Divers discover 1,000 silver and 5 gold coins worth $1 million from legendary 1715 Spanish shipwreck off Florida's coast
Archaeologists have discovered a treasure hoard in an 18th-century shipwreck off the coast of Florida. Announcement of this hoard was made by 1715 Fleet Queens Jewels, LLC, a shipwreck salvage company, according to NBC News. This hoard comprised 1,000 silver and some gold coins, and other rare artifacts, with a valuation of around $1 million. These coins were reportedly recovered in July 2025, when the ship was present at the so-called Treasure Coast, in the southeastern region of Florida. The coin collection is possibly a part of the elusive treasure lost by the Spanish fleet in 1715.
Bits of the $400 million treasure
The treasure lost by the Spanish fleet contained gold, silver, and a variety of jewels. Today, its valuation would be around $400 million, according to the press release. This fortune was supposedly being ferried back to Spain from colonies on July 31, 1715, when a hurricane caused it to spill into the waters, as reported by ABC News. However, it is not the first time coins worth this fortune have been excavated, as other collections in the past have been collected by salvagers and treasure hunters in the coastal area stretching from Melbourne to Fort Pierce. The recently recovered coins were minted in the Spanish colonies of Bolivia, Mexico, and Peru. The salvage company shared that the coins in the present collection still carry dates and mint marks, which will be a massive benefit for historians who want to look into their backgrounds.
Importance of these coins
Sal Guttuso, director of operations for the salvage company, shared that the coins are just not valuable due to their price, but also because of the legacy they carry. Each coin is a link to the people who made and used it. These people lived, worked, and sailed during the Golden Age of the Spanish Empire. Hence, knowing more about these people opens doors to a significant part of human history that played a massive role in shaping the present. Guttuso also emphasized the uniqueness of the recent recovery, as it is rare for hunters or divers to find a thousand coins at the same time from the collection.
These coins were apparently detected by Captain Levin Shavers and the crew of M/V (motor vessel) "Just Right," according to USA Today. There were 1,000 silver coins called 'reales' and five gold coins named 'escudos' in the collection. The coins were submitted to 1715 Fleet Queens Jewels, LLC, as it owns exclusive salvaging rights to the 18th-century shipwreck, which contains remains of eleven ships that were devastated by the hurricane.
A shocking robbery in the past
Unlike Shavers and his crew, last year, certain Florida officials found gold coins from the wreck and did not submit them to the authorities. The suspects were quickly apprehended, with one of them being identified as a family member of a team contracted by the salvaging company to work on the site. It is yet to be known what charges were filed, if any, against the suspects.