INFOGRAPHIC: Buried Treasure Discovered In 2014

By Neils Christensen
Tuesday December 30, 2014 1:43 PM Looking back, 2014 could be classified as the year of recovered buried treasure as six discoveries made international headlines throughout the year.
One of the biggest buried treasure stories this year was Odyssey Marine, who focus on deep ocean exploration, resuming salvage operations of the SS Central America, which was halted for 23 years as the 1988 discovery was mired in legal disputes. In its first dive the company recovered more than 1,000 ounces of gold. The company said that more than 15,500 gold and silver coins were recovered during this year’s salvage operation.
Another interesting story caught people’s attention because of its intrigue and deception. In early December, four workers in a village in southern India were hired to dig a hole and found a pot of ancient gold. A police investigation started after one of the workers took a coin to a pawn shop to get it appraised. After the investigation, the police turned over more than 600 coins to Archaeology Survey of India.
A third story of buried treasure that captured people’s attention occured early in the year, as a couple from northern California came across about 1,430 mint-condition rare historical gold coins dating from the mid-to-late 1800s. One of the coins in the hoard was an 1866 Double Eagle gold coin, valued at $1 million.
What peaked public interest in the story was that after news broke, speculation started to grow that these coins were from a heist of the San Francisco Mint at the turn of the century. The speculation and rumors were put to rest after the Mint released a statement saying that there was no link between the coins and “any thefts at any U.S Mint facility.”