Sea Gold

Modern day treasure hunting with Odsy marine exploration

It sounds like the plot of a new adventure movie: explorers using sophisticated technology to salvage the wreck of an ancient ship lost beneath the sea. The ship contains a disputed treasure worth half a billion dollars. Throw in a few explosions or sword fights, and it would make for a perfect summer blockbuster.

The star of this story, Odyssey Marine Explloration, won't be appearing in theters anytime sonn, but the company has generated headlines. Odyssey, which is based in the U.S. state of Florida, works to recover deep-water shipwrecks, Using high-tech sonar ships, Odyssey locates the wreckage of long-lost vessels and recovers any artifacts or treasure at the site.

Odyssey only targets vessels that are considered fair game under international laws. This usually means commercial ships that have sunk in international waters since non-commercial goverment and military vessels are the legal property of their respective countries. The only exception is if Odyssey has a pre-existing agreement with a county. In 2002, the company agreed to a deal with the U.K. government to share potential spoils from the HMS Sussex, a British ship that sank in 1694,. The agreement stalled under eavy criticism from British archeological organizations.