5 Ancient Treasure Troves To Make You a Millionaire

Deeply buried treasures are a popular plot device in fantasy and adventure films. Real-life archaeologists, too, have their Indiana Jones moments from time to time.

Although most of the time they come across worthless ordinary goods, researchers do come across genuine gold every now and then. And what they discover could be worth millions of dollars.

Let's take a look at the treasures:

The Hoxne Hoard is worth $4.3 million.

The narrative of the Hoxne Hoard begins with another misplaced object. In 1992, Peter Whatling, an English farmer, misplaced his hammer.

He enlisted the assistance of a friend who owned a metal detector to assist him in his search. Together, the two men discovered something far more valuable.

The Hoard, as their discovery became known, is the largest Roman treasure unearthed in the United Kingdom. The hoard held 14,865 gold, silver, and bronze coins, as well as 200 items of silver cutlery and gold jewelry.

Around 407 CE, the original owner of the money and jewelry was most likely a single, extremely affluent family. In today's money, the treasures were valued at almost $4.3 million.

The Saddle Ridge Hoard is worth $10 million.

A California couple knew simply as John and Mary noticed something unexpected on their property in 2013. They discovered an old metal can hung from a tree.

The can was so old that it had been largely covered by the tree as it grew. They also discovered a unique rock feature known as "Saddle Ridge."

When the pair began digging at the location, they uncovered more metal cans. Finally, they extracted eight cans holding 1,427 gold dollar coins dating from the mid to late 1800s.

The discovery was valued at around $10 million in total, making it the largest gold coin cache ever discovered in the United States. Nobody knows who or why the coins were buried to this day.

The Belitung Shipwreck is worth $80 million.

Off the coast of Indonesia, fishermen caught the catch of a lifetime in 1998. They came across an antique Arabian merchant ship.

The ship, which was most likely on its way to China, sank around 830 AD.

The hoard included gold and ceramic items such as bowls, spice jars, inkwells, funeral urns, jewelry boxes, and other precious stones and jewels. The treasures were estimated to be worth $80 million.

After the Singaporean government purchased the lost shipment, the riches are now held by the Singapore Tourism Board.

The Gairsoppa SS is worth $200 million.

During WWII, a Nazi German U-boat—or submarine—destroys the British commercial ship SS Gairsoppa as it traveled across the Atlantic. Within 20 minutes, the ship sank, taking 85 sailors with it.

Aside from human lives, the cargo of the SS Gairsoppa was also lost. And what a cargo it was: the ship was carrying almost 200 tonnes of silver.

The wealth stayed at the bottom of the sea until the United Kingdom government decided it should be taken to the surface.

The wreck was discovered in 2011 at a depth of 2.8 miles. Due to terrible weather at sea, they had to halt operations numerous times while bringing up the silver.

By 2013, they had retrieved 61 tonnes of silver bullion. At the time, the recovered treasures were worth $200 million.

The Black Swan Project is a $500 million investment.

The Black Swan Project is shrouded in mystery.

The corporation had discovered a shipwreck, but they didn't say where, when, or how they discovered it. They also did not reveal the types of coins they discovered.

However, some clarity on the case eventually emerged.

Odyssey was ordered by a federal court in the United States to make the location of the wreckage public. It was discovered that the site did not correspond to that of Nuestra.

However, after another five years of litigation, Spain was victorious, and Odyssey flew the wealth to Europe. We don't have all the specifics yet, but we do know the coins are worth $500 million.