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A team of divers searching the waters off the Florida Keys recently recovered something that hadn’t been seen in nearly three decades: a 22-pound silver bar (1) from the legendary Atocha shipwreck.
The artifact, which spent more than 400 years underwater after the Spanish galleon sank in a hurricane in 1622, is estimated to be worth about $100,000.
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The Nuestra Señora de Atocha (2) was a heavily armed ship carrying an estimated $400 million to $500 million (3) in gold, silver and gemstones from the New World to Spain. Its wreckage was first discovered in 1985 by treasure hunter Mel Fisher (4) and his team, Treasure Salvors, Inc., following a 16-year search.
Hunters have not yet cleaned out the wreckage of its treasures.
“It was our last dive of the day — it was almost 7 o’clock,” lead diver Blake Baker recalled to Local 10 News. The new discovery was made by members of Mel Fisher’s Shipwreck Expeditions, the same organization that has spent decades recovering treasure from the wreck site.
According to Captain Drake Nicholas, the silver bar was found buried deeper than many of the other metal detector signals the team had investigated.
“We were in an area with a lot of metal detector hits,” Nicholas said. “This one was deeper.”
After striking the object with a knife and examining its surface, Nicholas said he noticed markings consistent with a silver bar.
He added, “I didn’t believe it at the moment.”
The artifact was covered in more than four centuries of marine encrustations and will be examined in a laboratory before its history is fully documented.
Sean Browne of Mel Fisher’s Shipwreck Expeditions estimated the silver bar’s value at roughly $100,000. Rather than being melted down, the piece will likely remain intact because of its historical significance.
Today, discoveries from the site are shared among investors involved in the expedition before being distributed to the Fisher family, according to Browne.
A treasure that has held its value for centuries
While few investors will ever uncover treasure from a centuries-old shipwreck, gold and silver have historically been viewed as stores of value, helping preserve wealth through wars, economic upheavals and changing currencies.
If you’re not particularly keen to take up professional diving, a gold IRA from Goldco lets you hold physical gold and other metals while still getting the tax advantages of an IRA — without getting wet yourself.
Goldco is widely regarded as one of the leading above-ground gold and silver companies in the space, with a 4.8/5 rating on Trustpilot and an A+ from the Better Business Bureau. They also offer a guaranteed buyback program, meaning they’ll repurchase your metals at the highest price, according to market value, if you ever decide to sell. As of June 19, 2026, silver is selling for $65 per troy ounce (5).
If the discovery has you wondering whether gold and silver deserve a place in your own portfolio, you can download Goldco’s free gold & silver guide to see if it’s a good fit for you.
Unlike the investors backing the Atocha recovery effort, most people aren’t searching for treasure hidden beneath the ocean floor. They’re looking for dependable assets that can generate income and appreciate over time.
Rental properties have long been a proven source of steady, passive income for high-net-worth investors. It’s no wonder that real estate accounts for nearly 25% of the typical family office portfolio. However, the time, effort and costs involved in managing and maintaining multiple properties prevent many from investing. So unless you’re a hedge fund titan or an oil baron, you’ve been shut out of one of the most profitable corners of the market.
Mogul offers a solution to bridge the gap here. This real estate investment platform offers fractional ownership in blue-chip rental properties, which provides investors with monthly rental income, real-time appreciation and tax benefits — without the need for a hefty down payment or 3 a.m. tenant calls.
Mogul’s founders are former Goldman Sachs real estate investors and the team handpicks the top 1% of single-family rental homes nationwide for you. Simply put, you can invest in institutional-quality offerings for a fraction of the usual cost — and you don’t even have to go underwater to find something valuable.
Each property undergoes a vetting process that requires a minimum 12% return, even in downside scenarios. Across the board, the platform features an average annual IRR of 18.8%. Their cash-on-cash yields, meanwhile, average between 10% to 12% annually. Offerings often sell out in under three hours, with investments typically ranging between $15,000 and $40,000 per property.
Every investment is secured by real assets, not dependent on the platform’s viability. Each property is held in a standalone Propco LLC, so investors own the property — not the platform. Blockchain-based fractionalization adds a layer of safety, ensuring a permanent, verifiable record of each stake.
Getting started is quick and easy. You can sign up for an account and then browse available properties. Once you verify your information with their team, you can invest like a mogul in just a few clicks.
Looking for larger opportunities?
For investors with larger portfolios, private-market real estate may offer access to opportunities that aren’t typically available through public markets. Just as the Atocha expedition relied on investor capital to pursue a unique opportunity, accredited investors today can gain exposure to specialized real estate investments through private offerings.
Lightstone DIRECT’s direct-to-investor model ensures a high degree of alignment between individual investors and a vertically-integrated, institutional owner-operator — a sophisticated and streamlined option for individual investors looking to diversify into private-market real estate.
A $100,000 silver bar is a nice problem to have, but deciding what to do with a valuable asset, inheritance, or other windfall can still be complicated. That’s where a financial advisor can help you out.
But hiring an advisor can be a lifelong commitment, which might make or break your retirement. That’s why finding reliable advisors is crucial — something Advisor.com can help you with.
Advisor.com does the heavy lifting for you, vetting advisors based on track record, client ratios and regulatory background. Plus, their network comprises fiduciaries, who are legally required to act in your best interests.
Just enter a few details about your finances and goals and Advisor.com’s AI-powered matching tool will connect you with a qualified expert best suited for your needs, whether you’ve come across a surprise windfall or you simply need to plan for the future.
Finding the right advisor isn’t always easy — there’s no one-size-fits-all solution. That’s why Advisor.com lets you set up a free initial consultation, with no obligation to hire, to see if they’re the right fit for you.
Once you’ve got the right financial advisor in your corner, the next step is getting a clear picture of where your money’s actually going. That starts with the basics — budgeting and tracking your spending.
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Article Sources
We rely only on vetted sources and credible third-party reporting. For details, see ourethics and guidelines.
Local 10 News (1); Wikipedia (2); Ocean Treasures (3); The Maritime Executive (4); JM Bullion (5)
This article provides information only and should not be construed as advice. It is provided without warranty of any kind.
