As many as 50,000 bronze coins dating back to the 4th century AD have been discovered by a diver off the coast of Sardinia, the Italian ministry of culture said.
A trove of gold coins reported stolen from the 1715 Fleet Shipwrecks on Florida’s Treasure Coast were recently recovered.
The Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission (FWC) announced Tuesday that 37 stolen gold coins totaling more than $1 million in value had been found after a long investigation.
The 1715 Fleet was a group of Spanish ships that sank off Florida’s coast during a hurricane in July 1715. The ships contained masses of gold, silver, jewels and other valuables from the time period.
The FWC said the Schmitt family was working as contracted salvage operators for a company called 1715 Fleet-Queens Jewels, LLC, in 2015 when they recovered 101 gold coins from the shipwrecks.
Fifty-one of the gold coins were correctly reported and adjudicated, but the remaining 50 coins weren’t disclosed, and instead were stolen, FWC said.
Gold coins from the 1715 Fleet Shipwrecks in Florida.
(Florida Fish and WIldlife Conservation Commission / FOX Weather)
Evidence emerged in June linking Eric Schmitt, a member of the Schmitt family, to the illegal sale of the stolen coins in 2023 and 2024, FWC said. Advanced digital forensics identified metadata and geolocation data connecting Eric Schmitt to a photo of the stolen coins taken at the Schmitt family condominium in Fort Pierce, Florida, according to investigators.
Stolen coins were recovered from a variety of places, including auctions, private homes, safe deposit boxes and a Florida auctioneer who unwittingly bought five coins from Eric Schmitt, the FWC said.
The investigation also found that Eric Schmitt took three of the stolen gold coins and put them on the ocean floor in 2016 to be found by the new investors of 1715 Fleet-Queens Jewels, the FWC said.
The FWC said Eric Schmitt faced charges for dealing with stolen property.
GOLD RING WITH MARK OF CHRIST LOST 500 YEARS AGO FOUND IN EXCELLENT CONDITION
“This case underscores the importance of safeguarding Florida’s rich cultural heritage and holding accountable those who seek to profit from its exploitation,” said FWC Investigator Camille Soverel.
The FWC said it worked closely with historical preservation experts, including Mel Fisher-Abt to authenticate and appraise the recovered artifacts.
The remaining 13 missing coins have yet to be found, but the search continues for the missing gold.