Researchers Think They Might Have Found an Anchor From One of Christopher Columbus' Ships
A team of treasure hunters found an ancient anchor in the Caribbean Sea which is believed to be from one of Christopher Columbus' ships. The discovery was made using maps created decades ago by an astronaut that is said to lead to shipwreck sites from the colonial period.
The anchor was found off the Turks and Caicos Islands by the team of Darrell Miklos who used a map given to him by the late astronaut Gordon Cooper. Weighing between 1,200 and 1,500 pounds, the anchor was Spanish-made and was estimated to be made between 1492–1508, during Columbus' time.
Two archeologists, one belonging to Miklos' team, said the object could be a "bower" anchor from a ship that weighed about 300 tons, which fits the description of those in the Columbus era. The anchor ring is broken, and its crown is bent, indicating that it might have broken free from a ship after it was damaged by a storm during a voyage in 1500.
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The maps that were used as the reference to the discovery are interesting themselves. They were drawn by Gordon Cooper, who was part of the "Original 7" or the first seven American astronauts chosen to lead the fledgling U.S. space program. He made the maps while in outer space, ABC News reported.
While piloting the Mercury-Atlas 9 Faith 7 Spacecraft around the Earth 22 times in 1963, Cooper marked the coordinates of dark patches of water across the Caribbean and the Bahamas where he believed shipwrecks can be found. The maps were kept a secret for almost 40 years before the astronaut decided to share them with his friend Miklos.
Cooper believed one of the wreck sites could be Columbus' lost fleet. He wasn't able to confirm this himself as he was stricken with Parkinson's Disease and died in 2004. Miklos is now using the maps' coordinates to follow the path thought to be the route of Columbus' expedition.
