Sunken Spanish galleon from 1708 could be ‘holy grail of shipwrecks’ with $20bn of treasure

Ship sank with 100 chests filled with emeralds and millions of gold and silver coins

Cannon seen on the seabed beside the wreck of the 'San Jose', sunk in 1708.

Vishwam Sankaran
©UK Independent

A Spanish ship that sank in the Caribbean in 1708 could hold sunken treasure including gold, silver, and emeralds worth up to $20bn (€18.4bn), the Colombian government said, unveiling plans to explore the legendary galleon.

Colombia said it is launching a government expedition to investigate the wreck of the San Jose galleon, dubbed the “holy grail of shipwrecks.”