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.

Spanish 1681 Fleet

Lost: 1681
Location: Caribbean / Pacific — multiple sites
Coordinates: 24.0000, -80.0000
Era: Spanish Colonial – Late 17th Century
Coinage: cob
Cargo: Potosí cobs, Mexico City cobs, Silver bars

Losses within the New Spain and South Sea convoys of the early 1680s — a period of heavy pirate pressure and multiple wrecks tied by shared cargo and coinage.

History

The 1681 sailing season sat at the tail end of the Carlos II period, when the Habsburg silver system was under severe strain from English and French buccaneering across both oceans. Several vessels of the New Spain and Tierra Firme fleets were lost or forced to jettison cargo. The Consolación is the best-known individual loss; a wider body of coinage recovered from Caribbean and Pacific sites in the last thirty years is grouped commercially under a "1681 Fleet" designation.

Recovery

Material grouped under the 1681 Fleet name is typically Potosí and Mexico City silver of the late Carlos II era with heavy sea-encrustation and salt patina. Attribution to a specific vessel is rarely possible; the value of the grouping lies in the historical period and the coinage rather than a single documented hull.

Timeline

1681 — Fleets at Sea — New Spain and South Sea convoys sail under heavy pirate pressure.
1681 — Multiple Losses — Several ships lost or forced to jettison silver.
Modern era — Grouped Recovery — Late-Carlos II cobs enter the market under the 1681 Fleet designation.

Notes

Contemporary with the buccaneering voyages of Sharp, Sawkins, and Coxon
Includes both Atlantic and Pacific losses
Coinage almost entirely Potosí and Mexico City under Carlos II