Spanish 1715 fleet treasure ring, also known as the “Precious” 22.5K inca gold treasure ring with nine flawless Colombian emeralds. (Picture Credit: Gary Drayton)
Article: Forbes.com
Abe Garver , CONTRIBUTOR
Online sales of metal detectors are way up after The ‘Holy Grail’ Of Shipwrecks Was Found Off The Coast Of Columbia, according to the top U.S. Retailer Kellyco Metal Detectors based in Winter Springs, Florida. “We have 20 sales people taking calls, and average call times have jumped from 8 to 18 minutes”, said David Auerbach President of Kellyco. “There are spikes in demand for metal detectors when the price of gold soars (see WSJ article Metal Detectors Hit the Jackpot from July 30, 2011 ) and also when major discoveries are announced.”
“One of the greatest findings of underwater heritage in the history of humanity”
Colombia’s President Juan Manual Santos said that the discovery of the San Jose, which was destroyed by the British in 1708, “constitutes one of the greatest – if not the biggest, as some say – findings and identification of underwater heritage in the history of humanity.” Auerbach believes the San Jose will continue to stoke demand for metal detectors for years to come. “They just discovered the shipwreck. They haven’t yet salvaged it, and once they do start bringing gold and treasures up – the announcements can’t help but stir up the treasurer hunter in all of us.”
Hitting the jackpot underwater
Other event driven spikes in demand for metal detectors can be traced back to 1960-1964 when Spanish silver treasure coins were found on a beach in Ft. Pierce Florida by a man using a surplus army mine detector. The “find” led to the discovery of the remains of the 1715 Spanish Treasure Fleetwhich generated a huge amount of publicity on national television as well as newspapers and magazines around the world.
On August 21, 2015 a CNN affiliate WPTV created excitement when it reported that $4.5 million in gold had been found in shallow water. “Like hitting the jackpot underwater, gold coins slowly reveal themselves through the sand in just a few feet of water 15 feet off of shore.” Once ashore, William Bartlett and the 1715 Fleet Queens Jewels Salvage Crew counted more than 300 coins valued at $4.5 million.
Can I find hidden treasure without leaving the office?
“If you don’t want to get your hands dirty”, Auerbach says, “Codan Limited headquartered in Adelaide South Australia is the publicly-traded manufacturer of Minelab metal detectors, which is widely regarded as the “Rolls Royce” standard.” Gary Drayton who wrote “Metal Detecting for Spanish Treasure” says his best finds including the emerald treasure ring (pictured at the top of this article) were made with the Excalibur which is a Minelab product.
