Portuguese ship to be excavated further: 12-09-2008
A team of experts this week visited the site of a shipwreck found off the coast of Namibia.
It is believed that the ship, located 12 kilometres north of the Orange River, is a 16th century Portuguese vessel.
It was discovered in April this year and archaeologists discovered a number of Spanish and Portuguese coins from around the turn of 1,500 AD, bronze cannons and more than 50 elephant tusks.
The vessel is believed to have been en route to Asia when it sank between 1525 and 1550, according to the Namibian ministry of youth, national service, sport and culture.
Further excavation began on the ship on Monday and the ministry is hoping to add to the 2,000 gold coins and 1.4 kilograms of silver coins already found.
The excavation at the site in Namdeb's Mining Area 1 is being carried out under the guidance of the Southern African Institute of Maritime Archaeology's Dr Buno Werz.