Certificate 16764 TSI Number: 85A-205443
(Slip document as imaged in image 3 is the certificate that will accompany the coin)
In 1622, a Spanish treasure fleet departing from Havana was struck by a catastrophic hurricane as it sailed through the Florida Keys. Among the fleet was the Nuestra Señora de Atocha, a heavily armed galleon laden with immense wealth from the New World, including silver, gold, emeralds, and valuable trade goods bound for Spain. The storm sank the Atocha and several other ships, scattering their treasures across the ocean floor. Despite years of desperate salvage attempts by the Spanish, the wreck remained lost for centuries.
After a 16-year search, famed treasure hunter Mel Fisher and his team discovered the main “motherlode” of the Atocha in 1985, uncovering one of the most significant maritime treasure finds in history. The recovery yielded thousands of silver coins, gold bars, jewelry, and artifacts, many remarkably well-preserved. These items provide a tangible link to Spain’s colonial empire and the perilous voyages that underpinned its global wealth. The 8 reales coin offered here is an authentic piece of that legendary shipwreck, a rare survivor of both nature’s fury and the passage of time.
