Mystery Wreck of MAREX

Country: Bahamas

Place: 35 miles northwest of Grand Bahama Island

Dated: c. 1550

Description of the Shipwreck

Also known as the Tumbaga wreck, this site is said to have been discovered by Marex International in 1992. The treasure hunters found high-alloy gold, silver, and copper objects known as tumbaga bars, in a small area. Probably the wreck mentioned by Robert Marx already in the 1980s this wreck has been salvaged by Marex and is said to have been only published in a company internal report.

Cargo

According to the treasure hunters: “More than 200 silver bars, about 20 small gold ingots, and a dozen early gold money pieces were all salvaged from a small area. All of the material is datable to the reign of King Charles I of Spain and his seal was found on the gold and silver bars.”

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References

Pers. Comm. John de Bry, 1998: "a couple of papers privately published" by MAREX, Memphis, Tennessee.

Marx, Robert F. Quest for Treasure, Ram Books, Dallas, 1982.