A Massive Treasure Lies at the Bottom of the Shaft, but It Can’t Be Retrieved
Oak Island is considered the true island of treasures. Its hidden secret has captivated treasure hunters from around the world for over 200 years. The deep pit, originally named the “Money Pit,” is believed to contain gold bars, Marie Antoinette’s jewels, the Holy Grail, or even the original manuscripts of William Shakespeare.
Attempts to find the treasure intensified in the 1960s. However, even advanced technology and machinery cannot prevent the mysterious behavior of the shaft. At a certain point, water floods the pit, covering layers of wood, metal, or cement. In another pit, a skeleton and a metal chest can be briefly seen. This problem has persisted since 1795, when the Money Pit was discovered by an 18-year-old named Daniel McGinnis.
Oak Island covers an area of 57 hectares and is located in Mahone Bay, Nova Scotia, Canada. Most of its surface is covered by trees. However, in its easternmost part, there is a clearing where strange lights were reportedly seen hovering in the late 18th century. McGinnis set off in a boat with three friends to the island. When he found a depression, remnants of tools, and a rope on the clearing, his heart leaped with joy. But after weeks of digging, the dreamed-of treasure was not found.
The Oak Island Treasure
The discovery did not remain a secret. To this day, new exploratory missions continue with the goal of finding the fabled riches. Theories began to spread about what the pit might contain. One of the most famous is the story of pirate Captain Kidd’s treasure, which historians have been trying to find for decades. A stone slab found in the 19th century with the inscription “Dig forty feet below, and you will find two million pounds” suggests that the treasure might be worth at least 58 million Czech crowns.
Another theory suggests that the pit was dug by shipwrecked Spanish sailors or British soldiers during the American Revolution. It’s also possible that it was designed by French military engineers to hide wealth from the Louisbourg fortress after their defeat in the Seven Years’ War. Half a century later, jewels allegedly stolen from the Palace of Versailles by a maid of Marie Antoinette were said to be hidden there.
Other speculations exist about what the island’s underground might hide. Writer Penn Leary believes that English philosopher Francis Bacon buried the original manuscripts of William Shakespeare’s plays in the pit. Researcher Petter Amundsen thinks that exiled Templar knights dug the shaft, making it the final resting place of the Holy Grail and the Ark of the Covenant.
The Curse of Oak Island
The latest theory claims that the Money Pit hides money from the wreck of the Spanish galleon Concepción, found by explorer William Phips. Some of this treasure was allegedly used to overthrow King James II, while the rest was hidden on Oak Island. The British supposedly retaliated by digging fake tunnels and shafts. This hypothesis is supported by the discovery of 17th-century English tools and human remains dated to the same period.
The self-flooding pit isn’t the only oddity on the island. The treasure is also said to be protected by a curse that states seven men must die before the island reveals its secret. So far, records mention six victims.
The first tragedy occurred in 1861 when a worker was severely burned by boiling water. Almost forty years later, a worker from the Oak Island Treasure Company slipped from a rope. In 1965, another tragedy struck when four men were suffocated by released carbon monoxide. If the curse is real, the treasure demands one more sacrifice. However, since 2011, when Nova Scotia’s Department of Natural Resources allowed treasure hunting to resume, no deaths have been reported.
Sources: www.en.wikipedia.org, dotyk.cz
