In early September 1622, the heavily-armed galleon Nuestra Senora de Atocha departed Havana, Cuba, as part of a 20-strong Spanish fleet bound for Spain. Laden with 40 tonnes of silver, gold, and approximately 70 pounds of Colombian emeralds—some of the world’s most exquisite and valuable—the Atocha served as the fleet’s rear guard. Tragically, a hurricane struck on September 5, 1622, causing the Atocha and seven other ships to sink, scattering their remains across the ocean floor from the Marquesas Keys to the Dry Tortugas, west of Key West, Florida.
Nuestra Senora de Atocha left Cuba in 1622 (Image: WIKI)
Rescuers attempted to access the sunken hull of the Atocha, but found the hatches securely battened down. Despite marking the wreck’s location, a subsequent hurricane in October 1622 further obscured any clear remnants. For over six decades, Spanish salvagers searched in vain for the Atocha and its treasures.
Divers located the motherload in 1985 (Image: GETTY/AQUA SURVEY)
Fast forward to more than 300 years later, American treasure hunter Mel Fisher embarked on a perilous quest to uncover the ship’s riches. Though initial discoveries—a few silver bars in 1973 and five cannons in 1975—were promising, tragedy struck when Fisher’s son, wife, and another diver perished in a salvage boat accident.
As the Atocha went down into the water at a depth of 55 feet, rescuers tried to get into the drowned hull but found the hatches were tightly battened.
Its treasure is worth millions (Image: GETTY)
Undeterred, Fisher persisted in his pursuit, and in 1980, he found the wreck of the Santa Margarita, the Atocha’s sister ship. Then, in 1985—16 years after beginning his quest—Fisher received word from his son: “Put away the charts, we’ve found the main pile!” The crew had uncovered the ship’s treasure trove, largely intact, marking a significant archaeological find. In addition to gold and silver bars, coins, and jewelry, the bounty included the prized Colombian emeralds, as well as a variety of artifacts offering insights into 17th-century life.
40 tonnes of gold went down with the ship (Image: GETTY)
Precious emeralds from Colombia were recovered (Image: GETTY)
Valued at an estimated $400 million (£303 million), the Atocha treasure transformed Fisher, his family, and investors into millionaires, setting a record for the most expensive shipwreck recovery at the time. Fisher’s success prompted legislative reforms, including the passage of the Abandoned Shipwreck Act in 1987. Today, artifacts from the Atocha are displayed at the Mel Fisher Maritime Museum in Key West, Florida, while ongoing efforts continue to uncover more treasures from the site known as “The Bank of Spain.”