Deep-sea explorers have pulled up 48 tons of silver treasure from three miles below the surface of the North Atlantic in what may be the deepest, largest precious metal recovery in history.
The haul was retrieved from the S.S. Gairsoppa, a 412-foot steel-hulled British cargo ship that sank in February 1941.
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The Gairsoppa was a merchant ship that was torpedoed by a German U-boat during World War II. Since the U.K. government had insured the privately owned cargo under the War Risk Insurance program, it had paid out the owners for the lost silver and then became owners of the lost cargo.
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Odyssey began its search for the sunken cargo ship in the summer of 2011 and confirmed its location by September 2011. The company says so far they have found no human remains, but in the event that they do they "will be treated with the utmost respect and the U.K. Department for Transport will be immediately notified."
Record Treasure Hauled From Shipwreck