A team of local treasure hunters are hoping they can find the wreck of a 17th century Dutch merchant vessel, Het Wapen van Amsterdam. The ship, which ran ashore in 1667, and soon buried in the sand, is believed to be carrying an enormous treasure which. The expedition, which is called Anno 1667, hopes it will be able to succeed where previous expeditions have failed. The local newspaper Morgunblaðið reports that the adventurers believe that techological advances since the last expedition was launched will give them the necessary advantage. Among the tools to be used in the search are high precision aerial images and drones.
More than half of the crew perished on the beach
The ship was returning with a fleet of Dutch merchant vessels from the island of Java, laden with treasure, including gold, pearls, silver and diamonds, as well as spices and silks. When it had reached the North Atlantic a massive storm blew the vessel off course ultimately running ashore on Skeiðarársandur beach in South Iceland. While the crew survived the wreck, with nearly 200-300 men leaving the ship stranded on the beach, only 50-80 men made it off the beach and to safety.
The cargo of the ship remained untouched because locals failed to reach the ship which remained too far out on the beach for it to be safely access, either by foot or horse on land or by boat from the sea. Sources say the ship’s masts could be seen from the nearby farms for more than a hundred years, before the ship had been buried completely in the sand.
A cargo of diamonds and gold
According to the ship’s manifesto its cargo was worth 43 barrels of gold. Since then adventurers and treasure hunters have been convinced that while the silks and spices might not have survived being buried in the sand for more than 300 years, the gold, silver and diamonds should all still be hidden in the wreck.
The exact location of the ship is not known, but sources say it was not far from the mountain Lómagnúpur. The ship, which is known as the “Gold Ship” in Iceland, has been the object of great speculation among Icelanders and several treasure hunts. In the 1960s a search was mounted for the ship which turned up nothing, as did a second search in the 1970s. A third, far larger search was organized 1980-1983. This expedition did turn up a German trawler which had run ashore on the beach in the 20th century.
Numerous ships have run ashore along the treacherous coasts of South Iceland throughout the centuries, with dozens of ships known to have run ashore on the stretch of Skeiðarársandur beach where the treasure ship is believed to be buried.
A team of local treasure hunters are hoping they can find the wreck of a 17th century Dutch merchant vessel, Het Wapen van Amsterdam. The ship, which ran ashore in 1667, and soon buried in the sand, is believed to be carrying an enormous treasure which. The expedition, which is called Anno 1667, hopes it will be able to succeed where previous expeditions have failed. The local newspaper Morgunblaðið reports that the adventurers believe that techological advances since the last expedition was launched will give them the necessary advantage. Among the tools to be used in the search are high precision aerial images and drones.
More than half of the crew perished on the beach
The ship was returning with a fleet of Dutch merchant vessels from the island of Java, laden with treasure, including gold, pearls, silver and diamonds, as well as spices and silks. When it had reached the North Atlantic a massive storm blew the vessel off course ultimately running ashore on Skeiðarársandur beach in South Iceland. While the crew survived the wreck, with nearly 200-300 men leaving the ship stranded on the beach, only 50-80 men made it off the beach and to safety.
The cargo of the ship remained untouched because locals failed to reach the ship which remained too far out on the beach for it to be safely access, either by foot or horse on land or by boat from the sea. Sources say the ship’s masts could be seen from the nearby farms for more than a hundred years, before the ship had been buried completely in the sand.
A cargo of diamonds and gold
According to the ship’s manifesto its cargo was worth 43 barrels of gold. Since then adventurers and treasure hunters have been convinced that while the silks and spices might not have survived being buried in the sand for more than 300 years, the gold, silver and diamonds should all still be hidden in the wreck.
The exact location of the ship is not known, but sources say it was not far from the mountain Lómagnúpur. The ship, which is known as the “Gold Ship” in Iceland, has been the object of great speculation among Icelanders and several treasure hunts. In the 1960s a search was mounted for the ship which turned up nothing, as did a second search in the 1970s. A third, far larger search was organized 1980-1983. This expedition did turn up a German trawler which had run ashore on the beach in the 20th century.
Numerous ships have run ashore along the treacherous coasts of South Iceland throughout the centuries, with dozens of ships known to have run ashore on the stretch of Skeiðarársandur beach where the treasure ship is believed to be buried.
