Treasure hunting

Treasure hunting is the search for real treasure which has been a notable human activity for millennia.

Background

In recent times, the early stages of the development of archaeology included a significant aspect of treasure hunt; Heinrich Schliemann's excavations at Troy, and later at Mycenae, both turned up significant finds of golden artifacts. Early work in Egyptology also included a similar motive.

More recently, most serious treasure hunters have started working underwater, where modern technology allows access to wrecks containing valuables which were previously inaccessible. Starting with the diving suit, and moving on through Scuba and later to ROVs, each new generation of technology has made more wrecks accessible. Many of these wrecks have resulted in the treasure salvage of many fascinating artifacts from Spanish treasure fleets as well as many others. Unfortunately, in their search for valuable artifacts, treasure hunters destroy forever unique archaeological sites. For this reason, treasure hunting is illegal in most developed countries.

Additionally with the advent of affordable, state of the art satellite imaging from companies such as GlobeXplorer, GeoEye and others, the average income household can now contact a satellite imaging company and pay to have a specified area scanned. This has made it infinitely easier for treasure hunters to do extensive research previously impossible to do without physically going to the specific point of interest, and saved the real life treasure hunters much time and money, even providing for a new level of safety to be incorporated in to treasure hunting expeditions.

In fact, even companies such as Google with their Google Maps and Google Earth products, have given the ability to virtually anyone to have eyes across the globe and conduct research into specific points of interest before launching a treasure hunting expedition. In 2005, a treasure hunter found the remains of an ancient Roman villa when he browsed Google Earth maps showing satellite images of his local area. [ [http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/europe/4267238.stm BBC news "Internet maps reveal Roman villa"] retrieved 10/3/07]

Famous treasure hunters

* Capt. Martin Bayerle located the shipwreck of RMS "Republic" in 1981.
* Mel Fisher (discoverer of the Spanish galleon "Nuestra Señora de Atocha")
* Cork Graham (war correspondent, author)
* Mike Hatcher (discoverer of the "Nanking Cargo")
* Ponce de Leon (searched the new world for gold and the Fountain of Youth)
* Robert F. Marx (underwater archaeologist, author)
* Odyssey Marine Exploration has extracted treasure from the shipwreck of the SS Republic in 2003 worth approximately 75 million USD.
* Dr. E. Lee Spence (pioneer underwater archaeologist, author)
* Heinrich Schliemann (grocer turned treasure hunter, considered father of historical archaeology, discoverer of lost city of Troy)
* Robert Stenuit (underwater archaeologist, author)
* Michael T. Dodd (underwater archaeologist, recovered the box of pearls from the wreck of the Santa Margarita as well as many other valuable artifacts, author)

ee also

* Armchair treasure hunt
* Buried treasure
* Geocaching
* Letterboxing
* Lost mines
* Marine salvage and treasure hunting (marine)
* Shipwreck

Treasure hunting in films

* Indiana Jones
* Dirk Pitt
* Benjamin 'Finn' Finnegan
* Benjamin Franklin Gates
* Rick O'Connell
* Sydney Fox

Treasure hunting in video games

* Treasure hunt (game)
* Lara Croft
*
* Wario

References

Further reading

* Robert E. Burgess, "Sunken Treasure" (Dodd, Mead; New York; 1988)
* Cork Graham, [http://www.amazon.com/dp/0970358016?tag=lifeisjusttoo-20&camp=14573&creative=327641&linkCode=as1&creativeASIN=0970358016&adid=1KRW7WDQ18Q4V5KDXGQE& The Bamboo Chest; 2004]
* Dr. E. Lee Spence, "Treasures of the Confederate Coast: the "Real Rhett Butler" & Other Revelations" (Narwhal Press, Charleston/Miami, 1995)