PIECES OF EIGHT

In 1715, a Spanish Plate Fleet with a cargo worth over fourteen million went down in a hurricane off the Florida coast. There were few survivors and only some of the treasure was recovered at that time. However housebuilder Kip Wagner discovered the rest of it in 1961, a story which has had national magazine coverage. Even this as-told-to-expansion, while it rambles, lends inside information to a spectacular tale. A few pieces of eight found on the beach led Mr. Wagner on to years of amateur diving and historical research; finally with some friends he formed a company, bought a boat, pinpointed a few sites, and eventually recovered what now amounts to ""two or three million"" in silver ingots, jewelry, gold coins, silver dishes, Chinese porcelains, thousands of pieces of eight.... What shines here is not the lure of the lucre, but the adventure itself and it certainly will speak to a good many men and boys.