Treasure Beneath the Sea: Who Holds the Key to the Atocha and San José?

On September 4, 1622, a Spanish fleet left Havana carrying silver, gold, and gems from the Americas to Europe. Less than two days later, a hurricane broke the fleet apart. Nuestra Señora de Atocha sank off Florida with silver from Peru and Bolivia, Colombian emeralds, gold, coins, and military cargo. Almost the entire crew died.

For the next sixty years, Spain tried to salvage Atocha. Divers recovered part of the Santa Margarita cargo, but the main position of Atocha vanished from the map. In 1985, treasure hunter Mel Fisher found the richest section after sixteen years of spending, lawsuits, and the deaths of family members in a sea accident.