers should bag a share of the spoils, and this is often the case. The United States’ Sea Search Armada is currently in the process of taking Colombia to court to the tune of £7.8 billion. It believes that it first discovered the ship forty years prior to Colombia’s claim, although records show that it was first discovered in 2015 and explored in 2024, long after the US claim.
The Indigenous
The billions of dollars’ worth of gold on the San José aren’t specifically Spain’s property, either. After all, the Qhara Qhara Bolivians are believed to have been the original miners of the gold. Therefore, since the gold had been stolen from the Qhara Qhara during the Spanish Conquest, there is a mighty case that the descendants of the indigenous peoples are entitled to the recovered gold.
The Looters
The country in whose waters the ship was sunk doesn’t necessarily have the right to salvage and claim the shipwreck. In many cases, the ship (and its golden contents) belongs to its country of origin. In the case of the San José, that would mean that the £16 billion worth of silver, emeralds and gold should go to Spain, as it was a Spanish navy vessel. However, as detailed above, does piracy and conquest truly make the gold Spanish?
The Salvagers
Some might argue that the team who first recovered the gold from sunken ships should be entitled to a share. Colombia certainly believes so in this case, given that they are using the Simon Bolivar marine scientific research vessel and its robotic submersibles to assess and recover artefacts. Their logic is that the recovery is being done on Colombia’s dime, and the ship was heading to Cartagena (then Spanish, now Colombian) when it was sunk. Therefore, it may fall within Colombia’s waters.
So, Who Wins?
Each of the four parties listed above is making valid cases for their claim to the gold and other treasure. Of course, each of them is a uniquely different claim. This is because there is no definitive law surrounding who is entitled to the gold. By each staking a different claim, the parties are hoping that their legal argument wins out. Of course, one can rule out that the parties (or at least some of them) will end up sharing the spoils. However, the general rule is that discoverers are often entitled to some sort of share. As for the rest – that’s up to the courts to decide.
Is Gold from Shipwrecks Valuable?
It is tricky to ascertain just how valuable gold from shipwrecks can be. Of course, there is pure gold there, which, once analysed and melted down, would have the same value as gold on the open market. However, each country “minted” gold coins according to their own standards, so it isn’t uncommon for shipwreck gold to feature other metals, making it less valuable. Equally, the purity of older gold coins may vary from 75% in 18k gold to 91.6% in 22k or 99.9% in 25-karat gold. This, too, affects its value.
What about the historical value? When it comes to sunken gold, there isn’t that much value in it, at least when talking about a major haul. A single piece of gold from a sunken treasure trove will likely gain value thanks to its historical lineage. If it was melted down, it would have no historical value. However, the whole gold horde is far too valuable for a single collector to pay. Buyers will be limited, so it will likely be broken up into smaller collections.
Market Trading in Sunken Gold
It is not illegal to purchase and trade sunken gold. However, you first need to establish the authenticity and ownership of said gold. Where its authenticity and ownership or lineage can be traced, it is perfectly legal to buy, sell and own. However, if you’ve come across gold from a shipwreck that has no clear lineage, we’d advise caution getting involved. Trading gold with dubious lineages may cause you to suffer from legal issues that may arise later down the line via other claimants, especially if the gold was originally sourced via piracy or conquest.
