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In 1708 , the San José — a Spanish galleon ship carrying a hoard of Au , ash gray and emeralds — sink during a ferocious conflict against the British in the Caribbean Sea . Now , after sitting at the bottom of the ocean for 310 twelvemonth , the San José ’s shipwreck has finally been formally identify , thanks to an depth psychology of the distinctive bronze cannons that sank with the ship .
These bronze cannons still have ornate dolphins engraved on them , allot to recordings made by the REMUS 6000 , an autonomous subaqueous vehicle ( AUV ) that got within 30 foot ( 9.1 metre ) of the wreck in 2015 , accord to Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution ( WHOI ) .
The San José’s cannons, photographed in November 2015 by the REMUS 6000
Although WHOI has get it on these item since 2015 , only recently did affiliate agencies — Maritime Archaeology Consultants ( MAC ) , Switzerland AG and the Colombian government — give the researchers permission to free the details to the world . [ See Photos of the San Jose Shipwreck ]
Fiery end
The San José was equipped with 62 guns , but it was no match against the British . Warships would have escort the San José and its treasures on most of its trips from the New World to Europe every year . In fact , when it drop , the San José was carrying a hoarded wealth mined in Peru that , today , is deserving between $ 4 billion and $ 17 billion , Live Science previously reported . These rich people were mean to help fuel the long - track down War of Spanish Succession , a engagement the Spanish and French were fighting against the English .
But in 1708 , the combat ship date were hold up , and the Spanish commander , Admiral José Fernandez de Santillan , count of Casa Alegre , decide to fix sail anyway . That was a big fault . Four English ships confront the San José and its crew of more than 500 human being . After a crashing carom fight , the San José erupted into fire and sank to the bottom of the ocean .
hoarded wealth hunters and archaeologists have been sample to locate it ever since .
The REMUS 6000 as it is deployed off the Colombian Navy research ship ARC Malpelo.
Thatgoal was accomplishedon Nov. 27 , 2015 , when an international squad of scientist establish a wreck while aboard the Colombian Navy research ship ARC Malpelo , WHOI said . The wreck was found about 2,000 feet ( 600 MB ) underwater in a search that was approved by the Colombian Ministry of Culture .
However , at the time , it was n’t clear whether the wreck was really that of the San José or of another ship . So , in 2015 , WHOI sent the REMUS 6000 , which had help initially site the wreck off of Colombia ’s Barú Peninsula , to take a close smell .
" The REMUS 6000 was the ideal tool for the Book of Job , since it ’s capable ofconducting foresighted - continuance missionsover wide sphere , " Mike Purcell , WHOI engineer and jaunt drawing card , say in a statement .
Teacups at the shipwreck site
The AUV ’s recordings show that the ship was partly compensate in deposit . The ornamental carving on the cannons , filmed during a subsequent dive , grant Roger Dooley , the lead leatherneck archaeologist at MAC , to affirm that the crash was the San José , WHOI say .
The San José hasconsiderable culturaland historical significance , as it holds artifacts that will help historian learn about Europe ’s economical , social and political climate during the other 18th century , WHOI observe . The Colombian regime plans to construct a museum and preservation laboratory to keep and display the wreck ’s contents , include its cannons and ceramic .
The REMUS 6000 is owned by the Dalio Foundation and operated by WHOI . The fomite has also play a key role in other recondite - sea delegation . In 2009 , it helped witness the wreckage ofAir France Flight 447 , the plane that crashed when it was fly from Brazil to France . And in 2010 , the AUV help map and snap theTitanic ’s crash site , WHOI said .
Original article onLive Science .
