In a groundbreaking underwater archaeological discovery, Allen Exploration has successfully mapped a sprawling trail of scattered treasure from the Spanish galleon Maravillas, which sank in the northern Bahamas over three centuries ago. After four years of meticulous work, experts at AllenX have unearthed a treasure trove spread over 5 kilometers, defying previous beliefs that the wreck had been salvaged into oblivion.

The Nuestra Señora de las Maravillas, known as Our Lady of Wonders, met its watery grave on January 4, 1656. Laden with silver bars, coins, and artifacts salvaged from another lost galleon, the Spanish ship was en route back home. Over the years, the wreck was repeatedly hunted for relics, extensively plundered by Spanish, English, and American salvors. Between 1972 and 1991, modern salvage teams managed to recover an estimated 30 tons of gold bars and coins, silver nuggets, jewelry, emeralds, iron anchors, and cannons.

However, AllenX, licensed by the Bahamian government since 2019, has shattered the notion that the Maravillas had been completely depleted. Discovering a vast scatter of artifacts, the team has established that the wreck extends southeast from its original location, spanning a distance of more than three miles. The painstaking mapping process has revealed an array of treasures, including olive jars, silver coins, silver bars, emeralds, amethysts, and gold jewelry.

Contrary to previous theories that attributed the wreck's disintegration to centuries of hurricanes and storms, the underwater archaeology has prompted a reevaluation. According to Dan Porter, the project's offshore manager, the artifacts are primarily concentrated in a single trail running southeast. Despite the Bahamas experiencing 142 hurricanes and storms since 1500, the fact that the remains are not scattered in all directions challenges the prevailing assumptions.

The notable findings along the Maravillas scatter trail have captivated experts. Among them are unique gold chains and jewels inlaid with precious gems, believed to be the personal possessions of wealthy passengers and officers. Chief archaeologist Jim Sinclair was astounded by the quality of the discoveries, highlighting that these valuable items would undoubtedly have been salvaged along with the main wreck in 1656. The inference drawn is that the treasures found by AllenX were scattered during the five months preceding the Spanish salvage operations.

The exploration team at AllenX has published their findings in Ocean Dispatches 4, a research document for the Bahamas Maritime Museum in Freeport, founded by Carl Allen in 2022 to exhibit the recovered treasures. Carl Allen, the founder of AllenX, underlined the historical significance of the Maravillas, emphasizing that extensive research and exploration still remain to delve deeper into the ship's archaeology and history.

This extraordinary discovery marks a turning point in understanding the Maravillas and rewrites its presumed fate as a completely plundered wreck. The AllenX team's perseverance and dedication have created renewed excitement among historians, archaeologists, and treasure enthusiasts as they eagerly await further revelations from this Spanish galleon lost at sea centuries ago.

Note: The title of the article is "Allen Exploration Uncovers Vast Scatter of Treasure from Spanish Galleon Maravillas."