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.

Whydah Gally

Lost: 1717
Location: Off Wellfleet, Cape Cod, Massachusetts
Coordinates: 41.9000, -69.9800
Era: Spanish Colonial – Late Period
Coinage: cob
Discovered by: Barry Clifford
Recovery: 1984
Cargo: Spanish silver cobs, Gold escudos, Akan gold jewelry, Ship's bell

Slave-ship-turned-pirate-flagship of "Black Sam" Bellamy, wrecked in a nor'easter off Cape Cod with the plundered treasure of more than 50 captured vessels.

History

The Whydah Gally was launched in London in 1715 as a slave ship for the West African trade. On her second voyage she was captured in the Windward Passage by the pirate Samuel "Black Sam" Bellamy, who converted her into his flagship. Over the following months Bellamy took more than fifty ships across the Caribbean and up the North American coast. On 26 April 1717 the Whydah was caught in a nor'easter off Cape Cod and driven ashore stern-first at Wellfleet; nearly all of her roughly 146 aboard drowned. Only two men survived.

Recovery

Barry Clifford located the wreck in 1984 — the first fully-authenticated pirate ship ever discovered. The site has produced Spanish silver cobs, gold escudos, cannons, and — critically — the ship's bell inscribed "THE WHYDAH GALLY 1716," which cemented identification. Artifacts are conserved and displayed at the Whydah Pirate Museum in Yarmouth, Massachusetts.

Timeline

1715 — Launched in London — Built as a three-masted slave galley.
1716 — Captured by Bellamy — Taken by "Black Sam" and converted to a pirate flagship.
1717 — Wrecked off Cape Cod — Driven ashore in a nor'easter; only two of roughly 146 aboard survive.
1984 — Located by Clifford — First fully-authenticated pirate ship ever found.
1984–Present — Ongoing Excavation — Coinage, cannon, and the ship's bell recovered and conserved.

Notes

The only fully-authenticated pirate shipwreck ever discovered
Inscribed ship's bell provided positive identification
Carried plundered gold Akan jewelry from West Africa