Builders unearth 18th century galleon in Argentina

Source: Reuters

BUENOS AIRES (Reuters) - Argentine builders stumbled across the wreck of an 18th century Spanish galleon while digging the foundations for a riverside high-rise building in Buenos Aires, archeologists said on Tuesday.

Experts combing the remains of the ship said they did not expect it to contain treasure, but so far they have discovered several canons and well-preserved earthenware jars that were probably used to store olive oil.

The remains of the galleon were found on a building site close to the shores of the River Plate and archeologists from Buenos Aires city government think the boat was probably shipwrecked some 300 years ago.

"You can see it's very old and we think it dates from the 1700s, although it's also possible that it's from the 1600s," said archeologist Marcelo Waissel.




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...Somali pirates have seized the galleon.

arghhhh

They got more than a thousand miles to the galleon.

The Presidio Army Museum in San Francisco (now part of GGNRA) has a Spanish cannon cast in Peru in 1628, a small but amazing coincidence.

The cannon San Domingo was cast in 1628, and bears the coat of arms of Don Diego Fernandez de Cordoba, 17th Viceroy of Peru. This cannon was cast in Lima, Peru, after enough copper was obtained from Chile. The San Domingo was one of the cannons that was successfully re-vented, after being spiked during the Bear Flag Revolt by Frémont's men. The cannon is currently located outside of Building 2, at the Presidio Army Museum. There are four other Spanish cannons from Peru on display around the Presidio dateing from the 15th and 16th century.

museum.My brain is getting fuzzier and fuzzier.

It stuns me that the thing is even remotely intact after what it's been through.

Now I'll have to go back to Buenos Aires and see it.