Mel Fisher treasure hunters discover silver and gold coins from the Spanish galleon Atocha. by 1622

Rare Atocha gold coin worth $ 98,000 found, even more if it came from a rare mint

Mel Fisher’s Treasures recovery ship JB Magruder, headed by the newly appointed Captain Tim Meade, discovered an extremely rare Atocha gold coin in just 9 meters of water on July 16.

“Congratulations to Captain Tim and the entire Magruder crew,” said Nichole Fisher.

“The coin was found by the second generation treasure hunter, engineer Zach Moore, on the Spanish galleon shipwreck Nuestra de Atocha.”

The last Atocha gold coin ever found dates back to 2001 and this is the 121st Atocha gold coin ever found on the Atocha grounds. Today’s value is estimated to be at least $ 98,000, even more if it came from a rare mint.

On July 24, 1715, a fleet of 11 Spanish galleons and a French ship sailed from Havana, Cuba, to Spain. All Spanish ships were killed in a storm off the east coast of Florida near what is now Sebastian. Seven hundred lives and treasures worth over 14,000,000 pesos went under.

Another ship, the Atocha, suffered a similar fate in 1622. On July 20, 1985, after a 16-year search, a rescue team led by Mel Fisher found the mother vein of the Atocha from almost 370 years of exile on the seabed … the greatest discovery in the history of the treasure hunt, both in archaeological as well as commercial.

In the search for the Atocha, Fisher and his crew also discovered and collected treasures from the Atocha’s sister ship, the Santa Margarita and an English trading slave ship, the Henrietta Marie, as well as the fleet from 1715 at Sebastian.

Moore joined Mel Fisher’s crew a few years ago and is from Vero Beach. He previously worked as a treasure hunter on the 1715 fleet.

One of his other exciting discoveries on the 1715 fleet was an “EO” (encrusted object) that he and his father preserved together. It turned out to be a very rare silver pendant and rosary with a figure of Christ still intact.

Zach’s father, William (Bill) Moore, was part of the crew that discovered and salvaged the Atocha’s mother cargo in 1985. During one dive, Bill and the other divers found 165 pounds of gold finger bars, chains, and washers.

His mother Julie Moore was also a diver on the Atocha property during the Motherload find and was also part of many amazing finds. Bill also served for many years as the chief conservator on the 1715 Fleet Operation at Mel Fisher’s Treasure Museum in Sebastian, Florida.

Diver Jacob Bell found his first eight and another eight was salvaged by one of the investors. Several other artifacts were also recovered. Mel Fisher’s Treasures team continues to search for the remaining treasures of Atocha and Margarita.

As Mel Fisher would say, “Today is the day!”

“This new gold coin find takes place just a few days before the 36th.

This year there will be a divers reunion party on Tuesday July 20th at Schooner Wharf and a huge online silent auction.

Please visit MelFisherdays.com for more information