Four shipwrecks, including the remains of a 1748 Spanish privateer ship, were found at a historical site in North Carolina.
Archaeologists from East Carolina University were searching the Brunswick /Fort Anderson State Historic Site in Brunswick County, North Carolina, when they found the wrecks.
The team stated that the remains may be of La Fortuna, a Spanish privateer from Cuba that exploded near the colonial wharves when the port was attacked at the end of King George’s War in September 1748.
The wreck was found close to where an 18th-century cannon, thought to be from La Fortuna, was recovered in 1985.
Over 40 pieces of timber from what was thought to be La Fortuna were collected as part of emergency recovery to save the ship’s remains from erosion and other threats, per university officials.
Specialised Tests showed that the wood was either Monterey Cypress or Mexican Cypress. This wood species is limited to southern California and Central America.
This shows that shipbuilders incorporated raw materials from Spanish Caribbean colonies in the 18th century.
The shipwreck’s timbers were well-preserved, and some also showed tool markings.
The timber, which was collected, was taken to the North Carolina Office of State Archaeology’s Queen Anne’s Revenge Conservation Laboratory at ECU’s campus in Greenville for storage and conservation.
Dr Jason Raupp, Assistant Professor in the Department of History and Maritime Studies, said that the recovery of the La Fortuna Shipwreck and documenting heritage at risk within a significant historic site shows the effectiveness of the collaborative efforts of the research team.
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