The Merchant Royal was in port in Cadiz when it learned of a Spanish ship that was overburdened with this treasure.

[Crow]

As much as I detest the Spanish claims.

There as far as I am aware not strong case of evidence of treasure put forth on the Sussex? If you read odyssey owns words. Page 13 top.

Sussex shipwreck

Among the tasks given to Admiral Wheeler during this mission was delivery of a present from the British Crown to the government of Tunis (the precise nature of this “present” is not clear).

Similar cruises by a “Straits squadron” in 1689-90 had also made calls on North African states with “presents” for area rulers. Court records show that Admiral Sir Francis Wheeler was assigned to coordinate closely with England’s special envoy to the Duke of Savoy, ally with England, Holland, Spain and other states in the War of the League of Augsburg against France. {Assumption )

Other archive entries suggest that Sir Francis Wheeler additionally held a secret commission to deliver money, thought to be aboard
Sussex, for subsidies and perhaps the payroll of mercenary soldiers fighting for Savoy. {No references to these claims? )

Finally, recent archival studies revealed that agents of the Levant Company in Gibraltar, acting on orders from London, placed “a very considerable summe of money (that is, specie) for Their Majesties’ use” (Once again no reference to these claims.)

Even wikipedia is hesitant to claim gold coins was on the Sussex?

Sussex

There was no need to keep these references secret. But you notice terms suggest, thought? They hint The Levant company.
You can go to Kew and actually hunt down the records of Levant company. To see if any orders exist from state papers.


Levant company records


They was never going to get permission to salvage the Mercedes off the Spanish who signed up to that horrible (UNESCO AGREEMENT) They went after the Mercedes. and used the pretext that they was salvaging an alleged treasure from the Sussex as smoke screen just like they used merchant Royal.

Enough said about that.

This is about merchant Royal. It was a shame as odyssey had the money and resources at the time. they could HAVE made a deal for finding and recovering the Merchant Royal. And that opportunity had gone as the current UK government is not open to deals at present. Although odyssey has done successful deals with them before.

So the mystery remains here is merchant Royal? I have two areas of interest with in approximate soundings in context of this alleged anchor discovered with in the 10 leagues of Lands end. Are any of them remotely close? Who knows?

Crow

 

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[: Michael-Robert.]

The anchor, secured on the fishing crew boat.

 

[Magoopeter]

But what Lands End? what was at lands End that took them there?

 

[Old Bookaroo]

The Merchant Royal then sank off the coast in Cornwall, England. Taking the gold and riches to the bottom of the ocean. For centuries its location has remained a mystery, until last year when a fishing boat found the first clue.
The unfound shipwreck is one of the most lucrative shipwreck in history.

What's an "El Darado?"

Good luck to all,

The Old Bookaroo

 

[: Michael-Robert.]

What's an "El Darado?"

Good luck to all,

The Old Bookaroo

Nickname of the Merchant Royal...

 

[Old Bookaroo]

Nickname of the Merchant Royal...

I've only seen it spelled "Dorado" - "The Golden [One]."

I will defer to the Spanish speakers here. Where's the Tropical Tramp when we need him? Sadly, no longer here.

Good luck to all,

The Old Bookaroo

 

[Crow]

I've only seen it spelled "Dorado" - "The Golden [One]."

I will defer to the Spanish speakers here. Where's the Tropical Tramp when we need him? Sadly, no longer here.

Good luck to all,

The Old Bookaroo

Hello Bookaroo. I had to check if I had miss spelt Dorado? I frequently do miss spell and leave words out. My eyes are crap these days.

I miss Old Don Jose. It was privilege to have laughed and joke and shared an odd yarn or two around. the campfire of forum. Even in his final years his passion never diminished. Last of a generation.

He taught me one thing you are as old as you feel do not let age be a barrier for living every living breathing moment.

Crow

 

[Old Bookaroo]

Hello Bookaroo. I had to check if I had miss spelt Dorado? I frequently do miss spell and leave words out. My eyes are crap these days.

I miss Old Don Jose. It was privilege to have laughed and joke and shared an odd yarn or two around. the campfire of forum. Even in his final years his passion never diminished. Last of a generation.

He taught me one thing you are as old as you feel do not let age be a barrier for living every living breathing moment.

Crow

Howdy, Crow!

You have posted some extraordinary research here on TN. I must tip my cap to you for that.

My post referred to the YouTube video in #2, above. I found it funny. The video itself has old newsreel footage with another misspelling.

Jus trying to have some fun here. And, yes, Don Jose was quite the man - a gentleman and a scholar.

Good luck to all,

The Old Bookaroo

 

[treasurediver]

What's an "El Darado?"

Good luck to all,

The Old Bookaroo

Maybe he meant "El Tarado" "the weird one" ... ha, ha.

 

[BennyV]

Great posts! Wish we had more shipwreck related posts on here.

 

[ARC]

Great posts! Wish we had more shipwreck related posts on here.

All you gotta do is start one

 

[Crow]

Here is a map with potential 50 Fathom sites where this mysterious anchor may of been snagged?

Below shows lithology of sea floor the area in question in 50 fathom targets are gravelly sand. It would make sense as the old anchor did not catch on any surface ledge or rock out crop when snagged in the nets.

Thus with in the estimate range of the sinking from historical accounts and matched the given depth of the the trawler that was trawling. Around or near the above given soundings are the only areas meeting 3 key perimeters.

Wind direction trade wind gen from west to east. And a general direction of current tidal stream below below, Pushing south east. A disabled vessel sinking winds and currents would push the vessel east south east of isle of Sicily . Strange enough this is near the target area of 50 fathoms as per chart. and the only area with in the area of sinking of merchant Royal. from the description of where the anchor was snagged at 300 feet deep 50 fathoms.

Just one possible area worth considering?

Crow

 

[Old Bookaroo]

The anchor, secured on the fishing crew boat. View attachment 2128643

Does the anchor have a "Broad Arrow?"

I ask for a friend.

Good luck to all,

The Old Bookaroo

 

[Crow]

Does the anchor have a "Broad Arrow?"

I ask for a friend.

Good luck to all,

The Old Bookaroo

Hello Bookaroo

Good question.

The general consensus is The broad arrow was used in England (and later Britain), apparently from the early 14th century, and more widely from the 16th century, to mark objects purchased from the monarch's money, or to indicate government property.

It only became an official compulsory mark of government property as I understand it in 1661 for British navy and government after that date. Shortage of ship masts in Europe led to England's Broad Arrow Policy in 1691, whereby pines 24 inches or more in diameter within 3 miles of water were blazed with the mark of the broad arrow; such trees were to be reserved for used in the Royal Navy. The term King's Pine originated from this policy.

My guess if the anchor had broad arrow stamped on it. It would exclude it from being from the Merchant royal?
The type of anchor appears to be a Kedge Admiralty anchor.

Since the merchant Royal was private ship and sank in 1641 predating the English Civil war 1642 to 1651. The anchor has not been conclusively proven to be with in the date date range, just yet. just media hype that is the anchor from the vessel?

Crow

 

[treasurediver]

From this angle, I would say that this anchor dates between 1700 to 1750.
The whole story of the Merchant Royal sound like media hype, from beginning to end.
Does anybody have any real evidence about this story, besides media?

 

[ARC]

What bothers me about that anchor is the absence of flukes.

 

[Crow]

From this angle, I would say that this anchor dates between 1700 to 1750.
The whole story of the Merchant Royal sound like media hype, from beginning to end.
Does anybody have any real evidence about this story, besides media?

You can find information from at least three sources official London Gazette to the financial paper Mercurische Courant in Amsterdam.

Charles 1 -volume 484: September 1641 pages 114-129. Calandar of State Papers Domestic Charles the first, 1641 -1643, Originally published by Her Majesty's Stationery Office, London, 1887. that was the printed translation from Charles state hand written papers September 1641.

​

One of my pet hates in getting access to British records have been taken over by private enterprise with digitization. They hold you to ransom. and they make you pay thorough the nose for documents you want to see. by subscription.

Your welcome to pay to see the above 1641 reference from the above state papers if you have a subscription. Those digitized documents I cannot post here was it infringes on copyright. here is the link.

British History online

Alternatively you can fly to London and request to see them in person thus by passing the digitization companies . Yet it might be cheaper to pay the pirates for ya information.

My pet hate ya need to look at thousands of document pay for the privilege to see them and find they are not relevant for search. Over the years I have spent over 100k for documents irrelevant to what i was searching for. That really sucks amigos.

The late Jeff K that once posted more details on the treasure typed out what was in the report in the state papers. check my earlier post or his original post on treasure net. Regardless of the latest media hype the anchor the shipwreck was real shipwreck.

That said I suspect the Anchor is later then 17th century. I suspect 18th as there is many thousands of wrecks in region. ARC Makes a good point about the anchor flukes. Have they rusted away?

Here is an almost contemporary anchor recovered from the Vassa wrecked in 1626 you can see the flukes below.

16th -17th century anchors.​

The earliest drawings of an anchor with details of its weight and dimensions appears in “Fragments of Ancient Shipwrightry” attributed to Matthew Baker, dated to the late 16th or early 17th Century. Most anchors during this period had curved arms, but as larger anchors were required the straight arm anchor was introduced to English vessels. The flukes were generally the shape of equilateral triangles and half the length of the arms. The anchor ring was slightly smaller diameter than the fluke. The anchor stock was roughly the same length as the shank, made from timbers bound with iron hoops. Wooden pegs or treenails were used to secure the timbers in the stock, which was straight on the top and tapered on the other three sides.

In 1627 Captain John Smith published “A Sea Grammer2
which provided a list of the different types of anchors carried by ships at that time. It listed:

The kedger anchor - the smallest of the anchors used in calm weather.
The stream anchor – only a little larger used in an easy tide/streams.
The bow anchor – larger - 4 in total
The sheet anchor – the largest and heaviest of all used in emergencies.

18th century anchors​

In the 18th century an account of anchor types, including their dimensions and shapes appears in William Sutherland’s “Britain”s Glory or Shipbuilding Unvailed” published in 1717 . Sutherland states that the Royal Navy stipulated that the length of the shank of the largest anchor on a naval vessel was two fifths of the vessels extreme breadth.

The Admiralty issued lists of the dimensions fixed for each rate of Royal Navy ship called the “Establishment”. Another crucial document from this time that tells us about the rules surrounding the use of the anchor was “A Treatise on Anchors”, which was published by Richard Pering in 1819.

Crow

 

[Crow]

The Admiralty pattern anchor – and other 19th century anchors​

The Admiralty pattern anchor is the most recognizable as a typical anchor of a sailing ship. Developed in 1841 under the guidance of Admiral Sir William Parker it had a wooded shock, later to be wrought iron and with curved arms. The Admiralty pattern anchor with its superb construction it represents the final stage in the development of the fixed are anchor.

see Cutty Sark 1869 anchor below.

However the 19th century great steps were also being taken in new anchor design. The long shank anchor of the 17th century and the admiralty pattern anchor of the 19th century both had issues when it came to recovering them from the seabed which required the use of a rope from a davit off the side of the ship.

In 1832 Lieutenant William Rodger patented his small palm anchor which remained in use until the 20th century, and in the late 19th century anchor designers like Porter, Honiball and Trotman all developed anchors with differing fluke shapes and even with swivelling crowns.

The end of the 19th century saw the patenting of the new type of anchor – the stockless anchor. The type that remains in use on board sailing ships to this day.

Crow

 

[BennyV]

All you gotta do is start one

I don’t have the knowledge.

 

[Crow]

Here is an anchor very similar. Found on the other side of the world.

Being underwater in much shallow depth and marine and coral growth had just about morphed it into coral.

Admiralty Old Pattern Long-Shanked anchors First developed for the British Royal Navy during the latter half of the eighteenth century, the Old Pattern Long-Shanked design remained in vogue until the first few decades of the nineteenth century, when it was gradually replaced by ‘improved’ versions of the Admiralty-Pattern anchor.

These newer variants featured an array of modifications, including shorter, more robust shanks, iron stocks, and curved arms. see picture of Cutty Sark anchor in previous post

Crow