Anyone know the status of the TH company "Visa Gold Explorations Inc., "

[diverlynn]

Anyone know the status of the TH company "Visa Gold Explorations Inc., "

If Cuba opens up to Americans, I sure would like to work their coast!
DiverLynn

Visa Gold to auction off treasures found in 1839 shipwreck. (Trade).
By: Echevarria, Vito
Publication: CubaNews
Date: Wednesday, January 1 2003
Visa Gold Explorations Inc., the Canadian underwater exploration and salvage firm that has recovered over 8,000 artifacts from a shipwreck off Cuba's northern coast, plans to sell many of the items it exhibited in a Toronto art gallery last summer.
Paul Frustaglio, Visa's president, said he'll auction off an assortment of jewelry and other pieces on eBay. The pieces range from an 18k gold brooch embedded with 27 diamonds and emeralds (asking price: $22,500) to gold necklaces and rings, assorted cut diamonds, emeralds, rubies and a variety of antique items starting at $1,000. These range from a bronze statue of Neptune and ivory domino pieces to horse saddle ornaments, flint pistols and a dagger hilt; also for sale are French crystal perfume bottles, some of which contain the original perfume oils.

The treasures were all recovered from the Palemon, a Spanish brigantine that was sailing from France to Cuba when it struck a reef and sunk off the Cuban coast in 1839 (see CubaNews, Sept. 2002, page 6).
The rest here http://www.articlearchives.com/consumer-products/luxury-goods-jewelry-fine/841507-1.html

 

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[jeff k]

Re: Anyone know the status of the TH company "Visa Gold Explorations Inc., "

Lynn... It looks like they're out of business.

http://havanajournal.com/business/e...ons_current_state_of_cuba_shipwreck_business/

 

[diverlynn]

Re: Anyone know the status of the TH company "Visa Gold Explorations Inc., "

Thanks Jeff, didn't find that

DL

 

[OldGold74]

Re: Anyone know the status of the TH company "Visa Gold Explorations Inc., "

Ed Burtt was part of Visa Gold with Jack Haskins the research key they looked for the Santisima Trinidad and I beleive found it, however from my understanding the company and investors had a falling out with reference to the stock exchange and other issues, I have worked with Ed, nice guy gentleman may have received bad publicity for his part but I dont beleive a word, he has a company called Oceanscan in Bellevue Ontario and is actively out looking for vessels, he is good with a mag, im willing to bet a beer or ten that he is one of the best with a fisher proton, email me him and good luck
GFH

 

[diverlynn]

Re: Anyone know the status of the TH company "Visa Gold Explorations Inc., "

I was just courious if they were still working in Cuba. Wouldn't mind doing some time down there myself. Anyone know if any salvage is happening off Cuba at the present time?

Diverlynn

 

[OldGold74]

Re: Anyone know the status of the TH company "Visa Gold Explorations Inc., "

No they are not, there were a few licenses some may have been revoked, a south african crew, and others, you can try Michael Muirhead (i think its his name we met years back) he worked for a lady Called Paulina Russian, worked for Cuba Govt and still does, he owns Western Subsea in Victoria vancouver island should be easy to find, also Ed Burrt is going back to work under his own company, he is a good guy, again email him as he is in good standing in Cuba, good luck GFH

 

[diverlynn]

Re: Anyone know the status of the TH company "Visa Gold Explorations Inc., "

Thanks Goldfishhunter

DL

 

[Vox veritas]

Re: Anyone know the status of the TH company "Visa Gold Explorations Inc., "

Diverlynn, in 1998 RAMAL got a recovery contract with Sermar (Havana). They worked some years in the area of the Havana but everything finished in failure due to the nature of the contract (politically very closed). I was the historical researcher. In 1990 I also worked for CARISUB and there is not place to doubts that Cuba is a cemetery of ships with treasures and with high cultural potential.

 

[diverlynn]

Re: Anyone know the status of the TH company "Visa Gold Explorations Inc., "

Vox veritas,
Wow, you meet the coolest folks on this forum. Would love to know what the diving down there is.
I can have my bags packed immediately!!

Whoo Hoo lets go to Cuba!

DL

 

[Vox veritas]

Re: Anyone know the status of the TH company "Visa Gold Explorations Inc., "

Vox veritas,
Wow, you meet the coolest folks on this forum. Would love to know what the diving down there is.
I can have my bags packed immediately!!

Whoo Hoo lets go to Cuba!

DL

DL, This is an extract of the business plan of RAMAL for Cuba (Coopers & Lybrand). 104 potential targets was investigated. But Cuba has signed the treaty of the UNESCO.
I believe to remember that VISA GOLD worked with a permit of Geomar, a state society authorized to associate with foreign companies for recovery projects in Cuba. The third authorized it was Carisub, society been founded by Fidel Castro that went a great fond to diving.
The enclosed document reflects the existence of 104 potential targets with treasures and cultural patrimony.

 

[mariner]

Re: Anyone know the status of the TH company "Visa Gold Explorations Inc., "

DL,

I was in correspondence a couple of years ago with a Canadian company called ADC who had one of the four contracts that Cuba had given to underwater recovery companies (Visa Gold was one of the others) to locate and recover wrecks off their coast. ADC was led by Paulina Zelitski, a former Russian advisor who had been based in Cuba and then became Canadian.

They claimed to have found several wrecks, including one just off the western tip, Cabo San Antonio, which they think had run aground and then slid back into the Ocean, and was now lying on the sea bed at about 1800 feet. The waters around Cuba are very deep, and the land sheers away very quickly. We were in discussion because we thought that this wreck might be the ship that ran aground and then sank off Cabo San Antonio in 1526 after being sent out by Hernan Cortes when he was in Honduras, and which he described in one of his five letters to Emperor Charles V.

There was a fascinating story to the finding of the wreck. Paulina was tresting out her deep sea ROV camera when a shark swam by. They decided to follow the shark as a camera test, and it swam past the wreck site! The site consisted mostly of a ballast pile of very small rocks and stones, but just next to the site, scattered on the ocean bed, were a pile of mixed gems, including emeralds. Paulina sent me a still from the video showing the gems. We concluded that they must have been contained in a wooden box that fell off the ship as it reached the ocean bed and then rotted away, leaving its contents on the ocean bed.

ADC had also found the wreck of the USS Maine, which had been taken out of Havana Harbor and deliberately sunk, and also found what appeared to be the remains of a Mayan city, lying in 2,000 feet between Cuba and the Yucatan Peninsula. National Geographic's underwater specialist Sylvia Earle went back with them and photographed some of the remains, but I don't know what happened to the footage. I don't remember seeing a TV program about it. The trip had problems because one of the big Hurricanes went over the area (it was about 2003/4, from memory), so maybe it was aborted.

Anyway, to get round to answering your question, Paulina told me that their contract with Cuba was cancelled (before they could recover the pile of gems) because Cuba had signed an agreement giving Canada exclsive accessto the ocean bed west of Cuba so that they could explore for oil or gas, and no other kind of underwater activity was permitted under this agreement. A mutual friend told me that this was not the complete story, but as far as I know, Cuba's search for the treasure ships around its coast was just abandoned (maybe for the moment).

That might explain why Cuba ratified the UNESCO Treaty, which came as a surprise to me as they had only recently been paying companies to find and recover treasure ship wrecks off its coast.

Mariner

 

[diverlynn]

Re: Anyone know the status of the TH company "Visa Gold Explorations Inc., "

Mariner,
Thanks for the history lesson. Cuba has always fascinated me for some reason and I would love to "drop" down and take a look see. Maybe in my lifetime. I am a die-hard travel freak and love new adventures.

Lynn

 

[Old Bookaroo]

Re: Anyone know the status of the TH company "Visa Gold Explorations Inc., "

It is my understanding that from time to time "wildcat" solo divers worked the Cuban coast. These were strictly unofficial non-licensed enterprises - individuals appearing to be doing one thing while they were actually quite busy doing something else.

I have also been told the Cuban government paid researchers to work in the Seville archives. Personally, I always thought these researchers probably would only produce enough information to justify their continued (paid) efforts, setting aside the real "fines" for a better, more profitable, time.

Some years ago I was told about a gentleman who had cut a deal with a Colonel in Haiti to hunt treasure off that coast. I said he'll only have two problems - when he doesn't find something or when he does...

Good luck to all,

~The Old Bookaroo

PS: I believe Walter Cardona Bonet's excellent book on the shipwrecks of Puerto Rico included some information on Cuban treasure wrecks, as well.

 

[Vox veritas]

Re: Anyone know the status of the TH company "Visa Gold Explorations Inc., "

Mariner, I believe to remember that ADC had a permit to work only in deep water. RAMAL had another for the San Antonio cape area with SERMAR (see enclosed document).

Bookaroo, did I work 20 months for Carisub You know some other researcher that has worked for the Cubans in Seville?
Do you know Walter Cardona?

 

[mariner]

Re: Anyone know the status of the TH company "Visa Gold Explorations Inc., "

Vox,

You may well be right. ADC's particular expertese was in deep sea exploration. However, my memory of looking at the ocean depths around the west end of Cuba is that you very quickly get into pretty deep water. The wreck I described was only a quarter mile off Caba San Antonio, but the depth was 1800 feet.

I was told by a very reliable source that a group of fishermen had found an ornate bronze cannon lodged in the shallow waters off the Cabo. It was very ornate, in the form of a lion, with the muzzle of the gun forming the lion's mouth. I understand that the gun was bought by somebody in Florida. I was particularly interested in finding this cannon, so I could check whether it was cast by Cortes and came off the 1526 ship that ran aground. I think Cortes cast several ornate cannons, and I am interested in finding evidence of this.

If anybody has any knowledge about this find, I would be very interested to hear from them.

Mariner


Mariner

 

[diverlynn]

Re: Anyone know the status of the TH company "Visa Gold Explorations Inc., "

Goldfishhunter,
Received a very nice e-mail from your friend Ed.

Diverlynn

 

[Vox veritas]

Re: Anyone know the status of the TH company "Visa Gold Explorations Inc., "

Mariner, if the memory doesn't fail me, Ernie Tapames was the responsible for ADC. The shipwreck of Cortes is very interesting, but there are not documents, because in the AGI the documentation previous to 1545 was destroyed and it doesn't allow to take a full research ahead. Cortes undertook an expedition that reached Honduras but it was a failure.

 

[Old Bookaroo]

Re: Anyone know the status of the TH company "Visa Gold Explorations Inc., "

Vox:

When I was active in the mailorder (pre-Internet) adventure/treasure book business, I purchased a box of Walter's books. I continue to believe he did an outstanding job on his book! I corresponded with him regarding books - and that was - gee - fifteen years ago? I have not seen a copy of his book offered for sale for a number of years - I wonder what one would bring today?

Splash,

~The Old Bookaroo

 

[Vox veritas]

Re: Anyone know the status of the TH company "Visa Gold Explorations Inc., "

Bookaroo, I knew Walter in Tampa in 1987. From then on we collaborate in exchanging information (see the page 13 of Shipwrecks in Port Rico's history, Claudio Bonifacio).
Walter had to finish the second part of this impeccable book, with first hand information. We all hope this happens ASAP.

 

[OldGold74]

Re: Anyone know the status of the TH company "Visa Gold Explorations Inc., "

Old Bookeroo, I think I know who you are, nice to see you post, Diver lynn glad you could verify fact from BS with Ed, and Mariner try get hold of Muirhead from Western Subsea he is under the bridge in Victoria BC he showed me ROV work and pictures of ships at 2000 feet with ornate bronze guns lying on the sides of the timbers, very intact, I think and he may kick me for it, if I recall he hung up an Rov That belonged to Natgeo and the russian bird, before any one starts rumours or says I made a statment I said "I think" ive dived a lot since then and memory doesnt serve so well, however he did show me some nice sh1t. As for you Bookeroo only a couple people end in Splash so good on you, and Claudio thanks. GFH