The Curse Of Oak Island Has Finally Been Cleared

If the tunnel predates the Sha, it makes the tunnel far more interesting than just finding a previously unknown tunnel. It’s all good news. Yes, I’m starting to get eager now. Got my toes texting, so close you can smell it there now. Yeah, all right, let’s let him get back to work because we’re poised to finally do this. Okie do, let’s go, guys. Yeah, thanks Paul.

At the beginning of the new season, the Oak Island team achieved several goals despite tough challenges. They got closer to finding the hidden treasure than ever before. Along the way, they found artifacts that give clues about the Island’s past and its mysteries.

So let’s talk about 11 of the biggest and rarest finds from the curse of Oak Island. The season started with hope and excitement for what’s ahead, and the team was curious and focused on their goals. Luckily, they ended up discovering even more than they expected.

On Lot Five, the archaeology team, led by Lan and Jamie Cuba and Fiona Steel, continued digging in the mysterious area, including a circular stone depression that seems to hold important details. At the start of the excavation, Lan planned to uncover the bottom of the feature, but he was surprised by how quickly they found new things. Fiona was the one who made the first discovery of the season, finding small pieces of red earth and where, among the debris, Bell’s eyes landed on the unusual glaze on the pottery, hinting at its age—possibly from the 1600s.

This suggests that the circular depression may have been mistaken for The Money Pit and intentionally covered up to protect the treasure. “We don’t quite understand the structure, so we’re not exactly sure what we’re looking for. It’s important for us to take a sample of this soil. Those areas were operating at the same time and were related.” There’s even a theory that the island was inhabited long before it was officially discovered. Lan believes the answers lie in the feature itself, and the deeper they dig, the older the artifacts they find.

When Rick, Marty, and Gary joined the team, they detected iron in the feature, leading to discoveries including a piece of pottery and an iron artifact that could be part of a latch from a cellar or a trap. This suggests that the circular feature on Lot Five has more secrets to uncover.

The saying is, “Where’s a latch, there’s probably something hidden.” So the big question is, what’s hidden under the circular feature? The team wanted to know more about the iron latch, so they asked Lad and Emma for help using a CD scanner. Emma provided a clear image of the artifact. Marty thought it resembled a door knocker, especially with its pointy tail. Its structure suggests it was driven into something and meant to be permanent until it broke off due to rust and aging.

But Lad’s expert opinion suggests it might be a river after spike used for various purposes. Emma’s analysis adds to this info. She said it predates 1840 and is unique compared to other artifacts on the island. But more importantly, it’s a perfect match with artifacts found at the site of the original treasure depositor, Sir William Phips. This suggests the latch was his personal belonging, raising the mystery of why it was found on Lot 5 and who buried it there.

A number of metal artifacts are known to have belonged to Sir William Phips. The artifact found in the circular depression on Lot Five is an exact compositional match to those objects. Still on Lot Five, near the circular feature, Rick and Gary resumed metal detection. They found a small ancient coin, likely of Roman origin, hand-hammered with a woven design. Another flagged spot yielded another ancient coin, thicker and heavier with a woven design resembling chain links, possibly culturally significant. After some more digging, it seemed like Lot Five was either ringing or growing coins because a third coin was found shortly after the last one in a flagged spot.

Gary noticed that this coin had the same kind of color as the others but might be even older. Later that day, the team went back to see if they could find more coins or important stuff, and guess what? They found a fourth coin, the same size as the others but with a different design on top. What’s up with Lot Five? Why are there so many artifacts and treasures there? Maybe it was a route for hiding treasures, and some coins fell out along the way.

At the interpretive center, Marty, Rick, Craig, and Gary were all waiting to hear more about the new coins. Meanwhile, the team tried to explore the swamp. Tony, the diver, along with Alex, Jack, and the rest, found some interesting stuff underwater. They found a piece of carved timber, pottery with blue marks, and a sailor’s clay pipe stem. Could these things be connected to what’s found on Lot Five?

According to Alex, it seems like this part of the swamp was buried by water over time near a big underwater rock. Tony found something metal and round with a hole in the middle. It could be another coin like the ancient Chinese one they found before, or maybe something else. Tony thinks these artifacts might be from a shipwreck or brought to the island by visitors or traders.

Back on Lot Five, after removing lots of rocks, Jamie Dugan hit something big. She called the team over, and after careful digging, she uncovered a huge piece of pottery. Lan said it’s coarse earth and probably from England or Pennsylvania, and it looks like a big cooking pot. He thinks it was made around the late 1700s, maybe in the 1770s. The pottery’s creation dates back further than the discovery of The Money Pit, which might give a clue about who brought it to the island.

It could have been used by the people who made the circular feature or those who lived on Lot Five. There’s a chance the feature was found on Lot Five and scattered over it to make it look like regular ground or soil activity. Moving away from the circular feature, about 100 yards, Rick and Gary, the metal detection duo, continued searching for iron artifacts buried in the area where the coins were found.

Rick thinks Lot Five remains mysterious despite all the work done there. Unlike the rest of the island, Lot Five has man-made structures suggesting an intent to hide something valuable. But there’s no sign of a treasure chest. Instead, the artifacts found seem purposeful, like clues left by the treasure depositors. Gary finds a good spot for metal, and Rick digs to find a potential artifact. Gary then lands a long iron strap, possibly decorative or part of a larger object like a chest. Since it’s close to the circular depression, it might be linked to it.

His theory is that during the transportation of valuables into the structure beneath the circular feature, the strap broke off and was left behind. If Gary’s theory is right, it confirms that the circular feature was indeed designed to hide valuables.

When archaeologists finally reached the stone foundation under the circular feature, they might find something incredible. What’s interesting is that there’s been no mention of an underground structure or stone foundation by any historical sources, suggesting that nobody knew about it until now. This means whatever they find will be completely new and untouched by previous searches.