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00:00These are bricks.
00:01It's looking pretty structured to me.
00:02What a perfect place to hide something.
00:04Yeah.
00:06Oh, that has got a good chance to be in gold.
00:09You see the CT scan.
00:11Oh, my gosh.
00:13Imagine my surprise when I saw that.
00:16As I was going down, there's definitely nothing solid there.
00:18Like, totally open.
00:19Yeah.
00:20That sounds like a void.
00:21It could be the treasure chamber.
00:26There is an island in the North Atlantic
00:29where people have been looking for an incredible treasure
00:33for more than 200 years.
00:36So far, they have found a stone slab
00:39with strange symbols carved into it,
00:42man-made workings that date to medieval times,
00:46and a lead cross whose origin may be connected
00:49to the Knights Templar.
00:51To date, six men have died trying to solve the mystery.
00:57And, according to legend, one more
01:00will have to die before the treasure can be found.
01:16Ready to rock?
01:17Here we go.
01:19Hey, Rick.
01:20Hey, Steve.
01:21Where are we?
01:23We're down to about 35 feet in T.25, 8.25.
01:28It's a place where we don't have any information on,
01:31so let's gather that information in right now.
01:33A new day of hope and excitement has begun on Oak Island
01:38for brothers Rick and Marty Lagina and their team.
01:41That is undisturbed material.
01:44That's within the range of normal.
01:46As they explore the fabled money pit area
01:49in search of the answers to a 230-year-old treasure mystery.
01:54If we're really near the money pit,
01:56what should we expect to see as we go down?
01:59We're really close to areas where Dr. Spooner
02:01and Dr. Michael have tested for precious metals in the water.
02:04But we don't have a lot of information in this area,
02:06so I don't know what we're going to see.
02:07Well, we're hoping for a structure in around 150.
02:12After high traces of gold and silver
02:14were detected through recent groundwater testing
02:17in this area over the past three weeks...
02:20Whoa, whoa.
02:21We got a lot of wood.
02:23The Oak Island team has drilled through
02:25a mysterious nine-foot-high tunnel
02:27some 109 feet deep on multiple occasions.
02:31We're seeing wood, a middle section,
02:34then wood again, and concrete after that.
02:38This looks like the vault.
02:39Interesting.
02:41However, at a depth of some 150 feet,
02:45they also recovered compelling evidence
02:47of the legendary Chapel Vault,
02:50a seven-foot-high wooden chest encased in concrete
02:54that was first reported by treasure hunters Frederick Blair
02:57and William Chapel back in 1897.
03:02You know, every time a drill bar goes down,
03:05you know, you're hoping for the one thing.
03:07Right.
03:08Yeah.
03:09Now, the team is drilling borehole
03:12D.25, 8.25,
03:15just a few feet to the northeast.
03:17If the location of a possible treasure vault can be verified,
03:21they will install a massive steel caisson
03:24in order to retrieve it.
03:26Let's hope we continue to gather information
03:28all the way down.
03:29Or something more than information.
03:30Exactly.
03:31Treasure.
03:32Treasure, treasure, treasure.
03:34What I'm hoping for is a breakthrough.
03:37I'm hoping for the,
03:38what Rick always calls the a-ha moment,
03:40and finally bring this treasure to the surface.
03:43I always say, you know, cross your fingers.
03:47Well, now maybe you might want to cross your toes, too.
03:49Yeah.
03:51Let's see what happens.
03:52Let's see what happens.
03:54Let's see what happens.
03:55While the core drilling operation proceeds in the Money Pit area.
04:00Later that morning,
04:02on Lot 5, located on the western side of the island.
04:07This test pit area has been a conundrum to us.
04:11We really felt that there was something that we were going to discover
04:14at this level, and we haven't yet.
04:16Rick Lagina and metal detection expert Gary Drayton
04:20join archaeologist Fiona Steele and other members of the team
04:24to assist with the investigation of a mysterious stone foundation.
04:28We haven't totally given up on this,
04:30so we would really like to see if you wouldn't mind doing a check, too.
04:34All right.
04:36In fact, Gary, you can wander everywhere just in case.
04:39Yeah.
04:40Yeah.
04:41Over the past two years,
04:43this stone structure has yielded numerous clues
04:46that suggest it may be directly connected to the Oak Island mystery.
04:51In the wall?
04:54Yeah.
04:55In the wall.
04:56You've got some iron there.
04:57Okay.
04:58These discoveries include 17th-century trade beads,
05:01a mortar-like material
05:03that matches soil samples from more than 100 feet deep
05:07in the Money Pit area,
05:09and iron tools that have been scientifically linked
05:12to Sir William Phipps,
05:15the 17th-century English politician,
05:17who some believe conspired with a high-ranking Freemason
05:21named Andrew Belcher to bury a vast cache of Spanish silver
05:26and gold on Oak Island back in 1687.
05:31We're coming over, Moya.
05:32To do a scan of your pit.
05:34Okay.
05:35Now, since the feature has been deemed a special place
05:38by the government of Nova Scotia,
05:40Gary is allowed to detect potential metal targets.
05:44However, the archeological team must then slowly
05:48and methodically work to uncover them.
05:51The Lot 5 feature, though it has expanded two to three times
05:56its original appearance, it's still not completely exposed.
06:01And to do it properly, you have to have a lot of patience,
06:04and that's fine.
06:06That's the process.
06:07Yeah.
06:09I'm getting iron.
06:11I'll get out of the way.
06:13Bigger piece of iron there.
06:17Iron.
06:18There's iron all over in this one.
06:23Iron.
06:25Oh, blimey.
06:26You guys are going to be busy.
06:27You guys are going to be busy.
06:29That's different.
06:32Non-ferrous!
06:33Yeah, that is non-ferrous.
06:34Oh.
06:35Okay, we'll remember that.
06:36There's a good chance that's a coin.
06:46A non-ferrous target?
06:48Indicating that something potentially composed of precious metals
06:52is buried in the feature?
06:54If so, could it mean that this structure
06:57was used to hide something of great value?
07:00I'm telling you now,
07:02there's only three metals that really make that sound.
07:05It's going to be copper, lead, or gold.
07:08You've got some great things waiting for you there.
07:11Well, we'll keep excavating,
07:13and maybe when we get further into it
07:14and have this pit almost complete,
07:16we can call you back for that again.
07:17We'll find it.
07:18We'll call you.
07:19You have to come down to your gold fence.
07:21Okay, we'll do that.
07:23Can't wait to see what you dig up.
07:25Yep, let's hope for the gold.
07:26While the search for answers and valuables
07:29continues on lot five,
07:33several hundred yards to the east,
07:35in the northern region of the triangle-shaped swamp.
07:38Hey, Craig.
07:39So how we doing?
07:40Well, over in the corner there,
07:42we found this huge pile of logs.
07:45Okay.
07:46And there's stones underneath it.
07:47Yeah.
07:48It's definitely path-like.
07:49Okay.
07:50Gary Drayton joins Craig Tester,
07:53Alex Lagina,
07:54and Billy Gerhardt
07:56as they investigate
07:57a recently unearthed cobblestone feature.
08:00kind of leading towards the eye of the swamp.
08:02Okay.
08:03That's another reason we thought it might be something.
08:04Mm-hmm.
08:05Because we feel that the eye might also be something.
08:07Yeah.
08:08We already have dates from that.
08:10I mean, there are several theories
08:11that fall into that interval.
08:12That's early enough to fit Phipps,
08:14but we need to prove it.
08:16I saw it.
08:17Yeah, that's a good one.
08:18That's a good one.
08:19In 2019, the Oak Island team
08:22began investigating
08:23a mysterious circular feature
08:25near the apex of the swamp
08:27that resembled a well-known symbol of Freemasonry
08:31known as the all-seeing eye.
08:34Wow.
08:35That is massive.
08:36That's a big boulder.
08:38Incredibly,
08:39after draining and excavating the area,
08:42the team discovered
08:43that the so-called eye of the swamp
08:45was a man-made feature.
08:48I'm very confident we're looking at 1680 to 1700.
08:52Really interesting.
08:53And when geoscientist Dr. Spooner
08:56carbon-dated organic materials within it,
08:59he determined it was created in approximately 1680,
09:04the same time period that Sir William Phipps
09:07and his Masonic partner, Captain Andrew Belcher,
09:10are believed to have hidden Spanish silver on Oak Island.
09:15The plan now is to just keep going here,
09:17and then we'll dig.
09:18Then work our way over?
09:19Closer in here as well as we go.
09:21Okay.
09:22Okay.
09:23Now, the team hopes to uncover
09:25more of the possible cobblestone pathway
09:28to determine if it may actually lead
09:30to the eye of the swamp
09:32or perhaps other man-made structures.
09:34I have to be honest about the whole swamp.
09:37I never thought we'd find anything.
09:39Just keep going, right?
09:40Continue on.
09:41And yet, every time we dig there, we find something.
09:43Maybe one of these days, it'll all fit together perfectly
09:46and answer the Oak Island riddle.
09:51Seems like a lot of rocks toward the surface right through here.
09:55Let's find out.
09:56This is definitely higher up than what you've been digging over there.
10:01Yes.
10:02So far, I'd say they're sitting on other rocks.
10:05Seems to be quite a few more rocks at least right in through here.
10:10Yeah, those are placed in there by someone.
10:15Another potentially man-made feature?
10:19If so, could it contain clues that will help identify
10:23who made the cobblestone pathway
10:25and perhaps the eye of the swamp?
10:27Yeah, there's a piece of cut slate there too, see?
10:30Oh, yeah.
10:31Oh, that's a bigger piece than a full.
10:35How big is that piece of slate?
10:37It's at least six inches deep in there.
10:47Ah.
10:50What is it?
10:51That's a brick.
10:52Oh, look at that.
10:54That's getting layered out here.
10:58That's a brick.
10:59There's several in a row.
11:01In the northern end of the Oak Island swamp,
11:04Craig Tester and other members of the team
11:07have just uncovered yet another man-made feature.
11:11They do look fairly crudely made.
11:13They do.
11:14Not like modern bricks, no.
11:15No.
11:16Yeah, actually, you can see where it was molded
11:18and it slumped a bit right there.
11:20Oh, yeah.
11:21And at least three or four lined up in a row?
11:24Yeah, there's no way a bulldozer would push those back in like that.
11:27No, not a nice flat line.
11:29No.
11:30And we're not very far from the eye of the swamp.
11:32Yeah.
11:33A brick structure buried beneath muck and mud
11:37and just 50 yards from the so-called eye of the swamp?
11:41Is it possible that the team has found a related feature?
11:45If so, could it prove to be the secret
11:48that the eye was created to signify?
11:51Yeah, let's put it back and let's get Laird out here
11:55to take a quick look.
11:56I don't know what it means, but maybe Laird will.
11:58Yeah, okay.
11:59I'll give him a call.
12:01I haven't found bricks in the swamp before.
12:05It was definitely put there by man, but why?
12:09Hey, guys.
12:10Hey, Laird.
12:11Why put something in the swamp that didn't make any sense?
12:14There's something really interesting happening.
12:17There we go.
12:19Now, the middle brick right there, Alex pulled that one up.
12:23Okay.
12:24And then once we saw there was multiple bricks,
12:26he put it back in place, but...
12:27You can tell right away they're not modern.
12:29Right.
12:30You can see it's almost like they're still as they were placed,
12:33even though that's broken.
12:34Yeah.
12:35These are handmade, probably locally fired.
12:38Mm-hmm.
12:39I'm wondering if this is all part of...
12:42I mean, Anthony Graves' house was here.
12:45I wonder if it's part of that.
12:48He was known to have bought items from local merchants
12:51with ancient coins.
12:53Spanish coins, wasn't it?
12:54Spanish, yeah.
12:56In 1857, a man by the name of Anthony Graves purchased
13:01a majority of Oak Island from the family of the late John Smith,
13:05one of the three young men who originally discovered
13:08the Money Pit in 1795.
13:13However, rather than living on Lot 18 as John Smith did
13:17and where the Money Pit is located,
13:19Graves established his homestead just north of the swamp
13:23at Jodhry's Cove.
13:25And curiously, after living on Oak Island for some time,
13:29he reportedly began paying for goods on the mainland
13:33with Spanish silver coins.
13:36Is it possible that the team has found a structure
13:40that is somehow connected to Anthony Graves,
13:43and perhaps the Spanish treasure that he is rumored
13:46to have possessed while living on Oak Island?
13:50I mean, the Spanish silver coin legend is good enough, isn't it?
13:53Yeah.
13:54You add me at silver.
13:55There's got to be some more artifacts here.
13:57So we got to go ahead to keep going here, though?
13:59Yeah. Oh, yeah.
14:00Cool.
14:01We're going to keep exposing this
14:02and see if there's a path leading to it,
14:04if there's more structure around it.
14:06If it does have something to do with Anthony Graves,
14:09it could be pretty significant.
14:11Maybe it's related to the treasure mystery,
14:13so we need to confirm what the heck this thing is.
14:16All right, I'll take this back.
14:17Perfect. Thanks, Eric.
14:18Okay, well, thank you.
14:20We'll keep going.
14:21If anything changes, we'll call you back.
14:23See you later.
14:29The following morning...
14:32How did you get, Leighton?
14:33109.
14:34109.
14:35Thank you, Leighton.
14:36In the Money Pit area,
14:38Alex Lagina joins his Uncle Rick
14:41and other members of the team
14:43where they continue to monitor the progress
14:45of borehole D.25, 8.25.
14:49This looks really soft, but...
14:54So this is very loose,
14:56and I'm...
14:57I'm seeing something here that interests,
14:59I think, everybody.
15:00Yeah, I see some here, too.
15:03We've got wood.
15:06Holy...
15:09That's a big old chunk of wood.
15:12Big old chunk of wood.
15:13You said it, my friend.
15:14Yes, sir.
15:15Yeah, that's a shaped piece of lumber there.
15:17Yep.
15:18Definitely.
15:19We've got one more.
15:25Oh, yeah.
15:26We've got some wood, guys.
15:28Does it look like a tunnel or shaft, Harry?
15:31I don't know, Steve.
15:32This is a vertical piece,
15:35and they sheared it off that way,
15:37so we could have some type of a support.
15:39And another piece here, look.
15:41And there seems to be a pretty darn good fit right there.
15:45It could be a tunnel.
15:47More evidence of a wooden tunnel
15:50at a depth of 109 feet?
15:53Could that mean that the team has once again
15:56drilled into the previously unknown
15:58nine-foot-tall tunnel?
16:00If so, could it be a critical sign
16:03that they are getting closer
16:04to finding the original money pit?
16:08What you got, Leighton?
16:10119 there, Frank.
16:12See what we've got next.
16:18This is all in situ,
16:19and it's just the way you might expect to encounter it.
16:24I would say we're beneath our tunnel.
16:28We have to hit 150 feet
16:29and see what we find there.
16:31So here we are.
16:32We're in a tunnel.
16:34This, again, is hugely significant
16:36because it's in the conventional money pit area.
16:39Gentlemen.
16:40Hello. How you doing, Craig?
16:41Hey, Craig.
16:42Hey, Craig.
16:43Did you see that wood?
16:44Hello.
16:45So the next thing we'll be looking for,
16:47I would think,
16:48is somewhere around 150 feet,
16:50where this so elusive chapel vault was encountered.
16:53And we have lots of information
16:55that says treasure is still there.
16:58Craig, I'm close.
17:01When you put a drill hole down in the money pit,
17:04you know, there's every hope
17:05that you'll come up with a treasure.
17:07Everyone's very excited around the drill table.
17:10We have these anomalously high values
17:13of precious metals, gold and silver, in this area.
17:16So as the dig proceeds,
17:18we just have to keep eyes on target
17:20because we have to remember the goal this year
17:23is to put X's on the ground for the case on work,
17:27to actually find the treasure.
17:29We have another core, gentlemen.
17:31Hey, guys.
17:32158.
17:33158.
17:34158.
17:35158.
17:36158.
17:37Okay
17:38so we come in contact with the bedrock right there.
17:42It doesn't look like anything so far.
17:44It's right there.
17:52It doesn't look like anything so far.
17:54Yeah.
17:56Sadly, nothing to write home about in particular, I guess.
18:00Nothing.
18:02After all the anticipation for a major discovery,
18:06this borehole has unfortunately failed to reveal
18:09any more signs of the legendary treasure vault.
18:13However, given the other evidence of man-made workings
18:17and water test results that indicate
18:19a large source of gold and silver is buried in this area,
18:24could the team have just missed their target?
18:27We need to put a few more holes in this area,
18:31hopefully to find this previously unknown tunnel
18:33or the chapel vault.
18:35We're going to chase this to the end.
18:38There might be a locatable source
18:41for these high values of gold and silver in the water.
18:45The hope is that as we proceed further,
18:47there will be something there.
18:50I think we just move south of this location
18:54and see what we come up with.
18:55Yep.
18:57The more information, the better.
18:58Yep.
18:59Okay, guys.
19:00We'll keep you in touch.
19:01Sounds good.
19:05So if we find buried treasure,
19:06do we get a bonus or what?
19:08As a new core drilling operation
19:10gets underway in the Money Pit area.
19:14That's a lot of bricks in a row.
19:17That's looking pretty structured to me.
19:18Yeah.
19:19In the northern region of the Triangle-shaped swamp.
19:23Ooh.
19:24Craig Tester, archaeologist Laird Niven,
19:27and other members of the team continue to investigate
19:30a mysterious brick feature
19:32that was recently uncovered beneath the brackish water
19:35and mud.
19:36The bigger thing is that it's,
19:38these bricks are all sitting on this rock here.
19:41That is so mean.
19:42That's so mean.
19:43Interesting.
19:45You wouldn't waste bricks and slate for a walkway or,
19:48you know, that's all reusable, pretty good material.
19:50Brick's not a great walkway material.
19:53It looks as if it's been dug out.
19:54Mm-hmm.
19:55And there could be some artifacts in the bottom of it.
19:59Is it feasible to determine the age of the bricks?
20:05They're not factory-made.
20:07Mm-hmm.
20:08They're handmade, laid down.
20:10In terms of their fabric,
20:12they come pretty close to lot five.
20:14Well, that's super cool.
20:15A structure composed of slate and handmade bricks
20:20that resemble those found one year ago
20:22in the rounded foundation on lot five?
20:25Because the team has also unearthed iron tools
20:29in the lot five feature
20:30that have been scientifically linked to Sir William Phipps,
20:33who is believed to have buried a cache
20:36of Spanish silver and gold on Oak Island back in 1687.
20:41Could this structure in the swamp be another critical clue
20:45that could help prove that theory?
20:47If so, just what might the team find
20:50when they get to the bottom?
20:51This is a board.
20:53Yep.
20:54There's a couple boards then through here.
20:55There's actually one on...
20:56And right here.
20:56It looks like it broke.
20:58Oh, maybe the same board right here.
20:59Oh, yeah.
21:00Yeah, they went across.
21:02Someone put some wood in this.
21:05A lot.
21:05I can work on it for a bit.
21:07Okay.
21:07Okay.
21:08And we'll go ahead and we'll get back on that,
21:10that cobbled area over there.
21:12Okay.
21:13All right.
21:14Okay.
21:14See you in a bit.
21:17My first impression is obviously deliberately stacked
21:27pieces of slate with some brick outlining the top.
21:32Very unusual looking, but very well made.
21:35As I explored a little bit more,
21:37I could see that the slate was actually forming
21:39a square structure, which I found extremely unusual.
21:43The really perplexing thing about this structure
21:46is that I haven't seen anything like it before.
21:50Wow.
21:50Yeah.
21:52Cleaning it off, it's a whole different thing.
21:53Yeah.
21:54Yeah.
21:55Yeah, completely.
21:56Why use slate and bricks?
21:57I mean, any kind of structure we're looking at almost always is just built out of stone,
22:03especially in the swamp.
22:05It wasn't your ordinary farmer use.
22:09There was something special about this new square structure.
22:14Now, would it be normal for them just to put the bricks without any mortar?
22:19Or?
22:19I wouldn't have thought unless something was sitting on top.
22:23Yeah, I don't know if that wood could have been part of a frame that they put it in.
22:29The superstructure.
22:30Yeah.
22:32Yeah, I think Dr. Schooner here take a look at it.
22:34It helped date this.
22:35Yeah.
22:35We need to keep following it.
22:38While members of the team continue to uncover the brick and slate feature in the swamp,
22:44later that afternoon, back on Lot 5, located on the western side of the island, Craig Tester
22:57and Laird Niven have joined Jack Begley and other members of the team as they continue investigating
23:04the rounded foundation and nearby test pit where Gary Drayton identified a non-ferrous target just
23:10one day ago.
23:15Oh, I think I found it.
23:18The metal head?
23:19Yeah.
23:23Oh, yeah.
23:24Oh.
23:25Looking like a button.
23:28Pretty big eye on there.
23:30Yeah, it sure does.
23:30Mm-hmm.
23:31It doesn't have designs on it.
23:33Oh, definitely.
23:35It's odd.
23:35It's kind of like a rim.
23:37Yeah.
23:37That is a weird-looking button.
23:41Oh, geez, Laird.
23:42I bet you there's something on the face of that.
23:48You definitely see some sort of design there.
23:53Almost floral?
23:56From first glance, with that green, it's copper alloy.
23:59Mm-hmm.
23:59Have you ever seen a button that looked like that?
24:02Honestly, no.
24:03I haven't.
24:04Wow.
24:04An ornate copper button?
24:09Could it be another important clue that might help determine who created this feature,
24:14as well as the brick structure in the swamp, and perhaps even the money pit?
24:19But the beauty of having the CT and even the XRF, if that's a design, Emma can bring it out.
24:26It's certainly corroded enough to be fairly old.
24:29Well, good find.
24:30That's for sure.
24:31With it being so unique, I'm hoping there's a real deep story in just who might have made it and how
24:39it made its way to the island.
24:40Yeah, for sure.
24:41Fingers crossed.
24:42Well, we will get back after it.
24:43All right.
24:45While the investigation proceeds on lot five.
24:48Now is when we should start seeing something.
24:51In the money pit area.
24:53Because our target depth is here all the way to 159.
24:56Alex Lagina has joined other members of the team to monitor the drilling of borehole D.75 6.6,
25:05which is located just a few feet from borehole D.25 8.25, where they hope to obtain more evidence
25:13of the legendary chapel vault more than 150 feet below ground.
25:18Right now we're treasure hunting and looking for caisson locations.
25:22We're due for a win.
25:24That's true.
25:26So I really like this borehole because it's in an area where we have had a lot of success.
25:31We have multiple water testing boreholes around that suggest there's gold and silver in the water.
25:37And so ideally today, we'd love to tap into the treasure vault and bring up some coins.
25:41That core looks like it's not backfilled.
25:47No, it does not.
25:48Potentially.
25:49What do you got, Leighton?
25:50Let's have a look.
25:51We got 119.
25:52119.
25:53119.
25:54Let's open up.
26:03We're into a lot of shreds of wood.
26:06Okay, this could be the bottom of some type of a structure.
26:13There's some wood and grainy material in there.
26:16This could be clipping the very end of some other structure.
26:27Okay, this could be the bottom of some type of a structure.
26:30There's some wood and grainy material in there.
26:34That's good news right there, guys.
26:36That's really good.
26:37Terry, I'm going to pinpoint that.
26:38Absolutely.
26:40In the Money Pit area, while drilling borehole D.75 6.6,
26:46where the team hopes to encounter evidence of the so-called chapel vault some 155 feet underground.
26:53It's clear.
26:54Curiously, they have just recovered part of an unknown structure at a depth of just 120 feet.
27:01We're down 129.
27:04Not too much to write home about here, gentlemen.
27:06Backfill.
27:07I don't see any wood chips or chunks included among this, so that's disappointing.
27:12When we get to about 154, we hope to intersect what we thought was the treasure chamber,
27:17the edge of the treasure chamber.
27:18Yep.
27:19So that's what I'm talking about.
27:21We've got to really hope that the Oak Island gods are on our side here.
27:25Well, we will see.
27:26Time's going to tell.
27:28Our target depth is basically 155 feet.
27:33If our interpretation of the core is correct, then we have drilled into and directly through
27:40an unknown structure of some kind.
27:42So it's kind of an exciting possibility here, and it's also exciting to know that
27:47whatever we hit down there at 155 feet could be the original vault.
27:50What we care about the most is 155 to 159.
27:55Okay.
27:56Cross your fingers.
27:57Hopefully, we've got some structure here.
28:09There's definitely nothing there.
28:13Hey, Mike.
28:14Hey, Mike.
28:14How you doing?
28:15Good.
28:15Good.
28:16So as I was going down, there's definitely nothing solid there at 157.
28:23It feels like there's nothing there, like totally open.
28:25That's what it felt like.
28:27That sounds like a possible void, doesn't it?
28:29Absolutely.
28:31There was nothing in my core.
28:33And then we took another measurement, and there was material right at the bottom of my case.
28:38So you lost material into a potential void.
28:42That's the only thing I can come up with.
28:43We passed through a relative void or an open space.
28:47A void at 157 feet, but no signs of the concrete encased container known as the chapel vault?
28:56Could that mean that the team may have once again missed their intended target,
29:01but perhaps penetrated a man-made chamber that contains it?
29:05Okay, you were thinking where?
29:06In here?
29:07Here or here?
29:08Mike comes over and tells us he's gotten very little recovery.
29:11I was in a void.
29:13This is where the treasure is most likely to be found.
29:17That's amazing.
29:18You know, adding this evidence to the rest,
29:21it's just another reason that we should consider this as a case on location.
29:24I mean, that's the depth we expected to see something,
29:26that we didn't see a wooden structure, but we saw an open void.
29:30Absolutely.
29:33Finish this up and bring back the news.
29:34Sounds good.
29:35Thanks, guys.
29:36Nice work.
29:42The following morning...
29:45I can't even imagine how many times we've come into the lab here to talk about an artifact from Lot 5.
29:50And that little button is quite unique.
29:54Rick Lagina, Craig Tester, and other members of the team join Laird Niven and archaeometallurgist Emma Culligan in the Oak Island lab.
30:04Laird, you certainly have to speak to it.
30:06They are eager to hear Emma's scientific analysis of the mysterious button that was unearthed just one day ago near the rounded stone foundation on Lot 5.
30:17So when I uncovered the button, I thought it was just a plain button back,
30:21until Emma showed me something quite different and, I think, quite unique.
30:25Mmm.
30:26All right, come on, let's see.
30:27So first off, the CT scan.
30:31Earlier today, Emma examined the button in the Skyscan 1273 CT scanner,
30:37a device that uses concentrated x-ray radiation to produce three-dimensional images of artifacts and their finer details.
30:46So there will be some image distortion, but not a lot.
30:52This is the first thing I saw when I went, oh, so imagine my surprise when I saw that.
30:59Whoa.
30:59Yeah, that is a dandy button, all right?
31:01So there is a design on it.
31:03There's a lot of copper, especially buttons, do have some lead in it.
31:07So it's a copper alloy, does have a little bit of zinc, some lead.
31:11There's a little bit of iron, but that's about it.
31:14So these two rivet-like things...
31:19I've never seen before in a button.
31:21And that's holding that other level of design?
31:23Yeah, so you have two, you have at least two layers of metal.
31:26It's a multi-component button.
31:27Yeah.
31:28It's a two-piece button though.
31:29That's really unique.
31:31At least a two-piece button.
31:32That's quite ornate.
31:33Yeah, you have the eye, and then the boss is what's holding the eye in place.
31:38It's almost like a dome.
31:39It's really big.
31:41Is there anything specific about the design?
31:44Well, we weren't really happy with the resolution on the CT, so Emma did an XRF map scan.
31:50X-ray fluorescence mapping uses highly concentrated X-ray radiation to assign colors
31:57to the individual elements on the surface of artifacts.
32:01The process creates a two-dimensional image that further highlights an object's finer details,
32:07but can also help to determine when it may have been created.
32:10Oh, my gosh.
32:16That is one fancy button.
32:18Mm-hmm.
32:20What is that design?
32:21Can you tell?
32:22Is that a flower?
32:23It's a flower, and there's an intricate flower inside, so you see these little different petals.
32:27Oh, wow.
32:29It's got an English-y feel to it.
32:30It looks like it could be an English button.
32:32Yeah.
32:34You see the little petals and how they're formed there.
32:38That's a really pretty button.
32:42Yeah, it sure is.
32:43So what are the speculative dates?
32:45Safe bet would be 1700s and then possibly earlier.
32:52I think there's a good chance this button could go into late 1600s by the look of it.
32:59Yeah.
33:03It's an odd story that's going on in Lot 5.
33:09I'd say it could go into late 1600s by the look of it.
33:13Wow.
33:14In the Oak Island Laboratory, Rick Lagina and other members of the team are examining an ornate button
33:21that was found near the round stone feature on Lot 5, and which may date back to more than a century
33:27before the discovery of the money pit.
33:31It's the multi-component part that has me confused.
33:33Yeah.
33:35I haven't seen that.
33:37What do you think this button would have been?
33:39Where would it have been worn?
33:41It's relatively small, so we say it's not from a coat.
33:45What do you think, Gary?
33:46I think it's too big to be a cuff button.
33:49I think it's a jacket button.
33:51Fancy jacket button as well.
33:53To me, it looks like there's a design on the outer ring.
33:56That's what I was noticing as well.
33:57Yeah.
33:58It's really worn, isn't it?
33:59It's super ornate.
34:01Yeah.
34:02If this button dates to the 1600s, that fits really well with Sir William Phipps.
34:10In 1687, King James II of England ordered Sir William Phipps to conduct two salvage operations
34:18of the sunken Spanish treasure galleon known as the Concepcion near the modern-day Dominican Republic.
34:25However, Phipps and his assistant, Captain Andrew Belcher,
34:29delivered less than half of the silver and gold treasure that was recorded on the ship's manifest.
34:36We know that Phipps found silver on the Concepcion,
34:39and I believe some of the treasure from the Concepcion was secreted to Oak Island.
34:44According to the theory of 32nd-degree Freemason Scott Clark,
34:49Phipps and Belcher, who was also a high-ranking Freemason,
34:53hid much of their actual recovered valuables on Oak Island.
34:58I think there's something about this button that might tell us if it's William Phipps.
35:02Yeah.
35:03Could Jack be correct that this button might prove to be another clue that supports this theory?
35:10Just like the iron tools found in the round feature that have been scientifically linked to William Phipps.
35:17Laird and the team have spoke often of how you believe that the feature might be considerably older
35:24than we first thought. This may be one of those points to support that.
35:28Yeah.
35:29Well, I mean, I'm really excited. What we have so far sure is amazing.
35:33So I love the flower design. Yeah, it's a blooming lovely find.
35:40Just got to button this one up.
35:45So having said that, we need to go find more.
35:48And we'll leave the both of you to try to come to a further understanding of what it represents.
35:53Great.
35:54Great work.
35:56Thanks, Laird.
36:00Later that afternoon...
36:04Hey, Laird. Hey, Craig.
36:05Hey, Ian.
36:07Geoscientist Dr. Ian Spooner joins Craig Tester and other members of the Oak Island team
36:14in the northern region of the swamp.
36:16Holy cow.
36:17After uncovering more of the mysterious brick and slate feature, or container,
36:22that was discovered one day ago, they are hoping that Dr. Spooner might be able to help determine
36:29just how old it may be.
36:31Yeah, so there's a whole bunch of things going on to me.
36:34It seems to be in actually pretty nice shape.
36:37You know, I wonder what's inside it, because you can always get a core inside and, you know,
36:41maybe get to the bottom of it, so to speak, when it was abandoned.
36:44Yeah.
36:44That kind of thing.
36:46But there looks to be a fair bit of sediment that you're standing on,
36:49I'm standing on two that's graded over it, because this was not visible.
36:54Not at all, no.
36:55And it takes time for that swamp material to build up over it.
36:59And we have to kind of suspend the reality of today that none of this muck would have been there.
37:03It would have been just sort of a little bit of a meadow.
37:05And I'm just looking at those bricks, and Laird probably knows they look handmade.
37:11Well, they're handmade.
37:13Hopefully we can section one, get it better looking.
37:16What's kind of interesting to me is they've got the slate to build the form,
37:22and it's very different from anything I've ever seen.
37:25Well, you know, we can get Steve to pin the corners, and he'll get the elevation
37:29or see how far it is above sea level or the swamp over time.
37:33Yeah.
37:33I just wonder how deep it is, because they, of course, would have had to excavate out.
37:38I'm almost certain there'll be something down within this, an artifact.
37:43Yeah.
37:44I'm just going to grab my tools so we can get these samples.
37:47We need to get Rick out here.
37:51Hey, guys.
37:52Hey, Uncle Rick.
37:54Okay.
37:55So this is obviously new.
37:56Yep.
37:57In the northern region of the Oak Island swamp...
38:00What's going on?
38:01It's hard to tell at this point.
38:03Rick Lagina has joined Craig Tester,
38:06Dr. Ian Spooner, and other members of the team as they work to determine the age and purpose
38:13of a mysterious brick-and-slate container-like feature.
38:17Rick, why don't I show you this one over here?
38:20I mean, it looks like the bricks were probably on top of the slate.
38:24They are on that far piece.
38:27You know, the whole thing was covered.
38:28We didn't see it until we took off the top layer.
38:32Which is a strange, strange thing.
38:34Yeah.
38:34So the best thing I can do here for you guys today is just survey the location of this.
38:38Okay.
38:38So the top elevation matches the cobble path, if that means anything.
38:42I don't know.
38:42It's completely unknown.
38:44I know nothing of this.
38:45It's...
38:46Yeah.
38:46It's another mystery.
38:48Yeah.
38:48Well, you know, Anthony Graves lived right there.
38:56Yeah.
38:56A hundred, maybe a hundred yards away.
38:59The family tore the house apart looking for what he had.
39:02What a perfect place to hide something in, right?
39:05Yeah.
39:06After the death of Anthony Graves in 1888, his family reportedly searched his home just north
39:14of the swamp for a cache of Spanish silver coins that he was rumored to have discovered on Oak Island.
39:21Unfortunately for them, nothing was found.
39:24But could that be because the treasure was located in a secret vault buried in the swamp?
39:33If so, what might the team find as they dig deeper into this feature?
39:38To me, it just looks like a little tiny safety deposit box in the middle of a block.
39:44And the suspicion of where Anthony Graves acquired his wealth would be that he found something on the island.
39:51Your mind goes to Sir William Phipps' salvage of the Concepcion.
39:56There was a tremendous amount of silver recovered from that.
39:59As the story goes, not all of it made its way back to England.
40:03I can only but think that this is a place where he stored valuables.
40:10Maybe multiple vaults could still exist in the swamp.
40:15I think this is certainly a turn of events, you know.
40:20It's cool. It's very cool.
40:22You know, I think we should get on artifact recovery at ASAP.
40:25Okay.
40:26Maybe removing soils from around and see how deep it goes.
40:29Yeah.
40:30Every time we dig in the swamp, we find something new from a long time ago.
40:35This is fantastic.
40:37This is totally unique, totally different.
40:40We're here now. Now is the time to investigate.
40:42Mm-hmm.
40:43Okay.
40:46Week by week, day by day, Rick, Marty, Craig and their team
40:53are peeling back the layers of the 230-year-old Oak Island mystery as clues continue to mount,
41:01which may soon identify just who may have buried a vast hoard of riches here.
41:08Have they finally unearthed a feature that contains a portion of that treasure?
41:13And if so, could it merely be a sampling of what awaits them much deeper at the bottom of the money pit?
41:25Next time on The Curse of Oak Island.
41:27Look what we've got here.
41:29This could be a piece of the treasure.
41:31Yes.
41:33Oh, Charles, we got wood.
41:35This is incredible.
41:37We could be within feet of our offset chamber.
41:40Doesn't that look like a vault to you?
41:42I would expect a lot of stuff down there.
41:44It's giving off metallic signals.
41:47Oh, whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa.
41:50Here's something.
41:50Wow.
41:51What the heck is going on?
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