INDIAN OCEAN SHIPWRECK YIELDS RARE INDIO COIN

PREV ARTICLE NEXT ARTICLE FULL ISSUE PREV FULL ISSUE

V19 2016 INDEX E-SYLUM ARCHIVE

The E-Sylum: Volume 19, Number 12, March 20, 2016, Article 34

INDIAN OCEAN SHIPWRECK YIELDS RARE INDIO COIN

A shipwreck discovered on the floor of the Indian Ocean could be the legendary Esmeralda of Vasco da Gama. Among the finds is a rare Indio silver coin. -Editor

The 500-year-old wreckage of Portuguese ship piloted by an uncle of explorer Vasco da Gama has been found off the coast of Oman, archaeologists said Tuesday, a discovery that included the recovery of an incredibly rare coin.

The Esmeralda sank during a violent storm near al-Hallaniyah Island in the Indian Ocean in May 1503, killing commander Vicente Sodre and all those aboard.

Among the stone shot, ceramics, a bell and other debris, divers discovered an incredibly rare silver coin called an Indio, of which only one other is known to exist today, said David L. Mearns, the director of Blue Water Recoveries. The coins were forged in 1499 after da Gama's first voyage to India, which helps date the wreckage, he said.

"That was an amazing discovery," Mearns said. "It was like a thing you read about in a Hollywood story."

The archaeologists announced their findings in an article published Tuesday by The International Journal of Nautical Archaeology.

The U.S. News article did not illustrate the coin, but a CBS News article did, and that's the source for the image above. it has a great video report, too, so check it out at the below link. Thnks also to David Sundman, who forwarded a link to a story in The Times. -Editor

David Sundman adds: It is amazing they were able to keep the find secret for 18 years.

To read the complete U.S. News article, see:
Remains of 1503 Shipwreck Found (www.usnews.com/news/science/articles/2016-03-15/site-of-1503-shipwreck-tied-to-vasco-da-gama-found-off-oman)

To read the CBS news article, see: Sunken treasure from a 500-year-old shipwreck (www.cbsnews.com/news/portuguese-ship-esmeralada-shipwreck-coin-artifacts-vasco-da-gama/)

To read the Times article, see: British team finds wreck and solves 500-year mystery (www.thetimes.co.uk/tto/news/uk/article4714981.ece?shareToken=542b481de04de004fe767208955e51a6)

Wayne Homren, Editor

The Numismatic Bibliomania Society is a non-profit organization promoting numismatic literature. See our web site at coinbooks.org.

To submit items for publication in The E-Sylum, write to the Editor at this address: whomren@gmail.com

To subscribe go to: https://my.binhost.com/lists/listinfo/esylum

PREV ARTICLE NEXT ARTICLE FULL ISSUE PREV FULL ISSUE

V19 2016 INDEX E-SYLUM ARCHIVE