News updates from directors of the 1715 Fleet Society, including stories, images, documents, and more. This is the main news feed for the society.
Greetings. One of my designated duties as a Director of the 1715 Fleet Society is managing website content. Over the last nine years since our website was launched, I have attempted to provide interesting subject matter for our Fleet Society members and website visitors. For instance, we have regular features like our Treasure of the
Out of the 2016 F.U.N. Coin Convention —this year held in Tampa, FL— comes this very interesting 8-reales piece. One of 70-some eights and fours which arrived at the FUN Show for sale … with links to Real-8 founder, Kip Wagner (see page-6) … this piece-of-eight is extremely appreciated by its new owner, Ben Costello of Washington, PA. It
The “mother load” sale of Fleet gold, 878 gold coins, sold by Hans Schulman at the Waldorf-Astoria Hotel, New York. Among the coins sold were six Royals from the 1715 Fleet.
Real Eight Company is dissolved after 23 years.
Recently, we received a note from Fleet Society member, Augi Garcia (Membership # 3) informing us that there will be several educational presentations on Monday, November 16, 2020 at 3:00 pm EST in advance of a major auction to be held the following day by Daniel Frank Sedwick, LLC. One of the three featured speakers
Today is the 320th anniversary of the death of Charles II (1665-1700) the last Hapsburg ruler of the Spanish Empire. His death is of particular interest to scholars and aficionados of the 1715 Fleet. It was his death that sparked the War of Spanish Succession (1701-1714). The Fleet of 1715 was indirectly related to this
November’s featured treasure is one of the rarest and coveted items ever recovered from the wreck sites of the 1715 Fleet—a gold Royal. Specifically, in this case, a 1713 eight escudos Royal from the Spanish colonial mint at Mexico City. So what makes this coin so desirable? Well, first and foremost, is its beauty. Nearly
“Pieces of Eight”, the legendary book written about the Real Eight Company by its founder Kip Wagner, goes into publication.
The first public auction of gold coins recovered from the 1715 Fleet shipwrecks off the coast of Florida by the Real Eight Company. Some of the best condition specimens were offered for sale. The coins are sold through the auction house of Henry Christianson, Hoboken, New Jersey.
Hello Fleet Society readers. This is Craig, web admin for the society. You may have noticed a few changes we recently implemented with the goal of making the site more user-friendly and accessible. Here’s what we’ve been up to: Menu and Header To start, we added a scrolling menu. On desktops and tablets, the
Our Treasure of the Month for October is a departure from our usual treasure offerings. Unlike most of our featured treasures it is not something that can be held in one’s hand and studied up close. It is not made of gold or silver, is not a valuable gem or rare artifact. And, unlike most
The crew of the salvage vessel Virgalona recovers 216 gold coins at the Douglass Beach Wreck site near Fort Pierce, Florida. It is the largest amount of gold found in one day in over two decades.
Philip V marries Elizabeth Farnese of Parma by proxy. He saw her for the first time 3 months later. She exerted great influence over Spain’s foreign policy and was the de facto ruler of Spain from 1714 until 1746. She died on July 11, 1766.
The New York Times reported that Stack’s had been appointed by the Real Eight Company as exclusive agent to handle the sale of gold and silver coins recovered by that company. The sale was to take place on Friday, September 19, 1969 at the Park Sheraton Hotel in New York.
Newspaper article from the Miami Herald reports that archaeologists have pinpointed the site of a Spanish camp of 1715 shipwreck survivors. The owner of the land, Robert McClarty, has given the site to the state in return for an agreement to build a museum there. The site is now occupied by the McClarty Treasure Museum.
The governor of the Bahama Islands issues a royal proclamation pardoning all pirates who surrender before September 5, 1718. Henry Jennings who, together with 300 men seized 1715 Fleet treasure that had been salvaged by the Spanish, wisely turned himself in. He lived the rest of his life a respected gentleman of means.
Greetings. One of our undertakings here at the Fleet Society is to carry out original research into anything Fleet related. In that regard, I would like to present a recent article written by Fleet Society Director and Academic Coordinator for the Society, Phil Flemming. Phil is a recognized expert in gold coinage of the Fleet
Our Treasure of the Month for September features two silver eight reales from the Mexico City mint. Upon close observation, they do not appear to be particularly noteworthy, other than the fact that they are dated 1712 and 1715. There have been many auctions over the years that have offered similar coins for sale. So,
Recently, I was contacted by Josh Steele, a local resident who sent me this video which was obtained from a website called FloridaMemory.com. “3 Fathoms to a Fortune” was prepared in the early 1970s, probably 1973. The footage was from the mid-to-late 1960s. What follows is a description of the film as found on the
The Battle of Blenheim was fought during the War of Spanish Succession, resulting in a victory for English-led forces over French and Bavarian soldiers.
