Image: Samuel Scott’s painting Wager’s Action off Cartagena, 28 May 1708 (around 1743-47), depicts the San José sinking. Wikimedia Commons
Allegations of looting and lack of transparency plague the contested galleon that sank in 1708, laden with gold, silver, and emeralds
Which holds more value: the story of a shipwreck or the treasures it carried? For years, controversy has surrounded the San José, a Spanish galleon loaded with gold, silver, and emeralds that sank off Colombia’s coast in 1708. It was destroyed by the British during the War of the Spanish Succession, and almost 600 people on board lost their lives. The ship’s lucrative cargo, meant to fund the war, sank more than 600m to the seabed.
Ever since Colombia announced the galleon’s discovery in 2015, the San José has become one of the world’s most disputed shipwrecks. Controversy recently resurfaced after the oversight group Veeduría Nacional para el Control Social del Patrimonio Cultural Sumergido de Colombia (VNPCS) issued an open letter to Colombia’s attorney general, complaining of a lack of transparency and alleging looting and unauthorised interventions in 2016 and 2022. The letter also claims that the site’s coordinates, considered a state secret, have been disclosed.
Read the full article on The Art Newspaper:
https://www.theartnewspaper.com/2026/05/25/colombia-shipwreck-san-jose-controversy-looting
