So You Know Where
There Is Lost Treasure?
Who hasn’t heard
of the millions of dollars to be found by looking for lost treasure? Book’s by
the hundreds exist on the subject with many giving the location. When I started
Metal Detecting there were several magazines on the subject and numerous books
on treasure to be found in your location.
Who hasn’t heard
of the “Lost Treasure of Montezuma”. We
are talking about the Aztec and the defense against their attempted overthrow
of the capital of Tenochtitlan. The
Spaniards had received a gift of gold and silver on their first arrival to the
city and it made them greedy to have it all.
Their ship or ships had been loaded with what they had first been given
and the gold taken by force during the ransacking of the city. The Aztec although loosing their king
Montezuma revolted against the attackers and the Spaniards had to flee. For whatever reason they had to dump the
treasure into the waters of Lake Texcoco.
Cortes returned
the next year and conquered the Aztecs for good, but the treasure that was
reported to have been dumped into the lake was never recovered. Many have looked in the lake with no success
and it is assumed by many it is still there.
On the Aztec side it is said that 2,000 men recovered the treasure and
took it north along with the body of Montezuma.
Moving on to more
resent times, who has not heard of the “Lost Dutchman Mine” in the Superstition
Mountains of Arizona. About 6 people
have lost their lives searching for that “Lost Gold Mine”.
In Oklahoma where
I live it is the Wichita Mountains and its lost gold mines and treasure. One
popular tale is the story of the Iron Door somewhere around Elk Mountain. Honestly, the story sounds eerily similar to
numerous other Iron Door Treasures in our American History.
Who hasn’t heard
from a neighbor or friend who heard from a friend or family member or other
reliable sources where Aunt Tilda hid all that money she did not spend? But, what about those who have found “Lost
Treasure”? Mind you, I am not saying
those who have spent considerable time hunting for a lost treasure never found
it. But, when you look at those who
found “Lost Treasure”, most were found by accident.
Take that day in
April 2014, a California couple was on a walk with their dog on their property
and found a metal can sticking out of the ground. Digging it out they found it held a
considerable amount of gold coins. The
couple went on to find similar cans on their property containing coins dating
back to the Nineteenth Century. The
treasure was named, “The Saddle Ridge Hoard”.
I never heard of anyone looking for that treasure before it was found.
England which has
a history of occupation by the Romans, Saxons, Vikings and others has accounts
of many accidental finds. Farmers
plowing, random metal detectorist and construction have found some valuable
history. In the accounts I do not
remember anyone specifically looking for what they found.
Other than
stories in various Treasure Magazines, I know of no documented finds from a
planned treasure hunt that produced great wealth outside of those who hunted
for shipwrecks. Mel Fisher is one that comes to mind, but his finds were at a
great personal loss of family members and lost court cases over jurisdiction.
Another such find,
the “USS Central America”, a steamer that transported gold from California to
the East. It was caught in a storm in
1857 off the East Coast and sank with great loss to life, ship and gold. A Seattle Treasure group was formed to find
the ship and was successful. In all 50
million dollars in gold was found and recovered in 1988.
Not long after
the lawsuits started, an insurance company that covered the ship at the time of
its sinking filed suit as owner. After
years of court hearings, the 13 original founders of the expedition and 161
investors were left holding the bag when the court ruled in favor of the
insurance company. The original
founders’ efforts were rewarded with around $46,000 each when the suit was
finally settled in 2018. I could find no
record of what the investors got if anything.
Honestly, I have
no regrets over the time I spent hunting for that which someone else lost or
misplaced. One reason is I never let it
consume me. Instead I have built
friendships that have lasted, discovered history but most of all had lots of
fun.
But there is a
warning, to quote Virgil’s epic Latin poem, “The Aeneid”, it concludes with “O
cursed lust for gold!” There is only one
treasure that can be found that has eternal value. Many have already found it, Jesus said in
Matthew 6:19-21, Lay not up for yourselves treasures upon earth, where moth and
rust doth corrupt, and where thieves break through and steal: But lay up for
yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth and rust doeth corrupt. For where your treasure is, there will be
your heart also.