The stern of the Dmitry Donskoi.
File photo of the Dmitry Donskoi.
Explorers have found the wreck of a Russian Imperial Navy ship
that was sunk 113 years ago and may contain $130 billion in gold bars and
coins, according to news reports.
In a statement, salvage company Shinil Group confirmed that the
stern of the vessel, the Dmitry Donskoi, had been discovered off South Korea’s
Ulleungdo Island. It was badly damaged following an attack by Japanese warships
during the Russo-Japanese War and was scuttled in the Sea of Japan on May 29,
1905.
The Korea Times reports that the
South Korean salvage firm, which has been searching for the wreck for years,
used two manned submarines to spot the ship on Saturday.
The Dmitry Donskoi, a 5,800-ton
ironclad cruiser, was in a fleet of 38 Russian Imperial Navy ships deployed
from the Baltic to the Pacific. Citing historical accounts, The Express reports that the
Dmitry Donskoi may be treasure-laden. In addition to carrying port expenses and
salaries for the fleet’s sailors and officers, she may have held gold reserves
of other Russian ships damaged in the Battle of Tsushima in May 1905.
Rumors of a gold hoard on the ship have swirled for decades,
although the possibility of a sunken treasure has also been viewed with
skepticism. According to The New York Times,
one historian told Bloomberg in 2000 that it would have been safer to send the
gold to the Russian Pacific port of Vladivostok by rail, as opposed to using a
ship.
In its statement, Shinil Group said that it had found a large
amount of iron boxes in the ship’s stern, and “will take measures
to preserve them.” The boxes’ contents have not been revealed.
In addition to the stern, 203 mm cannons, 152 mm long-distance
guns, a number of machine guns, anchors, two stacks, three masts, wooden decks
and armor are also visible on the wreck.
“One-third of the stern is bombarded and the hull is
severely damaged,” Shinil Group explained in a statement. “However, the upper
deck of the wooden hull is almost untouched. The armor on the side of
the hull is also well preserved, while the anchors, guns and machine
guns remain in place.”
All three of the ship’s masts and its two chimneys are broken.
Experts from the U.K. and Canadian marine exploration company
Nuytco are also part of the international team working on the Dmitry Donskoi
project.
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