Watch: Researchers Explore 300-Year-Old Time Capsule From Cape Cod Pirate Ship

Buried treasure is not necessarily gold; sometimes, it is about discovering history.

Archaeologists working on a 300-year-old pirate shipwreck believe they may have made a brand discovery off the Cape Cod coast. It is a piece of the vessel preserved within a natural and unique time capsule.

An experienced conservator, Dr Scott Herber, is chipping away at a lost part of the Whydah. The vessel was a crucial ship in Sam Bellamy’s pirate empire. A Nor’easter reportedly had shipwrecked him and his crew off the Cape Cod coast in the 1700s. 

A group of archaeologists has been trying to uncover pieces of the wreck for decades. The loot is currently at the Real Pirates Museum based in Salem. Barry Clifford has led the charge and helped discover the latest piece.

The understanding is that one piece may be a deck gun or long rifle off the ship. The iron inside the gun comes in contact with seawater to form a process dubbed concretion. 

The complex formations preserve all that is inside. Crew members used hospital CT scans and HD x-rays at Lahey Medical Center to understand what lies inside.

Dr Herber says that it tells him where he needs to target and to start being more careful, adding that on x-rays, one can see wood grain buried below. 

Now that Dr Herber has disclosed the tip of the possible gun, they can attach wires and use electrolysis to zap the remaining concretion away. 

This will help uncover their treasure. The electrolysis process might take up to a year. They could also find other items buried inside. They have already discovered a musket ball.

References: MSN, CBS Boston

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