$500K Ring Found In Waters Off Key West
OFF KEY WEST (CBS4) - Divers off the coast of Key West made a pricey discovery Thursday.
Shipwreck salvagers found a 10 karat gold and emerald ring while searching for the 17th century sunken Spanish galleon Nuestra Senora de Atocha.
The ring, featuring a 2.7 by 2.5 centimeter rectangular cut stone, has an estimated value of $500,000.
The ring is believed to be from the Atocha, which sank off the Florida Keys during the 1622 hurricane. Divers were looking for the sterncastle of the Atocha when they made the discovery.
In addition to the ring, divers found two silver spoons and other artifacts believed to be on-board the doomed ship.
Mel Fisher's Treasures, the company conducting the searches, has recovered more than $450 million in artifacts and treasures from the Atocha shipwreck in 1985, but the sterncastle is still undiscovered.
