Dutch ship full of gold found off Australian coast
Long-Lost Sunken Treasure Ship Discovered Off Australia Coast
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The Dutch merchant ship Koning Willem de Tweede, which sank in a storm in 1857, has become the subject of marine archaeology research a century and a half later. The wreck, believed to contain numerous treasures, was discovered off the coast of South Australia.
The 42-metre sailing ship, which left Hong Kong, delivered 400 Chinese miners to Gichon Bay in June 1857, heading to the Victoria gold fields. After disembarking the passengers in the port of Robe, the ship was caught in a powerful storm. Under the onslaught of the hurricane wind, the hull was seriously damaged, and the captain, trying to save the crew, steered the ship onto a sandbank. However, the maneuver led to disaster: the ship broke apart, and the capsized lifeboat took the lives of 16 of the 25 sailors.
Current research is complicated by extreme conditions – as lead archaeologist James Hunter noted, shifting sands create the effect of an “underwater sandstorm.” In 2022, an international project to study the shipwreck began. Using metal detectors and magnetometers, scientists have identified iron fragments, including part of an anchor windlass, as well as a wooden deck hidden under a layer of bottom sediment.
Additional magnetic anomalies indicated the presence of large metallic objects whose dimensions matched those of the Koning Willem de Tweede. Important evidence came from 19th-century Chinese pottery fragments found on a nearby beach in 2023.
The researchers' immediate plans include a repeat expedition to record the artifacts in detail and assess the state of preservation of the debris. Special devices for pumping out soil can be used to access the sand-covered areas.
"The crash was catastrophic and very sudden, so we're likely to find a lot of artifacts. No one had time to grab anything. Almost everything was lost — and is probably still in the wreckage, which can tell us a lot about the crew and passengers," Hunter said.
Read also: Polish authorities report exact location of Third Reich's 'golden train'
Authors:
mk.ru
