Look what the hurricanes unearthed!!!

[alicia-w]

The hurricanes that pounded Florida in September have unearthed a rich ancient booty along the state's Treasure Coast, and the spoils have gone to 52-year-old marine archaeologist Joel Ruth. So far, Ruth has found about 180 near-mint silver coins that are worth more than $40,000, reports the Orlando Sentinel.

Where exactly he found all this loot is a mystery. Ruth isn't talking for fear others will descend on his treasure chest in the sand. His African parrot does talk, but all he squawks is "pieces o' eight." The Sentinel notes that it takes big storms like Jeanne and Frances to rake several feet of sand off the beaches and expose the gold, silver, and gems that sunk and were scattered centuries ago.

Ruth does more than just walk the beaches with a metal detector. He's been eyeing a certain stretch of beach in Brevard County, Florida for 20 years, according to his colleague Sir Robert Marx, who is an underwater archaeologist and marine historian who has written 800 popular and scientific articles and 60 books on the subject. Based on their extensive knowledge, the two think the silver coins Ruth found were from a treasure fleet that sunk in a 1715 hurricane. About a dozen ships went down in that storm, all of which were laden with silver and gold for Philip V of Spain so he could boost his country's war-ravaged economy.

Does Ruth get to keep his bounty? He sure does. The Sentinel says there are three basic rules to treasure hunting on beaches:
1. Finders keepers.
2. No digging in dunes.
3. No digging in protected areas.

[tronbunny]

Nice to know someone gets some benefit.