Inside The Sinking Of The Spanish Galleon San José — And Why It’s Considered The ‘Holy Grail’ Of Shipwrecks

The British forces, which were allied with other countries like the modern-day Netherlands against the rise of King Philip V in Spain, hoped to capture the presumed treasure onboard the San José and bring it back to England. While it’s still unclear exactly how much of the vessel’s presumed treasure survived following the attack by the British and centuries of lying on the ocean floor, images released of the shipwreck have shown some promising clues, like gold coins, blue and white porcelain, and bronze cannons. Yet others, including many archaeologists, think that the vessel should only be explored in a limited capacity on the ocean floor, considering the age of the treasure and the hundreds of lives lost when the ship went down.

Author: Austin Harvey

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