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00:01Tonight, on The Curse of Oak Island.
00:03Hold it! Whoa, whoa, whoa!
00:05Another feature in the swamp.
00:06What in the world is happening?
00:08This feature could help us unwrap the whole mystery.
00:11Something this small has fallen to the bottom of the solution channel.
00:15Here it is right there.
00:15Could be a chunk of a coin.
00:17It's got some sort of design on it.
00:18If it's a silver coin, that's treasure.
00:20It's what we're looking for.
00:21Yeah.
00:22Be prepared to be gobstroped.
00:24This is gonna be special.
00:26This is quite pure?
00:27Yes, absolutely.
00:31There is an island in the North Atlantic.
00:34Where people have been looking for an incredible treasure for more than 200 years.
00:41So far, they have found a stone slab with strange symbols carved into it.
00:47Man-made workings that date to medieval times.
00:51And a lead cross whose origin may be connected to the Knights Templar.
00:56To date, six men have died trying to solve the mystery.
01:02And according to legend, one more will have to die before the treasure can be found.
01:22As the sun rises above Oak Island.
01:27How deep is this one?
01:28Two-party again?
01:30Yep.
01:31Well guys, I know we're pretty excited about starting this next hole.
01:34This is F5.5.
01:36I think we're on a really important site right now.
01:41Right.
01:41Brothers Rick and Marty Lagina and their team are drilling deeper than ever in the Money Pit area.
01:48In search of the answers to a 230 year old mystery.
01:54Because of the collapse last year, we were never able to really see what was down there.
01:58Yeah.
01:59I think that the grid that we have laid out here right now to explore deep down in the solution
02:03channel, we're gonna find it if it's there.
02:05That's right.
02:05Today, the team has broken ground on a borehole known as F5.5.
02:12It is on target to reach a massive cavity underground known as the solution channel.
02:18They believe it's possible the legendary Money Pit treasure fell here after two centuries of failed digging operations.
02:28We're only about seven feet away from F4 and F4 had the highest levels of gold and silver in the
02:34water.
02:34Yeah, it makes this a really interesting hole because it's so close to the precious metal finds in the water.
02:39I mean, that's one of the confirming factors we have in front of us to show that there is a
02:43buried treasure here someplace.
02:45Yeah.
02:46That brings to mind the Portuguese coin.
02:50The team recently learned that a 14th century silver coin was reportedly found in the original Money Pit in 1849.
02:59And markings on the coin bear a direct connection to a Portuguese sect of the Knights Templar.
03:07This has given them fresh hope that the solution channel could now hold the treasure
03:11and may explain the high traces of precious metals they've previously detected in this area through water testing.
03:19The fact that the solution channel could be the culprit in this whole long saga
03:24and the fact that the gold and silver in the water still indicate the treasure still exists,
03:29you put those two things together along with this Portuguese coin,
03:33that speaks very loudly that there was something very valuable buried deep in the Money Pit a long time ago.
03:41We're going to explore this area thoroughly with the Sonic drill rig
03:44and hopefully bring up what we could not with TB1 caisson.
03:48Anything that's fallen to that deeper level, we're going to be able to find it and put it right on
03:52the money.
03:52Yeah, for sure.
03:53Yep.
03:54While the core drilling operation proceeds in the Money Pit area.
03:59Come this way and dig that.
04:01Yeah.
04:02Let's find something old.
04:04Yep.
04:04Over at the western region of the swamp, Rick, Gary Drayton and Billy Gerhardt,
04:10search for new clues and evidence of valuables.
04:13Hold it!
04:14Whoa!
04:14Whoa!
04:15Whoa!
04:16Whoa!
04:17Whoa!
04:20Don't move it.
04:26It's a stake.
04:29Great condition.
04:30The swamp really preserves wood.
04:34Should preserve iron, gold and silver if we can find it.
04:37If we can find it.
04:42If we can find it.
04:44Yeah, there's another one.
04:46It was right there.
04:48Yep.
04:54Does that look like an oldie, Rick?
04:56It is tough to tell.
05:00It's eight sides, isn't it?
05:02Yep.
05:03Why are all these stakes in here?
05:04I have no idea.
05:06The number of stakes in a 50 by 50 foot area, it's almost overwhelming.
05:12There's another one.
05:13These are coming up.
05:14What in the world is happening?
05:16I would have expected them to be linear.
05:19These are very erratic.
05:24We got swimming going on here.
05:26Oh, yeah.
05:28There shouldn't be this many in such a tight space.
05:31And they're big, big stakes.
05:34Maybe there's a construction that yet awaits us somewhere that is very well defined, very accurate, but we are currently
05:41unaware of it.
05:41Yeah.
05:43In recent years, the team has found similar wooden stakes in other areas of the swamp.
05:50Some lined portions of a cobblestone path that led to an empty fault-like structure.
05:57So could the numerous wooden stakes they're finding here lead them toward another discovery?
06:05I think we are a sand.
06:13Rocks sort of under it?
06:15Yeah.
06:17Billy's observation of a sand layer indicates that this is an intentional, man-made structure.
06:24It was developed for some purpose.
06:26It's going somewhere.
06:27We need to find out where and why.
06:35On the edge, it looks very similar to the stone road.
06:38It looks very similar.
06:41Either stone road or the paved area.
06:43Yeah.
06:44It's kind of up-y down-y.
06:45Yeah.
06:46More like the paved area.
06:48They're stacked.
06:49They're level.
06:50Yeah.
06:51A rock feature here?
06:53Similar to the stone road or massive paved area that were previously found in the swamp?
07:00Seems like it goes back along there, yeah.
07:02See, there's rock, rock, rock.
07:03Is it possible the team has uncovered another man-made feature?
07:09No more interest in the area in the swamp.
07:12If this is a built rock something, that's a lot of work.
07:17This construction is eerily similar to the paved area.
07:22You can't dismiss it.
07:23Was it done by the same party or group?
07:27It's still a puzzle.
07:29Maybe we can get a hold of Dr. Spooner and have him come out and take a look.
07:32Yeah.
07:34The plan for the swamp really succinctly is to keep digging.
07:38Find something that points to, you know, Rick's who, what, when, where, why, and how.
07:42Or a clue that helps us unwrap the whole mystery.
07:44And this feature could help us do that.
07:47Well, again, dig the sand, be as least disruptive as possible to this, whatever this is.
07:54Wash this as best we can.
07:56See what it tells us.
07:57Yeah.
07:58Yeah, we need to get all of these states tested.
08:02Well, you know, it's pure Oak Island.
08:03More questions than answers, but...
08:05Typical.
08:07Okay, we'll keep looking.
08:11Later that afternoon...
08:15You know, we find ourselves back at the lab again.
08:18We have an interesting item in front of us, and I really hope to learn more things today.
08:22Rick, Gary, and Charles join Laird and Emma in the Oak Island Laboratory
08:27to hear a scientific report on a lead artifact that was discovered
08:32while searching near the border of Lot 5 one week ago.
08:36Charles, I believe you were with Gary when this was found.
08:39Yeah, I was with Gary.
08:40We were kind of opposite where the rectangular feature is.
08:43Mm-hmm.
08:44I dug it and he pulled it out, and I think the way you described it was decorative lead.
08:49Yeah.
08:50It's decorated as in the end.
08:53Those beveled edges, it kind of reminds me of an arm of a cross.
08:58We've found decorative pieces of lead before.
09:02We've found a really cool scallop disc on Lot 5.
09:08And let's not forget the magnificent medieval cross from Smith's Cove.
09:12I've got eye hopes that this is gonna match one of those older pieces of lead.
09:18This lead artifact was found just a few yards from the stone foundation on Lot 5,
09:25where the team previously discovered a lead barter token
09:29that was scientifically matched to the 14th century lead cross,
09:34and both of which may be connected to the Knights Templar.
09:39So, Emma, what more can you tell us about this piece of lead?
09:44Um, well, first off, I did do a bunch of map scans on the surface.
09:48There are no intentional designs.
09:50There's striations that I think that's more from usage
09:53rather than, like, a decorative intent.
09:57Prior to their meeting, Emma scanned the lead artifact
10:01using an X-ray Fluorescent Spectrometer, or XRF,
10:05a device that uses non-destructive radiation
10:08that can identify an object's composition,
10:11as well as potentially help determine its age.
10:16Compositionally, it's a really clean lead.
10:19There is a consistent amount of tin in it,
10:22but there's nothing in here that indicates modernity,
10:26as in there's nothing that indicates that it's more recent lead alloys.
10:30So it has a good potential to be 1700s and older.
10:37Brilliant!
10:41So it has potential to be 1700s and older.
10:46Told you, mate.
10:47Told you this is going to be an old piece.
10:48You said that when we were out there.
10:50Yeah.
10:50So it is a curious piece.
10:52Yeah.
10:53In the Oak Island Laboratory,
10:55Emma has just shared a scientific report
10:58that suggests the lead artifact found one week ago
11:02may predate the discovery of the Money Pit by more than a century.
11:07That notch at the top is...
11:09Strange.
11:10Yeah, it is.
11:11Yeah.
11:12Looks like attempted angular holes.
11:14Yes.
11:14But didn't go all the way through.
11:16Mm-hmm.
11:17Mm-hmm.
11:19Yes.
11:19It wasn't recycled, so it's a fresh source of lead.
11:23It has high potential of not being locally sourced,
11:27so these are all great candidates to send off for a laser ablation analysis.
11:32Brilliant, because I've got high hopes for this.
11:35Laser ablation is a testing method
11:38that removes microscopic samples from the surface of lead artifacts
11:42using a high-powered laser.
11:45These samples are then analyzed
11:47to identify the exact isotope values contained in the lead,
11:51which can help determine the time period
11:54and geographic region where such artifacts originated.
11:58It gives you the ore source, so it's a good thing.
12:01Yeah.
12:01And it will tell us if there's a relationship to the cross.
12:05Yeah.
12:06Using laser ablation testing,
12:08the team was able to determine
12:10that the lead cross and the lead barter token
12:13both dated to the 14th century
12:15and were from an area of southern France
12:18that served as a stronghold for the Knights Templar.
12:22We're always looking for friends at the cross,
12:24and it maybe helps you guys
12:28say what's going on in the rectangular feature.
12:31Mm-hmm.
12:31Because it really was.
12:32It was dead opposite there, just across the tracks.
12:35Wow, yeah.
12:35Given what you've said, this is quite pure.
12:38Perfect candidate for laser ablation.
12:40Do you want to carry the ball on that?
12:43Yes, absolutely.
12:44The three of us will go try to find more.
12:46Yeah, but one more thing.
12:48Be prepared to be gobstruck.
12:50This is going to be special.
12:52Thank you, Larry.
12:53Thank you, Emma.
12:54See you later.
12:59The following morning,
13:01as borehole F5.5 continues to make its descent
13:05towards the solution channel.
13:08So this is the feature,
13:10but one thing you need to recognize
13:12is that all of this cobble came from here as well.
13:16Rick and other members of the team
13:18are eager to have geoscientist Dr. Ian Spooner
13:22examine the mysterious stone feature
13:25that they uncovered in the western region of the swamp.
13:28What you can see in front of you is rocks stacked on rocks
13:31and the smaller ones packed in around the big ones
13:33to make it smooth.
13:34The other thing that we did find were stakes.
13:37Okay, interesting,
13:38because if these stakes rot off the top like that,
13:43then that tends to suggest further back in time.
13:47What gets me excited is these rocks here,
13:52they're exactly like we see in the cobble path,
13:55Stone Road.
13:56What this reminds me of too,
13:58along the side of the cobble path,
14:00we had piles of stone,
14:02sometimes with a cut stake underneath,
14:04suggesting that somebody put a stake there
14:06to tell workers where to put the cobbles
14:10to build that feature.
14:11Yeah.
14:13So why were people here?
14:14What were they doing?
14:16This might have been a pathway right through here.
14:18Right.
14:20You always take what you have learned
14:22in your past experiences on the island
14:24and try to apply them to the current effort.
14:29Last year, the cobble path led us to the most curious thing
14:34we found in the north end of the bog, the so-called vault.
14:38Might there be another construction like that here?
14:42That's the hope.
14:44Just keep digging.
14:46Right.
14:47I would certainly, if you have the time,
14:50see if this is isolated.
14:52It would be really interesting to see if we came across another feature
14:55that might be similar.
14:58It's interesting.
15:00Well, our permits are under review.
15:02Right.
15:03This is on the extremity of the permitted area.
15:06Okay.
15:06And once that approval process is completed,
15:10we'll keep digging.
15:11So I think we'll find more answers.
15:13The only way you can do it, I think,
15:15is to go somewhere else if we get a permit
15:18and see if it finds the same kind of cobble.
15:22To meet Nova Scotia's environmental regulations,
15:26the Oak Island team must apply for separate permits
15:29to dig in different areas of the swamp.
15:31The area they are in now is on the border
15:34of where they are currently allowed to search.
15:38Your brother's going to love this, isn't he?
15:41Another feature in the swamp.
15:44Thank you, Ian. Appreciate it.
15:46While the team prepares new permit applications
15:49for their work in the swamp...
15:51There's so much activity on Lot 5, Rick.
15:55Rick and Gary are searching for clues
15:57near the middle of Lot 5.
16:00We're still east of the Roman coins, aren't we?
16:04Yeah. Oh, yeah.
16:05There's no place like Rome.
16:09After finding a mysterious lead piece nearby,
16:12they are eager to search an area of Lot 5
16:15where the team previously found evidence suggesting
16:18that Europeans could have visited Oak Island
16:21as far back as the 13th century.
16:24This includes six ancient Roman coins
16:27that coin expert Sandy Campbell believes
16:29could be between 1,500 and 2,000 years old.
16:33According to Sandy and other experts,
16:37coins like these were still being circulated
16:40as everyday currency in Europe up into the 1400s.
16:45Roman coins on an island in the North Atlantic
16:49is such a puzzle.
16:52But to think that someone was here
16:55in the 12th, 13th, 1400s with Roman coins
16:58is not a stretch at all.
17:01Perhaps they were dropped by people from the Old World,
17:05people who were in charge of safeguarding a treasure
17:08or treasures or something that was extremely valuable.
17:12A little squeaker here, Rick.
17:15Just there, please.
17:26Oh, I like the sound of that.
17:30Oh, come on.
17:35Gotta be in there.
17:41Now, let us see what we've got.
17:45Oh, what have we got here?
17:47Another piece of lead.
17:50You know, it's really heavy,
17:52and I actually think this is really, really interesting.
17:55The fact that it's an elongated piece of lead,
17:58that makes that more interesting.
18:01Something like this, you never know,
18:03it could be a match to an older piece of lead we've recovered.
18:07Like that medieval lead cross.
18:10We're going to have to bag this and put a flag in it
18:13because we don't know what Emma's going to reveal when she scans this.
18:19Another curiously shaped lead artifact?
18:22Could Gary be correct?
18:24That this might be a clue connected to the lead cross,
18:28and perhaps even to the Roman coins found in this area of Lot 5?
18:34Right, mate, I'm going to put this in the bag and we'll put the flag in.
18:38It's going in the bag.
18:39I think the work of Lot 5 has been exciting, interesting and dramatic,
18:43and there has been an extensive amount of finds that show this place,
18:48this story, this mystery goes further back in time than we have even thought.
19:00Oh, not too bad sounding.
19:03Not too shabby at all.
19:08Fingers crossed.
19:11Check it and see if he got it out.
19:17That's not it, is it?
19:20It is.
19:22What have we got here, mate?
19:28Look at that.
19:29Oh.
19:31Nice.
19:32It's a handle to a pair of old scissors.
19:37While metal detecting near the middle of Lot 5 on Oak Island.
19:41See that?
19:41One set.
19:43Gary and Rick have uncovered another potentially important clue.
19:48Look at the fracture there.
19:50Yeah, you're right, Rick.
19:51It looks like it's broken off so there'll be another piece.
19:54We'll recheck the hole.
19:56Yep.
19:56In fact, I can see it, mate.
19:58Look at this.
20:02That's the other side.
20:05Look at that.
20:06Yeah, they go together.
20:08No, wait a minute.
20:10Look.
20:10I wonder if they're not scissors.
20:13These are the same.
20:15What do you think it is?
20:16We need a second opinion.
20:18Lynn's down the lot.
20:20Hey, Lynn!
20:21Check this out, please.
20:23Pretty cool, isn't it?
20:24Yeah, it really is.
20:26Hey, mate.
20:27How are you?
20:27We've just dug up a very curious artifact.
20:31When this first piece came up, I was thinking scissors.
20:34Old shears.
20:36And then when the second piece came up, I was thinking, look at this.
20:40Mm-hmm.
20:40I think this is something completely different.
20:44Oh, yeah, look at that.
20:44I think this is horse tack.
20:47Yeah.
20:47Which is even cooler.
20:49Looks like a bridle cheek piece.
20:51It would have been two either side of the cheeks.
20:54Yeah.
20:55That is really neat.
20:57Part of a possible horse bridle found on lot five?
21:01While several lots on the island were inhabited by settlers and farmers before 1795.
21:08Known records suggest the lot wasn't used either as farmland or as a grazing area for horses.
21:16So given the fact that the team has found artifacts in this area that could date back to medieval times
21:22and earlier, just how old is this horse bridle?
21:27And might it help identify who built the structures near the shoreline?
21:32I mean, look at it.
21:33I mean, you can see it's crudely made.
21:35That's got to be raw iron.
21:36Mm-hmm.
21:37And an oldie.
21:38Yeah, I can't imagine that being on an ox.
21:41I think this is horse tack.
21:43Yeah.
21:44I'd like to do more research on it.
21:46Um, would you mind if I took it to the lab?
21:48Of course not, mate.
21:49I'll put it in the bag.
21:51All right.
21:52Excellent.
21:53All right, mate.
21:54Do you deal?
21:55As Rick and Gary continue their search on lot five...
22:01Here we go.
22:04...over in the money pit area...
22:06Get ready to slice and dice, Terry.
22:09Charles, Terry, and other members of the team monitor the core drilling operation of borehole F5.5, which has reached
22:17the solution channel.
22:19Here we go, guys.
22:20Here it comes.
22:28All right.
22:29206, Terry.
22:30206, thank you.
22:32206.
22:32In bedrock at 204, yes?
22:33204, yeah.
22:39Let's carve it up.
22:40Here we go.
22:40Okay.
22:44That's a more promising looseness.
22:46Yeah, something could slide through that.
22:48Very, very watery.
22:52Into which treasure could have been dropped.
22:55So, bedrock at 204, guys.
22:58And above that, looks like we've got some relatively loose material, which is a good indication.
23:04Proof of our general premise or idea that the potential material could fall in a solution channel.
23:10I'm gonna run the pinpointer over this.
23:18See you?
23:18Yeah.
23:26Right in there.
23:29There's something in there.
23:30Wow.
23:30There's actually something in this.
23:32Drop it.
23:33There it is.
23:34There it is, right there.
23:35Little bit of right there.
23:37What do we got?
23:37What do we got?
23:38Iron something, or...
23:39Yeah.
23:39Wow.
23:40Clean it off, Terry.
23:41That's a fleck of metal.
23:44That could...
23:45Oh, that could be...
23:47I don't want to say coin, but...
23:48It looks like a half...
23:49That could be a chunk of a coin.
23:51It looks like a half coin.
23:52Oh, wow.
23:53Really?
23:53Yeah.
23:53It looks just like a coin.
23:56That's wild.
23:57That's absolutely wild.
23:59It's got some sort of design on it, too, it looks like.
24:01You say there's a pattern on it, Peter?
24:03There is.
24:05I gotta make a phone call.
24:08Absolutely.
24:09All right.
24:09I'm gonna call my Uncle Rick.
24:11Wow, that's very promising.
24:13Yep.
24:17Hey, guys.
24:19Hello.
24:19How you doing?
24:20It was just as we pushed into bedrock, Rick.
24:23Yeah.
24:23We were hit bedrock at 204.
24:25At about 204.5, we came up with that artifact.
24:28After hearing that something of potential interest
24:31was extracted from the solution channel...
24:36204.5 feet.
24:37Mm-hmm.
24:38Rick and Scott arrived in the Money Pit area
24:41to join the investigation.
24:44So we're sitting right on the bottom.
24:46Oh, and pushed in a bit, yeah.
24:47So we thought it was a cut or split coin.
24:49It's a small piece.
24:51What is it?
24:52The metal detector doesn't lie.
24:54We're looking for precious metals at the bottom of the solution channel.
24:59It feels like a coin.
25:01I feel what Gary calls roundness in my hand.
25:05It could be significant.
25:06It's what we're looking for.
25:08It's a hard metal, for sure.
25:09And very dense.
25:11Yep.
25:14No, that's a button off the drill bit.
25:19You can see clearly right size, everything.
25:23Sorry, guys.
25:25You think it's a button bit?
25:27Yep.
25:28Dude.
25:29Unfortunately, the team is disappointed to learn
25:32that the find has turned out to be a button
25:35that broke off from the end of a drill bit
25:38during a previous drilling operation.
25:41We're directly below case on TB1.
25:44So that could have came off last year's sonic drill program.
25:47So it could be a break off from last year.
25:49And again, it could prove our principle that dense material falls
25:53to the bedrock solution channel interface.
25:55Yep.
25:56Yeah.
25:56Go from a high to a low.
25:58We're all disappointed because it's a piece of carbide off the drill bit.
26:04But then I think, wait a minute here.
26:07It's not really alone.
26:09Something this small and insignificant
26:12has fallen to the bottom of the solution channel in the bedrock.
26:16There's proof, definitive proof,
26:19that even a possible coin could fall to these depths
26:25at the bottom of the solution channel.
26:27It's down there.
26:29We just haven't found it yet.
26:31But we will.
26:33You guys, I am extremely grateful.
26:35But more work to do, so let's get after it.
26:38See you guys.
26:39See you guys.
26:40See you guys.
26:43As a new day begins on Oak Island,
26:47while ground is broken on a new borehole in the Money Pit area.
26:52So I'm hoping you guys can tell us what these finds are,
26:58or maybe it's just one find.
27:00Rick, Peter, and Gary arrive at the lab to receive Laird and Emma's report
27:06on the possible horse bridle that was found one day ago on Lot 5.
27:12When I saw it in the field, and you put it together,
27:17I could see that being part of the horse tack.
27:21Yeah.
27:21But in our research, we couldn't correlate it to anything like that.
27:26No?
27:27Yeah.
27:29Design-wise, so you have the two pieces,
27:32and these are cross-sections right at that break,
27:34and one is more square,
27:37the other is a little bit more rectangular,
27:39so that just wouldn't have come from the same break.
27:43They were not connected as one.
27:46Yeah.
27:46So they did break off from the same object.
27:49It's just the handles of scissors.
27:52Yeah, that's what I thought when the first piece came up.
27:54Yeah.
27:54Well, it'd be interesting to see what the metallurgy is.
27:57What does the actual data tell you?
28:00Yeah.
28:01So the composition, there is a slight chlorine content.
28:06The fact that I am getting some sodium values,
28:09it does indicate it's been in prolonged contact with saltwater.
28:14Mm-hmm.
28:14Oh, wow.
28:15There's minimal impurities, which means pre-blast furnace,
28:18so it does indicate it's 1700s.
28:21Okay.
28:22Potentially late 1600s.
28:24Yeah.
28:25Good.
28:26Is it possible that the team has found another artifact
28:29that could date back to the 1600s on Lot 5?
28:34If so, could it help identify just who occupied the structures there
28:39more than a century before the discovery of the Money Pit?
28:44What country would this artifact be associated with?
28:49It's most likely UK and origin.
28:55You had, I remember, a book here of stylistically how she's changed over the years.
29:02Do you still have that?
29:02I do.
29:04Do you want to take a look?
29:11That would be your closest.
29:13It looks pretty identical to that.
29:15Yeah.
29:15Mid-17th century.
29:17Yeah.
29:18Yeah.
29:19Yeah.
29:19That explains the sheer excitement we felt when we found these.
29:25Stylistically, they represent the period of the 1600s.
29:28It certainly then raises the interest in the item.
29:33Does it prove directly some connection to the Money Pit and the original work?
29:39No.
29:40But neither does it say it can't be.
29:44Look, let's be honest.
29:46There's two lots on this island that are incredibly difficult to understand, right?
29:51The Money Pit lot.
29:52Mm-hmm.
29:53And Lot 5.
29:54Mm-hmm.
29:56Given the enormity of finds, Laird is it becoming clearer or more difficult to establish what happened on 5?
30:04Every little find like that brings us closer.
30:08Every artifact we find tells a story.
30:10And finds like these, even though they're quite puzzling in the moment, the next find might help explain it.
30:18Exactly.
30:18We haven't finished in that area.
30:20That's true.
30:22Needs metal detecting.
30:23And I say we go right now.
30:25Yeah.
30:26Okay.
30:27Great research.
30:30Later that morning...
30:35Come on.
30:35Let's have a signal.
30:37Rick and Gary return to Lot 5.
30:40What about due here, Gary?
30:43Yeah.
30:43Well, that's metal detecting.
30:45You've got to do the leg work, and then all of a sudden, you find something good.
30:50Like yesterday.
30:51Yeah, exactly.
30:53Some big old boulders around here.
30:56It's a place where people can sit and lose artifacts.
31:05There's potential in the air.
31:07Oh, yeah.
31:13Looks like I've been here before.
31:15There's a flag in here.
31:18What the heck is this, Rick?
31:21That circular feature there.
31:24Maybe...
31:26You can see in there.
31:29Definitely circular stones.
31:37Is it hollow in there?
31:40No, but it's definitely full of stone.
31:43Seems odd, doesn't it?
31:44Circular pattern of rocks.
31:46Nothing there, huh?
31:48No. No metal.
31:49But it's interesting as hell, isn't it?
31:52I wonder what this was for.
31:54I see in front of us a rock that's standing on edge.
31:59There appears to be a circle of rock around it.
32:01It does look as though they were placed with intent.
32:06Maybe we've found another feature.
32:08We may have another stone structure on Lot 5.
32:12That is worth investigating.
32:14You could peel the layers of rocks away and see if this is a real structure.
32:19I think it's worth having Laird come down and see if there's anything there.
32:23Yeah.
32:24Definitely worth checking out.
32:27This might be the find of the date.
32:29Yep.
32:34What do we have?
32:35I wish I could say I know what we're looking at, but I do know that Gary and I put
32:40eyes on this.
32:41Yeah, it's certainly an interesting feature.
32:43Following the discovery of a possible man-made stone feature near the center of Lot 5,
32:49Rick calls in Laird Niven to get his assessment.
32:52Gary did metal taking here.
32:55I just poked my shovel in here.
32:57And I think...
32:59It just seemed weird because there's not a lot of dirt, right?
33:03Yeah.
33:04The rocks are piled up and then everything accumulates on top.
33:08It's the shape that hits me first, right?
33:10It seems to be circular, lined with large rocks.
33:15That upright flat rock in the middle, it's like you're putting it there to signify something, which is pretty cool.
33:21So it's done with purpose.
33:22Mm-hmm.
33:24This was a stone that was deliberately placed upright.
33:27And my immediate thought was that that was done to mark a location.
33:33This location isn't marking the boundaries of land.
33:39What's interesting is on this lot, there are stone circular formations, right?
33:46Yeah.
33:47And now we have another one here.
33:49I mean, we have the Roman coins, we don't understand how they got here.
33:52This may help explain some of that mystery.
33:54Could this stone formation have been built by the same people who constructed the large rounded feature near the shoreline?
34:02If so, could it somehow be connected to the Roman coins that have been found in this area?
34:10If this is a marker or a monument, this might be a very significant find.
34:15We have found a multitude of items that are unexplainable.
34:19The list of it goes on and on and on.
34:22So might there be something quite unique and interesting about this location?
34:28Yes, certainly.
34:30Well, you know, I'd certainly clear it off, bring the team in, and then consider bisecting it.
34:35I think that's certainly worth doing.
34:38I'm excited over this. I mean, this could very well be our next big feature.
34:41We won't know what it is until you actually do the work exactly.
34:45And any day that we can dig something up on Oak Island is a good day.
34:48Good day. Best day ever.
34:50Okie doke.
34:51While Laird prepares to investigate the new stone feature on Lot 5.
34:57Later that afternoon...
35:01I'm going to say something that my brother would never say.
35:05Beautiful day in the swamp.
35:06Yep, it's good to be out.
35:08You bet.
35:10You're going here, right?
35:12Yeah.
35:13Rick, Gary, and Billy return to the swamp.
35:16If you look over here, that's where we found the stakes and some cobble, roughly between those two tall trees.
35:25Right.
35:26The hope here is that they carry through to this area.
35:30While they await a new permit to continue investigating the stone feature in the western region,
35:36they have moved to an area 40 feet to the north, where they are currently free to search.
35:42We're roughly on that line right now.
35:47What we need is an artifact.
35:50More artifacts.
35:52Let's see what we find.
35:54Yep.
35:55We are now digging in the southwest corner in the second permitted area.
36:00The idea was to follow the cobble area, we'll call it.
36:05One of the most unexplored areas is the western side of the swamp.
36:10So hopefully there are answers here within the bog.
36:17That's not charcoal, is it?
36:19Is it charcoal, Rick?
36:22I mean, it should do that if it's charcoal, right?
36:24Yeah.
36:26It was right here.
36:28Yeah.
36:30See that little piece?
36:31Grab that.
36:33Yeah, that looks like charcoal.
36:35And I remember the archaeologists found charcoal on the stone road.
36:39That was the one consistent thing we found.
36:41Yeah.
36:41We found that even all the way down the path.
36:44Yeah.
36:46The team has previously discovered charcoal in the southeast corner on the stone road, which may be Portuguese in origin
36:54and more than 500 years old.
36:57You have a bag?
36:59Yeah, I've got a bag.
37:00Finding more potential charcoal here is intriguing and suggests a possible connection between the two features.
37:08I'm sure Emma can tell us right away whether it is or not.
37:11Yeah, we'll find out from Emma.
37:13If it can be dated to a much earlier time, that's interesting in and of itself.
37:19I've got it in the bag.
37:22I think this sample in particular should be sent to the lab to see if it aligns with the charcoal
37:28that was found on the stone road and the stone path.
37:31Because then, possibly, there's a connection.
37:40We've got some iron here by the sound of it.
37:44Let me pinpoint it, Rick.
37:48We've got an ear.
37:50And look how it's right at the side of that boulder.
38:02I think it's out, Rick.
38:06Oh, that's an umdinger of a signal.
38:08We'll have a better look.
38:10Look at that.
38:17Look at that.
38:19Yep.
38:20Look at the way it tapers down.
38:23In the western region of the Oak Island swamp, the Oak Island team has just made another potentially interesting discovery.
38:32Does it have a notch on top?
38:34You know what?
38:35It does.
38:36Yeah.
38:37Why would it have a notch?
38:39Unless this is broken off, there was a hole in it.
38:44Heavy?
38:44Oh, yeah, it's really heavy.
38:46This is an forged, raw iron.
38:49Yeah, this is an old piece of iron.
38:51This is something different.
38:53What the heck is this?
38:54If it is hollow and yet you're saying it's heavy, that's even more interesting.
38:59Yeah, but that is unusual.
39:01One end appeared to be hollow.
39:03The other end appeared to have a raised diagonal.
39:07That seems strange.
39:09I just don't know what it is.
39:11It's a unique find.
39:13It's not a piece of rebar and it needs to go to the lab.
39:18The way it tapers down, it could be like a petronal, a really old gun from the 1500s, 1600s. They
39:27were very early weapons. Just one single shot.
39:31Hmm.
39:32A CT scan is really going to be enlightening, but why else would it be hollow?
39:37Yeah.
39:39Petronals date back to as early as the 14th century.
39:44They were a short, single shot firearm commonly used by European militaries before the invention of long barreled muskets in
39:52the mid 1600s.
39:55Thanks to their compact size, petronals were often used by soldiers who were riding on horseback.
40:02Is it possible that Gary has found new evidence of a military presence on Oak Island back in the 1600s
40:10or earlier?
40:11If so, just whose military was it?
40:15Definitely interesting.
40:17Yeah.
40:18And what's it doing here?
40:19That's a special find.
40:21This could be a smoking gun, literally.
40:24You want so badly to find something that can be tied intimately to another area of the island that has
40:36a proper association with the search for answers or search for treasure.
40:41We need to do more work in the area to try to understand that story in its totality.
40:48We are going to go back to that lab with a really fantastic artifact.
40:52It's pretty peculiar and unravel this story.
40:56We better get on the ball.
40:58Anyway, tomorrow, another day.
41:00Good job.
41:01Good digging, Billy.
41:02We've still got a lot of ground to cover.
41:05As another exciting week ends on Oak Island,
41:09New finds offer Rick, Marty, and their team more validation that something extraordinary took place here centuries ago.
41:21And while their search for the answers is far from over, they are determined to reveal the truth.
41:35Next time on The Curse of Oak Island.
41:38All right, well, this is the neighborhood, guys.
41:40I mean, this is Treasure Central.
41:42There's mounting evidence of something happening here long ago.
41:47Hopefully there's some old gold and silver.
41:51We've got a stone structure here.
41:53Somebody piled those stones.
41:55So somebody put this here.
41:56Somebody went to some trouble.
41:58It could be a 1500s hand cannon.
42:01We're right here.
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