Spain severs relations with US company over shipwreck treasure

May 24, 2007, 13:09 GMT

Madrid - Spain has broken relations with a US treasure-hunting company it had allowed to search for a sunken British warship in the Strait of Gibraltar over suspicions that it has illegally exported a coin treasure found in Spanish waters, the daily El Pais reported Thursday.

Florida-based Odyssey Marine Exploration says the treasure was found in international waters and imported legally into the United States.

Odyssey had been authorized to search for the British warship HMS Sussex, which sank in 1694. The Spanish government says the company did not have permission to extract any objects on board.

Instead, Odyssey announced the discovery of another shipwreck which contained more than 500,000 silver and gold coins. The treasure is estimated to be worth half a billion dollars (370 million euros).

Spain feels the company has not given sufficient information about the operation, and suspects the wreck could be Spanish or in Spanish waters, in which case Madrid could claim the treasure.

Odyssey says it does not yet know the nationality of the wreck.

The government was investigating all the movements of Odyssey's two vessels over the past 20 days, Culture Minister Carmen Calvo said. The ministry has also requested information from the United States and Britain about an alleged Odyssey flight from Gibraltar and its cargo.

Spain has cancelled the permission to Odyssey to search for the Sussex, and does not intend to cooperate with the company again, the report said.

The search for the Sussex was based on an agreement between the US company and the British government, which would have allowed Odyssey to keep a part of the treasure of gold coins believed to be on board.

An estimated 400 shipwrecks lie in the Strait of Gibraltar alone, and Spain is wary of treasure-hunters who could loot them for commercial purposes.

Odyssey accused Spain of contradictory behaviour, saying the Spanish authorities had not even contacted the company, nor sent Spanish archaeologists to watch over the search for the Sussex as had been agreed.