Shipwreck: A Saga of Sea Tragedy and Sunken Treasure

• Authors: Dave Horner
• Edition: Sheridan House, 1999
• Subjects: Wreck, History
• Level: Collector

What it is

The true story of two great 17th-century galleons — the Concepción (1641) and the Maravillas (1656) — told through the eyewitness diary of a Spanish padre, Diego Portichuelo de Rivadeneira, who survived three shipwrecks. Horner weaves in three centuries of salvage attempts, including his own work on one of the galleons.

Why it matters

It joins a first-hand 17th-century account to the modern salvage record of two wrecks that put many cobs into today's market. For Concepción or Maravillas material, it gives the voyage, the loss and the later recoveries in one book.

Who it's for

Collectors of Concepción or Maravillas cobs, and anyone who wants a primary-source-based narrative of a galleon loss.