Are Dark Tide Relics shipwreck coins authentic?

Every shipwreck coin and artifact sold by Dark Tide Relics is authenticated and accompanied by provenance documentation from recognized authorities such as the Mel Fisher Maritime Heritage Society, NGC, or PCGS, plus a permanent digital provenance record via TreasureCheck.ai.

Which shipwrecks does Dark Tide Relics specialize in?

Dark Tide Relics curates artifacts from the Nuestra Señora de Atocha (1622), Santa Margarita, the 1715 Spanish Treasure Fleet, El Cazador (1784), SS Central America (1857), Maravillas, Concepción, and other documented Spanish colonial and American Gold Rush wrecks.

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All orders ship via FedEx, fully insured and with adult signature required on delivery.

Does Dark Tide Relics buy shipwreck coins from collectors?

Yes. Dark Tide Relics actively acquires authenticated shipwreck coins and collections. Submissions can be made through the Sell Coins program at darktiderelics.com/sell-coins.

Rooswijk (1739/1740)

Lost: 1740
Location: Goodwin Sands, off Kent, England
Coordinates: 51.2700, 1.5100
Era: Dutch East India Company (VOC)
Coinage: cob
Discovered by: Ken Welling
Recovery: 2005
Cargo: Mexican silver 8 reales (pillar dollars & cobs), Silver ingots stamped with VOC marks, Personal effects of crew, Trade goods

A Dutch East India Company (VOC) merchantman lost on the Goodwin Sands off Kent on 9 January 1740 — catalogued as 1739 in some Old Style British records — carrying silver bound for Batavia.

History

The Rooswijk was a 145-foot Dutch East India Company (Vereenigde Oostindische Compagnie, or VOC) merchantman built at the company's Amsterdam shipyard. On her second outbound voyage to Batavia (modern Jakarta), she departed the island of Texel on 8 January 1740 under Captain Daniel Ronzieres, carrying a crew of roughly 237 men and a cargo dominated by silver — the universal currency of the Asian spice trade. The VOC routinely purchased Spanish-American silver, melted some into ingots stamped with the company's monogram, and shipped the rest as chests of struck coin. The Rooswijk's silver included Mexican 8 reales — both newly milled pillar dollars and older Habsburg-era cobs — accumulated through Amsterdam's role as Europe's bullion clearinghouse. The morning after departure, in a heavy winter gale, the Rooswijk was driven onto the Goodwin Sands — the notorious shifting sandbanks off the Kent coast known to English sailors as "the ship swallower." She broke up almost immediately. Every soul aboard was lost. The wreck slipped beneath the sands and disappeared from the record for more than two and a half centuries.

Recovery

In 2004, English diver Ken Welling located the Rooswijk on the Goodwin Sands. The Dutch government — which retains ownership of VOC wrecks under international maritime law — authorised a controlled salvage in 2005 that recovered thousands of silver coins and a number of silver ingots bearing VOC stamps. Between 2017 and 2018, a joint project between Historic England and the Dutch Cultural Heritage Agency conducted a full archaeological excavation. The site, by then designated a protected wreck, yielded an extraordinary assemblage: silver bars, coin chests, navigational instruments, weapons, and the personal possessions of the crew — buttons, buckles, shoe leather, and pewter. Coins from the Rooswijk reach the market with formal Dutch government provenance and are among the best-documented VOC-era shipwreck artifacts available to collectors.

Timeline

1737 — Built in Amsterdam — Constructed at the VOC's Amsterdam shipyard as a 145-foot East Indiaman.
1740 — Departs Texel — Sails 8 January 1740 from Texel bound for Batavia, carrying chests of silver to fund the spice trade.
1740 — Wrecked on Goodwin Sands — Driven onto the Goodwin Sands off Kent in a winter gale; all hands lost.
2004 — Wreck Located — English diver Ken Welling identifies the site on the Goodwin Sands.
2005 — Initial Salvage — Dutch-authorised recovery brings up thousands of silver coins and VOC-stamped ingots.
2017 — Joint Excavation — Historic England and the Dutch Cultural Heritage Agency conduct full archaeological excavation.

Notes

Lost on the Goodwin Sands — known to sailors as "the ship swallower"
Every one of the ~237 crew perished in the wreck
Cargo included silver ingots stamped with the VOC monogram
Excavated 2017–2018 in a joint UK–Netherlands archaeological project