1/18/25 Report - Moon-Shaped Eight-Reale Mystery. Locks, Keys and Treasure Chests of the Atocha and One of the 1715 Fleet. Bigger Surf.

Written by the TreasureGuide for the exclusive use of the Treasure Beaches Report.

Two Sides of a Moon-Shaped Atocha Cob Described as an Eight-Reale.
Source: Mel Fisher Maritime Heritage Society Collection.
See link below.

I noticed this cob in the Mel Fisher Collection database.  It stuck out to me primarily because of the odd shape.  One side seems to have no detail remaining. and the silver cob is described as being an eight-reale and also having a weight of 9.95 grams.  

I don't know why the cob is shaped like it is or why it is so underweight.  It looks like it could be cut in that shape for symbolic reason, or perhaps purposefully cut down to make small change or maybe even just broken.  I don't know how or why it was reduced, but whichever is the case, it certainly is an odd shape.

By the way, this cob is from the Margarita.

 

You can see many cobs from the Atocha and Santa Margarita on the site.  Below is the link to access the collection.

Mel Fisher Maritime Heritage Society : Browse Collections

There is a lot on that site to explore.  

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"Real Treasure Chest"

Other than the "treasure chest," there is little in treasure lore that is more ubiquitous.  Every time some TV treasure hunter finds a rusty lock, key or even a hinge, it must be from a treasure chest.   Never mind that in the millions of keys that populate the world, a key to a treasure chest would be rare thing, maybe as rare as a million to one.

Of the gallons of keys I've found, I doubt that one had anything to do with a treasure chest.

About Five Gallons of Dug Keys.
Source: The Treasure Beaches Report Direct From Florida's Treasure Coast.: 2/19/18 Report - Examples of the Lost and Found Service Provided by Detectorists. Lions Club Eye-Glass Program.

The "Captain's chest" shown above corresponds pretty closely to the treasure chests of literature, but it is not the type of treasure chest most commonly found on treasure galleon's such as the Atocha.

The Cargo of Coins Aboard the Nuestra Señora de Atocha, or "The Treasure Chest Defined," by Corey Malcom, provides the following illustration of the boxes or crates that held the silver reales transported on the Atocha.  See: The Cargo of Coins Aboard the Nuestra Señora de Atocha, or "The Treasure Chest Defined"

 

Dimensions and additional details are given in the Malcom document.  These "chests" look more like a coffin and serves as a shipping crate, which is what it really is.  Unlike the captain's chest, which is not entirely imaginary, it is flat and compact for shipping- not ornate, and definitely not having a rounded or arched top.  This type of chest, or crate, is more the type of thing that would be constructed for large quantities of cargo being shipped.  If anyone was moving huge amounts of specie, a crate like this one would be a more practical solution.

By the way, a similar example was found on a wreck of the 1715 Fleet in 1965. More details about that can be found in the same document.

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Take a look at the SurfGuru surf chart.

Source: SurfGuru.com.

It would be nice to see an eight-foot surf, as the chart suggests.   I wouldn't be surprised if it shrinks to something smaller thought.  Still time to see how that works out.

Good hunting,

Treasureguide@comcast.net

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