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Spanish Government confirms its interest in the Odyssey treasure find
By h.b. - May 2, 2008 - 7:48 AM
ALSO SEE : • Spain convinced it will win the Odyssey treasure case, claiming the identity of the ship concerned is now known - May 8, 2008 - 5:47 PM

The 'Odyssey Explorer' used to recover the treasure - Photo EFE
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A legal battle over the ownership of some 500,000 silver coins is now underway in earnest.
The Spanish Government has confirmed its aspirations over the treasure found and recovered by the United States company, Odyssey Marine Exploration.

‘It’s all ours’, said the General Director of Fine Arts, José Jiménez, who said that the silver coins and other items found in May 2007 can be claimed ‘with guarantees’ for the Spanish Government.

Jiménez said that after Spanish experts inspected some of the 500,000 silver coins, now thought to have come from the Spanish galleon ‘Nuestra Señora de las Mercedes’, off the Algarve coast in 1804, it was clear the treasure was from a boat of the Spanish Armada and Spain will recover it all.

The matter is now in the hands of a court in Tampa, Florida, with Odyssey claiming that the boat was not engaged in military action when she sank and therefore cannot be considered to be a boat belonging to the Spanish state, and therefore they are not obliged to return the cargo. Odyssey claims that only descendants of those on board the vessel have any claim.

The Spanish Government is having none of that, and a formal press conference to explain the Spanish position is being organised for May 8.


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ALSO SEE :
• Spain convinced it will win the Odyssey treasure case, claiming the identity of the ship concerned is now known - May 8, 2008 - 5:47 PM
• Odyssey now not sure about the identity of treasure ship found off Spanish coast - Apr 19, 2008 - 10:57 AM
• Odyssey name the mystery Black Swan treasure ship - Apr 13, 2008 - 7:58 PM
• New United States treasure hunt for the cargo of a 17th century Spanish galleon - Mar 24, 2008 - 8:09 PM
• Court asks Spain and Odyssey Marine to settle differences on treasure find - Mar 6, 2008 - 10:12 PM
• Odyssey told to provide information on treasure find to the Spanish government - Jan 10, 2008 - 9:30 PM
• Call for a confidentiality agreement in the Odyssey treasure case - Nov 27, 2007 - 7:32 AM
• Odyssey Explorer leaves the port of Algeciras - Oct 21, 2007 - 12:49 PM
• Search of Odyssey Explorer reported to be completed in Algeciras - Oct 19, 2007 - 8:15 AM
• Judge releases the Captain of the Odyssey Explorer - Oct 17, 2007 - 4:37 PM