WW II gold shipment in transit to Central Bank-Solomon Islands

Mackaydon

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Oct 26, 2004
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Sunken Ship’s Suspected Treasure Confiscated in Solomon Islands

SYDNEY – Police in Solomon Islands, in the South Pacific, confiscated a suspected gold shipment belonging to a boat that sank during World War II in the Ontong Java atoll, media reported Monday.

Around 100 of the suspected gold bars, as well as other metals, have been transported to the Central Bank of Solomon Islands for safekeeping, according to Radio New Zealand.

A police source involved in the operation told the Solomon Business Magazine that the shipment was confiscated from a boat near the Ontong Java atoll.

In 2013, local media had reported that Solomon Islands government was making preparations to recover more than $1.5 billion worth of gold bars thought to be on the ocean floor between Guadalcanal and Malaita.

Source:
Latin American Herald Tribune - Sunken Ship’s Suspected Treasure Confiscated in Solomon Islands
Don.......
 

McClod

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Jun 14, 2013
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Hmm, I wonder what it cost their government to salvage and find out they weren't gold bars! Talk about a let down!
 

Darren in NC

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2 scenarios...

1) Either the divers and confiscating police were very dumb not realizing they were not gold.

2) Authorities declared the gold worthless, while switching it with worthless lead.
 

SADS 669

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Jan 20, 2013
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No- one and I mean NO-ONE brings up bars to the surface weighing tens of pounds without scratching them with a dive knife or screwdriver first.....duh..

My votes for Darren's number 2....
 

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Tenderfoot
Aug 11, 2016
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Gold bars in the Solomon

Yep,,,
Someone got ripped off..

the media did not know exactly what the products are.. these bars worth of billions. they are treasure bullions and the total bars surfaced is 2020 bars excluding the ballast.
These are artefacts and there are gold as well discovers on the ship.
 

TreasureCDave

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Jun 5, 2015
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WW2 always intrigues me. So much gold was lost. So little information can be found.

Wartime treasure seized in Solomons

Same here, but my interest has mostly been in the European theater. I bought the collectors box tin of "Band of Brothers" when it came out and have watched it at least a dozen times. Remember "Kelly's Heros" ?)

My bucket list trip is a weeks tour that starts in Normandy and ends at the Berchtesgaden area of Germany.
 

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Tenderfoot
Aug 11, 2016
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Gold bars in the Solomon

The media is too lousy in the news article. There are freelance journalists such as Mr. Alfred Sasako who drawn conclusion without finding the truth.

In facts, there is a tremendous findings in this historical salvaging exercises in this 17th and 18th century shipwrecks in the Solomon islands. This is the first successful findings in the history of solomon islands as far as the treasure hunts is concern. There are other salvagers operation started in the early 1980s but not success as this ontong java development company Ltd salvaging Team.:hello2:
 

Salvor6

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Please keep us informed Redzieak.
 

Lucky Eddie

Sr. Member
Feb 9, 2010
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If those bars were "low alpha lead" (which being from the 1800's before the advent of nuclear explosions they should be) then they are probably worth more than gold!.

It's all a scam... a big scam like everything associated with shipwreck treasure.
 

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