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Diver stumbles upon Captain Kidd's ship

(http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/graphics/2007/12/14/npirate114.jpg)

Last Updated: 2:53am GMT 17/12/2007
Divers believe they have discovered the 300-year-old remains of a ship once captained by the notorious British pirate Captain Kidd.

Complete with cannons and anchors, the wreckage of the 400-ton Quedagh Merchant has lain untouched and undiscovered off the coast of Catalina Island in the Dominican Republic.

For centuries treasure hunters have sought the ship, but it has now been stumbled across by a local scuba diver.

The wreckage, found in shallow waters only 10ft from the surface and only 70ft from the coastline, is likely to provide vital clues and information about the notorious Kidd, who was hanged in London for piracy in 1701.

Researchers from Indiana University have been sent down to protect the remains from scavengers and turn the area into an underwater preserve.

Charles Beeker, a scuba-diving archaeologist who teaches at Indiana University, said: "When I first looked down and saw it, I couldn't believe everybody missed it for 300 years. I've been on thousands of wrecks and this is one of the first where it's been untouched by looters.

"We've got a shipwreck in crystal clear, pristine water that's amazingly untouched. We want to keep it that way."

Mr Beeker, who has previously helped the Dominican government open underwater parks that feature cannons, jar fragments and other items recovered from early 18th-century shipwrecks, added: "We believe this is a living museum. The treasure in this case is the wreck itself."

Kidd's capture of the Armenian Quedagh Merchant on Jan 30, 1698, in the Indian Ocean was considered his greatest prize and cemented his reputation for piracy.

The ship, which was under French protection, was loaded with gold, silver, satin and other valuable cloth from East India. Kidd briefly contemplated handing it back when he discovered the captain was English, but fearing a mutiny by his own crew he renamed it the Adventure Prize and set sail for Madagascar.

However, word had reached Britain of his actions and various naval commanders were ordered to "pursue and seize the said Kidd and his accomplices" for the "notorious piracies" they had committed.

As the net closed in around him, Kidd left the ship in the Caribbean in 1699 on his way to New York to try and clear his name.

The valuable contents were looted soon after the ship was sunk but it has otherwise remained remarkably intact.

Dominican ministers want to make the remains accessible to divers and snorklers.

John Foster, California's state underwater archaeologist who is helping the research, said: "I look forward to a meticulous study of the ship, its age, its armament, its construction.

"Because there is extensive written documentation, this is an opportunity we rarely have to test historic information against the archaeological record."

Geoffrey Conrad, an anthropologist involved in the case, said the location of the wreckage and the formation and size of the cannons, which had been used as ballast, are consistent with historical records of the ship.

"All the evidence that we find underwater is consistent with what we know from historical documentation, which is extensive. Through rigorous archaeological investigations, we will conclusively prove that this is Captain Kidd's shipwreck.

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/main.jhtml?xml=/news/2007/12/14/wpirate214.xml

ARRRRRGGGGGGHHH!   

.......more sunken treasure found.

+++++++++++++

Court orders treasure ship to tell Spain about find

Thu Jan 10, 2008 2:23pm EST
 MADRID, Jan 10 (Reuters) - A U.S. court has ordered shipwreck explorer Odyssey to give the Spanish government details about a controversial treasure find after months of wrangling, the Culture Ministry said on Thursday.

In May, Odyssey discovered a shipwreck laden with 17 tonnes of silver coins and gold, which Spain says might have been lying in Spanish waters or on a Spanish galleon in international waters, meaning the booty should belong to Madrid.

Spain grounded Odyssey Marine Exploration's boat and arrested its captain in October as the Florida-based firm tried to fend off Spanish attempts to get its hands on the details of the find, estimated to be worth about $500 million.

The Spanish Culture Ministry said a court in Tampa, Florida, ordered Odyssey on Friday to hand over details of exactly where they found the sunken ship, its name and identity within 14 days.

Odyssey has said it found the shipwreck, codenamed "Black Swan", in the Atlantic Ocean, outside any country's territorial waters.

 Both parties will appear before the judge again on March 5, the ministry said

http://www.reuters.com/article/rbssIndustryMaterialsUtilitiesNews/idUSL1011634120080110

very cool find