NARRATOR: Tonight on The Curse of Oak Island...
-Wow. We're at 13 feet across. -Wow.
ALEX: That is the exact same dimension
-as the Money Pit. -To me, it changes everything.
-Ooh, look at that. -Oh, look at that.
That's nice. Fantastic.
That's got to be the oldest metal artifact
ever to come out of the swamp.
It's the oldest I've seen in Nova Scotia.
SANDY: It's Roman
from fifth century.
-(laughter) -JACK: Oh, no way.
-How sure are you of this? -I'm 100% sure.
-Wow. -Wow.
NARRATOR: There is an island in the North Atlantic
where people have been looking for
an incredible treasure for more than 200 years.
So far, they have found a stone slab
with strange symbols carved into it...
...man-made workings that date to medieval times,
and a lead cross whose origin may be connected
to the Knights Templar.
To date, six men have died
trying to solve the mystery.
And according to legend, one more will have to die
before the treasure can be found.
♪ ♪
SCOTT: Hey, Paul.
(chuckles) How's your day going?
Ah, it's going, it's going.
-Steady. Steady. -Good.
Where's the dig currently at?
I'd say 78 feet.
-78. -78, really? Okay.
NARRATOR: An exciting new day
in the quest of brothers Rick and Marty Lagina and their team
to solve the 228-year-old Oak Island mystery
is well underway.
So, your next stage, you're gonna lower your staging now?
Yeah, so, the guys are gonna go down.
-They're gonna grout first. -Okay.
And then they're gonna put another set in after.
-Okay. -Yeah.
NARRATOR: And in the fabled
Money Pit area,
the anticipation of a breakthrough discovery
has never been higher,
as representatives from Dumas Contracting Limited
work to complete the reconstruction
of an 82-foot-deep feature known as the Garden Shaft.
So, Paul, when do you think
you're gonna start the probe drilling?
Well, we have, uh, maybe a couple of sets to put in.
Grout first...
-Yep. -...and lower the staging.
I told the guys that, to make sure you take, uh,
a little extra time to keep an eye out,
with what we're pulling out or anything
that looks out of the ordinary.
Yeah, I mean, it is an anomalous area all around here.
I mean, we have a tunnel out here
that we don't know anything about.
We seem to have the water flowing
in this general direction.
And now we've-we've since tested
two pieces of wood out of the shaft...
-Yeah. -...and have gotten, uh, gold detected on them.
We have wood from DN-11.5
that has gold in the wood as well.
Yeah.
NARRATOR: Although the Garden Shaft
was originally thought to be nothing more
than a 19th-century searcher construct,
when Rick, Marty and their partner Craig Tester
had wood samples scientifically analyzed
at the beginning of this year,
they were astonished to learn that it may have been built
in 1735,
meaning that it might be related to the original Money Pit.
So, you guys gave me these.
TERRY: Right.
NARRATOR: Subsequent testing
on additional wood samples
that were taken from 55
and 58 feet deep in the structure
revealed even more shocking results.
-I detected gold. -Wow.
EMMA: 0.11%.
Isn't that, like, a big number?
This is huge.
Right now, we know we have a shaft right here.
-We have a shaft behind you. -Yeah.
-We still have this whole area that's yet to be explored. -Yeah.
NARRATOR: While the team is eager to find out
just what lies buried at the bottom of the Garden Shaft,
they recently learned of another potential opportunity
it may offer them for an even greater breakthrough discovery.
While drilling in a 20-by-20-foot area
known as the Baby Blob,
where geoscientist Dr. Ian Spooner
and hydrogeologist Dr. Fred Michel
believe the Money Pit treasure vault could be located
between 80 and 120 feet deep underground,
the team encountered a tunnel at a depth of some 95 feet
that is heading almost directly underneath the Garden Shaft.
The Garden Shaft has a whole bunch of things
that point to it being, uh, very important.
We've got the gold in the water, we've got tunnels leading to it,
we have wood samples with gold.
All kinds of mysteries around the Garden Shaft
that we have to figure out.
SCOTT: When we get to that bottom, when we find that bottom,
we'll have a better understanding of where
that tunnel is and why it's there.
And then we can figure out what angle we need to drill on
and how far we need to drill in order to reach that tunnel.
Yeah.
RICK: There's lots of reason to believe that the Garden Shaft
may allow us to answer the questions regarding the mystery.
But you have to be very careful, because we know
the incredible amount of work that was done underground
in the Money Pit.
So, the first thing to do is stick with the hard data.
The hope is that it leads to treasure.
We're excited to get down to the bottom,
but we'll let you get back to it.
I know you've got a lot of work to do.
Yep. We're anxious to get to the bottom, also.
-SCOTT: All right, sounds good. -PAUL: Sounds good.
PAUL: We'll check in with you later.
-Thanks, Paul. -Yeah, thanks.
NARRATOR: While the reconstruction
of the Garden Shaft continues in the Money Pit area...
-GARY: Hello, Rick. -RICK: Gary. Morning.
-RICK: Morning, Bill. -Morning.
...Rick Lagina, along with Billy Gerhardt
and metal detection expert Gary Drayton,
prepare to continue another major operation
in the northeastern region of the triangle-shaped swamp.
To me, the most interesting thing about today is,
we have to reaffirm the ramp area up.
-Yeah. Yeah. -If we can dig that,
then you'll have your answer about whether or not
these stones are associated
-with the paved area itself, right? -Right.
RICK: Right there. There's something hard.
NARRATOR: Two weeks ago,
while searching for a possible metal object
that was recently identified during a magnetometry survey,
Rick and members of the team uncovered
what appeared to be a stone ramp.
IAN: Just see the white tops.
STEVE: Yeah, that's a lot of cobble.
NARRATOR: A ramp that may be connected
to the mysterious paved area,
which has been dated to as early as 1200 AD.
I think this little spit of land here might hold some secrets.
And the only way to do it is to dig, so...
-Yeah. Let's get diggy with it. -(laughs)
Let's get diggy with it.
-Okay, Bill. -BILLY: Yeah.
NARRATOR: Now Rick, Billy and Gary are hoping to determine
if the ramp really is an extension of the paved area,
and also, if anything of value may be hidden nearby.
GARY: It does smell like treasure, doesn't it?
I don't remember it quite this sloppy.
Uh, yeah, I do.
Look, the stones are coming up.
-Two stones over there. -Yeah.
GARY: They look like two stones off the paved area.
I don't know if this is gonna work.
GARY: He's just fighting the water.
I think the ramp obviously needs to be thoroughly investigated.
But right now, it's so wet,
we would have to get a pump and dewater
in order to do a proper dig.
We will do that as soon as possible.
How do you want to do this?
I don't remember it being this wet.
BILLY: Yeah, I-I don't know.
There's certainly a lot of water.
The swamp doesn't want to give up its secrets, right?
That's the long and the short of it.
RICK: Time and weather are conspiring against us.
We don't have a whole lot of time.
-No. -What I would do is,
get it dry enough and then maybe dig it
-a little bit that way? -Yeah.
And I think we continue to explore
the possibilities of what that ramp is suggesting,
that there's a connection between this paved area
-and the upland. -Yeah.
-GARY: All right, mate. -All right.
Thanks.
I love the swamp.
NARRATOR: Later that afternoon...
MARTY: Ladies, gentlemen,
today we welcome Sandy Campbell back to the war room.
Sandy is-- I'm sure you all know--
-is a coin expert. -Yeah.
NARRATOR: ...Rick joins his brother Marty,
along with other members of the team in the war room
for a highly anticipated meeting with numismatist Sandy Campbell.
MARTY: Specifically, we're gonna talk about a find
that Gary and Jack made on Lot 5, correct?
Yeah.
NARRATOR: One week ago,
a mysterious lead disc was discovered on Lot 5
in an area where the team found
a nearly 2,000-year-old Roman coin earlier this year.
EMMA: This comes from the mines
of Iran or Sardinia, off the coast of Italy.
It's an enigmatic piece.
I've never seen anything quite like it.
-Nope. -Rick has it here in his hands,
so, um, let's proceed.
-RICK: Sandy, here you go. -Great.
So, this is a-a bit exciting for me for a few reasons.
So, when Emma sent me the email,
I immediately identified what this probably was.
-Mm. -I have a history
with a very similar piece.
Uh, about ten or 12 years ago, we handled
a collection of ancient and historical money,
and there was a piece, y-you know,
it-it looks like a twin to this, that was in that collection.
-No way. (chuckles) -Yeah.
SANDY: And i-it's... it's really bizarre
that this has shown up on the island, in one sense,
but in another sense, it's not, and I'll tell you why.
It probably was some sort of barter piece.
This is probably from, you know...
fifth century.
-(laughter) -Wow. Really?
SANDY: Yeah.
And a similar piece was found on a Roman site in-in the U.K.
-Wow. Wow. -(laughter)
GARY This is fantastic news.
SANDY: This is exciting for me for a few reasons.
A similar piece was found on a Roman site in the U.K.
-No way. -Yeah.
MARTY: Wait a minute.
How sure are you of this?
I'm-I'm 100% sure.
-Geez. -Yeah.
NARRATOR: In the war room,
coin expert Sandy Campbell has just presented
an astonishing assessment of the lead token
found one week ago on Lot 5.
-Wow. -SANDY: And-and again, the coincidence here
is beyond, you know, what you'd normally...
(laughs): Yeah.
NARRATOR: He believes it not only dates back
to the fifth century AD, but just like the coin
that was found in the same area this year,
is also of Roman origin.
I even have some...
a printout from the British museum
that shows a very similar piece.
I'm gonna pull out the-the documents I have here.
This is a special find. It is absolutely amazing.
I knew it was old.
MARTY: This thing, apparently,
with very, very high, uh, reliability,
is a fifth-century Roman artifact.
That is incredible.
What is it doing buried two feet under the ground
-on Oak Island? -SANDY: The piece
that-that I documented
goes back to a Roman site, you know, in the U.K.
This says "Cambridge shire."
Is that how you say that? Cambridge shire?
Yeah. Cambridge shire.
-Is that where it was? Yeah. -MARTY: Yeah.
"Stone-Stonea Grange"?
-Ring any sort of bells? -Uh, no,
-but Cambridge shire does. -Yeah.
Y-You know, it-it looks like a twin to this.
That looks identical.
It's the same size, too, isn't it?
-SANDY: I-It's-it's... -It says three centimeters.
-It's bizarrely identical. -Yeah.
-Roman, baby. -(laughter)
MARTY: What the hell happened on Oak Island?
I mean, once again.
GARY: I'm gonna see how far
this find location is from Royston.
The Royston Cave.
That'd be worth a look.
It's 13 miles from Royston Cave
-to Cambridge, yeah. -Wow.
RICK: Wouldn't be anything for the legion
to march that, or for Templars
-to ride it. -Yeah.
Whoa.
GRETCHEN: Welcome to a Templar
initiation chamber.
NARRATOR: Earlier this year,
Marty and Alex Lagina, along with Charles Barkhouse...
-CHARLES: Wow. -...traveled to Royston, England,
where researcher Gretchen Cornwall arranged for them
to visit a mysterious site known as Royston Cave.
ALEX: The size of it is incredible for something that, I assume,
was dug by hand, right?
GRETCHEN: Yes. Absolutely.
Dug by hand. Like Oak Island.
CHARLES: Good point.
NARRATOR: Although this area
was once part of the Roman Empire
more than 1,500 years ago,
between the 12th and 14th centuries,
it was also known to be a stronghold
for the Knights Templar,
the Christian military order who some believe
buried priceless religious treasures on Oak Island.
Could this Roman token,
along with the half coin that was also found on Lot 5
earlier this year, offer further evidence
that this incredible theory could be true?
If you can't get excited about such a singularly unique find,
time to go home.
Look at that item,
from a Roman encampment from a certified
fifth-century settlement, and we have one here on Oak Island?
What does this all mean?
What an amazing piece.
We need to go back to Lot 5.
Carpe diem, baby. We've got seize the day.
-Yeah. -MARTY: Say, a year ago,
if somebody had said, "They're gonna start finding
Roman-era stuff on Oak Island,"
what chance would you have given to that?
-Zero? -(laughter)
-Negative zero. -That's what's amazing about this.
-Yeah. -RICK: There's a wonderful story here,
and I'm very, extremely gratified that,
when I look at the smiles and the interest
in the eyes of the people around the table,
it's-it's immensely gratifying to me,
and I'm most appreciative.
This island does this to us every year.
Every year, it puts enough in front of you
(laughs): to make you come back.
I mean, it's just bizarre.
But that said, it is a fact.
-Let's keep going. -Yep.
NARRATOR: The following day...
COTE: You kind of overlap in it.
NARRATOR: ...as the reconstruction of the Garden Shaft
continues in the Money Pit area...
COTE: Beautiful.
-ALEX: Okay. -LAIRD: This-this is it.
What's the plan?
LAIRD: We're going to put in a four-by-six feet unit
probably encompassing those rocks.
-ALEX: Right along the edge? -Yeah.
-NARRATOR: ...Alex Lagina... -Let's do it.
...and archaeologist Laird Niven
return to Lot 5,
located on the northwestern side of the island.
-There. -NARRATOR: In the same general area
of where the believed Roman token
and half coin were found,
Laird and Alex are continuing to investigate
a mysterious circular stone feature
in the hopes of determining
if it was merely created by 19th-century farmers
or if it was constructed much earlier.
-ALEX: You like the alignment here? -LAIRD: I think so.
RICK: I'm obviously intrigued
about the circular feature on Lot 5.
-Cool. -RICK: It wasn't properly exposed.
A proper profile needs to be cut to con--
take a look at the-the feature.
It presents some-somewhat unique opportunities
to understand how Lot 5 relates to the Oak Island mystery.
The island has a mystery.
What is it?
LAIRD: We've got rocks
coming out here, which is interesting.
It's a lot more rock than I would have expected.
ALEX: Yeah, and then, here. Look.
There's another one here, more rocks, continuing.
ALEX: A piece of pottery here.
All right.
-LAIRD: Well, its creamware. -ALEX: Creamware?
-LAIRD: That's good news. -ALEX: Is that old?
LAIRD: 1770.
ALEX: Do you think that's enough to say that this is
-from the 1770s? -I mean,
finding the creamware on top,
it doesn't give us a starting date
-for the occupation. -Right.
It-it just gives us a-a date after which it must date.
-Okay. -Yeah. So, we want to find the earliest strata,
the earliest occupation for this site.
From an archaeological point of view,
it's an extremely unusual feature.
For one, it's large, uh, two, it's-it's round.
Uh, we don't come upon round features very often
in our work.
And the date is a little early, the 1700s.
So this site is the first site that's giving us
that potentially early evidence of occupation.
So that's the real mystery, you know: who was here?
I wasn't expecting this many rocks.
And see how... flat and level they are?
I mean, this looks like-- right here, this...
-The way these are lined up... -LAIRD: Yep.
...like, just like that, those two.
It really looks like they did a ring, then a ring.
Maybe even just a straight thing across.
If this is the whole way around, that's-that's a big footing.
It's not coincidence.
This construction's carefully done.
It's broad.
To me, I mean, it could be a larger structure.
That's why we need to find out if it travels around.
'Cause we have early ceramics,
and no record of anyone being here during that period,
during the late 1700s.
Right. Is there any other reason they would do this?
I mean, could this be related to the treasure?
LAIRD: Any time you have
an undocumented, uh, occupation, then sure.
I mean, if this is mid-1700s, to me, it changes everything.
-Very odd, very intriguing. -Yeah.
-That would make... -What would it, what would it take
to determine this is a building?
Well, if we found this on three sides, even.
-Mm-hmm. -And you could find it probing.
You don't have to excavate.
I think it's gonna be a surprise to a lot of people,
-to be honest. -Well, great morning so far.
LAIRD: Yeah, I agree. More digging.
-GARY: Back at the paved area. -RICK: Yeah.
NARRATOR: While the Oak Island team continues their operations
in the Money Pit area and on Lot 5,
Rick, Gary, and Billy return to the triangle-shaped swamp
to unearth additional sections
of the believed man-made stone ramp.
So, I-I think what we'll do is, let's try to follow this path.
If we can make a positive relationship
between the paved area to the ramp,
the ramp to the stone path, then the next step would be
try to somehow connect the stone path to something.
-Right. -Let's start digging.
-(high-pitched beep) -(whirring)
NARRATOR: Having moved several yards northeast
from their previous search location,
Rick, Billy and Gary are digging in dryer ground
in the hopes of determining
if the ramp actually does connect
the 800-year-old paved area to the nearby stone pathway...
-RICK: Heads up. -...and also,
if it contains any important clues or valuables.
-Ooh, look at that. -Oh, look at that.
Yeah, I didn't even take a step.
-Billy. -Hold up.
Straight out of the bucket.
(laughs): Ooh.
What have we got here?
The first sweep, the first artifact.
Straight out.
It's an horseshoe, a lucky horseshoe, I hope.
It's been in the ground a long time.
-That's what I think. -Yeah.
It wouldn't have that much corrosion on there.
Yeah, it really is.
NARRATOR: A small horseshoe
found on the stone ramp in the triangle-shaped swamp?
If so, was it simply discarded here?
Or could it have been dropped
during the construction of the feature?
And that is... is it just misshapen
or is that side smaller than that?
-Um... -Is that broken?
GARY: I would imagine it's misshapen.
I don't know. Hopefully, Carmen Legge will be able
to shed some light on that, and tell us how old it is.
But why in the swamp?
Um, if you're coming to the island,
and, back in the day, by boat,
you would have had a small horse on a boat.
You don't have large horses on boats.
NARRATOR: Could Gary be correct
that this shoe belonged to a horse
that came to Oak Island on a large sailing vessel?
If so, might it be related
to the various fragments of ships
that the team has found in the swamp
over the past several years?
Or the pieces of cargo barrels
that were also found in this area
which blacksmithing expert Carmen Legge believes
could date back as early as the 15th century?
There might be something special about this horseshoe.
Brilliant start.
-RICK: A good start, that's for sure. -Yep.
All right, we are really hot to trot.
(chuckles) I knew there was one coming.
After all these years, I still believe the swamp has secrets.
GARY: Nope, that was it.
That was a good start.
RICK: And the only way to uncover them, unfortunately,
is to dig.
And, uh, given the current discovery conditions,
i.e. them being wet, that takes time.
(clears throat) And all these logs and sticks.
Hard to believe this was always wetland.
GARY: Yeah.
I'd say that's down in original swamp layer.
Kind of looks like it.
How far above the water are you?
BILLY: A foot.
I'll leave it up to you to decide the width of it,
but I think... probably that stone
and those alder bushes, I wouldn't go any wider.
No, I-I think that's the limit of the ramp anyway.
We'll see, but...
Let's keep digging.
BILLY: Yep.
NARRATOR: The following morning...
COTE: Tight lining coming down, watch out!
NARRATOR: ...as the team from Dumas Contracting Limited
continues the final phases of reconstruction
in the Garden Shaft...
GARY: Hey, Carmen, mate. Thanks for coming out.
-You're welcome. -NARRATOR: ...Billy Gerhardt and Gary Drayton
meet with blacksmithing expert Carmen Legge,
in the research center.
Always like to see you, 'cause that means
that we found something really interesting.
Well, I hope I can tell you something about it.
NARRATOR: They are eager to get Carmen's assessment
of the horseshoe that was recovered one day ago
on the stone ramp in the swamp.
-GARY: Look at that. -CARMEN: Oh, well it's certainly a horseshoe, isn't it?
-Yeah. -Let me have a look at this.
CARMEN: It's not very corroded, so...
Um, you'll notice that the, uh, top of the shoe
is quite thick and then it comes down quite narrow like that.
Usually, when you see that, it indicates a very old shoe.
Also, you'll notice that the shoe is very short.
It's not a draft horseshoe.
It's more like a riding horse or a cavalry, uh, horse.
This, I can say safely,
is the oldest horseshoe I've seen so far.
-(chuckles) -The plot thickens.
CARMEN: And it's not consistent all the way around,
so it's an old handmade shoe.
I would go back to the...
...1400s.
GARY: Wow. Unbelievable.
-Wow, that's fantastic.
NARRATOR: In the Oak Island Research Center,
blacksmithing expert Carmen Legge
has just given an astonishing assessment
that the horseshoe found one day ago
on the stone ramp in the swamp
could date back some four centuries
prior to the discovery of the Money Pit.
But who-who would bring a riding horse to an island?
GARY: Everything came to the island
by boat, and there would've had to have been
someone in charge of all these constructs,
-and they would've been riding a horse like this, probably. -Yeah.
Yeah, that-that's certainly true.
The shortness of the shoe, it makes the horse
-stand up prouder. -BILLY: Hmm.
It was for a high-prestige horse, you know,
something that you want to, um,
give a commanding presence when you rode this horse.
BILLY: You know, this was found along the edge of the stone path,
and some of the construction techniques were similar
to stuff that the guys saw in...
-in Portugal. -Yeah.
ALEX: The stone path looks exactly like this.
NARRATOR: One year ago,
while visiting Alqueidão da Serra, Portugal,
where the Knights Templar were known to have maintained
a stronghold between the 12th and 16th centuries...
It looks similar to what we have,
-that's for sure. -DOUG: Yeah.
NARRATOR: ...Rick Lagina and members of the team
saw a Roman road that was nearly identical
to the one that was uncovered in the swamp back in 2020.
CARMEN: There is no known
recorded visits by horses here
in Nova Scotia before 1670.
-BILLY: Huh. -Wow.
NARRATOR: Could Billy Gerhardt's notion,
that this horseshoe is potentially related
to the stone road, be correct?
If so, might it not only help explain how the Roman coin
and token came to be on Oak Island...
It does tell a story, and is-- it is very old.
NARRATOR: ...but also be another key clue
in identifying just who was behind
the 228-year-old mystery?
RICK: I am surprised that Carmen
has indicated that this horseshoe represents,
uh, the stylistically, uh, from the 1400s.
And for Carmen to say
something that specific about something
he is very familiar with is-is quite extraordinary.
CARMEN: If this is from that time period,
then we have, uh, rewritten history.
BILLY: Wow.
(both chuckle)
-That is our lucky horseshoe, mate. -Exactly.
1400s? Brilliant.
That's got to be the oldest metal artifact ever to come
out of the swamp.
CARMEN: It's the oldest horseshoe
I've seen in Nova Scotia.
And I've seen a lot of shoes.
-BILLY: Wow. -Dang.
-We're making history, Gary. -Yeah. We really are.
Thank you, Carmen. All of this is amazing.
-Very good. Very good. Keep bringing stuff to me. -GARY: All right, mate.
-BILLY: We will. Thank you. -GARY: We will do, mate. Cheers.
NARRATOR: As Gary and Billy conclude their meeting
with Carmen Legge...
LAIRD: I find this really interesting.
More so than when we came out here?
Absolutely. Absolutely.
NARRATOR: ...back on Lot 5,
archaeologist Laird Niven and Alex Lagina
continue their investigation of the mysterious stone feature.
The real thing we need to look out for
-is something under these rocks. -LAIRD: Yeah.
So why don't we start with the probing?
Okay. Sounds great.
NARRATOR: In an effort to determine
if more layers of stone
lie hidden beyond the outer edges of the structure...
Try it a little bit.
NARRATOR: ...Alex and Laird will probe
the perimeter with a steel rod.
Okay, you want to just follow this along?
Let's start by probing, like, here.
Yep.
-And that should be surface. -That is a rock.
And then, and then go the other way.
-So, confidently... -Clear?
...I can say there's rocks here.
Yeah. And you can see rocks here.
It's-it's circular. I mean, you can even see it,
-you know, from the trowel to this little tree. -Yeah.
You can probably probe down there, too.
Okay.
Oh, yeah.
-It's soil. -Soil.
So, about a foot of soil.
-There might have been a rock at the end of that. -Yeah.
-That would tell us that, you know... -It's very old.
Yeah. And this is circular?
-Yeah. -Circular doesn't make sense for a house.
ALEX: Mm-hmm.
But if this was another feature, it's huge.
Right.
I think, uh... Why don't we measure it?
Sure.
See if it conforms to some sort of standard.
We'll do this part first here. Just the, uh...
-Yeah, if you can... -...from the lip to the center.
ALEX: That's seven feet basically right to there.
-Okay. -Which I'm gonna call the inside edge.
Okay.
-All right, so you're lined up with the edge? -Yep.
And here, we're at 13 feet.
-That's a bizarre measurement. -That is the exact same dimension
as the Money Pit is described as having.
Yeah. (chuckles)
I mean, what are we looking at here?
(laughs)
I have no idea.
NARRATOR: On Lot 5,
located on the western side of Oak Island,
Alex Lagina has just made a startling observation
about the circular stone depression.
ALEX: That's 13 feet across. I don't know.
-(chuckles): I mean, that's quite a coincidence. -Yeah.
-If it is a coincidence. -It is an odd measurement.
NARRATOR: This feature has the exact same 13-foot diameter
as the original Money Pit, which was first discovered
by Daniel McGinnis and his two friends
on the eastern end of the island back in 1795.
And curiously, that, too, was initially described
as a circular depression covered by a layer of stones.
ALEX: We don't know the history of this lot.
Was it a recreation of the Money Pit?
Is this like a...
like, a proof of concept or something?
Or a first attempt, I guess?
(scoffs) I hadn't even thought of that.
I hadn't even thought "first attempt,"
but man, this is weird.
NARRATOR: Is it possible that this feature was created
as a prototype for the construction
of the Money Pit, located more than half a mile away?
Or is it possible, especially given discoveries
such as the Roman coin and barter token
that were made nearby,
that this stone-lined depression on Lot 5
may contain something of much greater value
buried deeper below ground?
You know, Rick might want to hear about this.
-I think so. -So I'm gonna give him a call.
(line ringing)
ALEX: Uncle Rick.
I'm here with Laird,
and we're on Lot 5 investigating this pit.
So we just measured it, and uh, you're--
you're not gonna believe this, but the hole itself
is 13 feet across.
(laughs): That was my reaction.
(both chuckle)
There's more stones than we expected.
-And much more deliberately placed. -Yeah.
RICK: The key is, can we make an assessment as to a date?
Because if it's a very early date,
say, pre-Money Pit discovery,
then it's, it may be highly relevant,
and it may tell us something about
the who, what, when and where and why of Lot 5.
Okay, we'll keep working on it and, um,
we'll call you if we have any more info.
Yep. Bye.
This is a mystery.
LAIRD: Yeah, well, I mean, the only way to get answers
-is to get back to digging. -Okay.
-ALEX: Let's get started. -Okay.
NARRATOR: The following morning...
CHARLES: Hey, Roger.
-ROGER: Hey, Charles. -I hear you're getting close to the bottom.
Yep. And, uh, we've got a bit of a problem.
-It's something that we weren't anticipating on. -Okay.
NARRATOR: ...Charles Barkhouse arrives in the Money Pit area
after being alerted of a concerning issue
regarding the reconstruction of the Garden Shaft
at a depth of some 78 feet,
just four feet from the bottom of the structure.
The timber, as you can see on the picture here,
is bowed out pretty bad,
and the main timber on the end plate is actually cracked.
Ah.
ROGER: Here is our main timber.
Rodney, right now, is shining his light exactly
-on the crack where the timber is. -Wow.
So, at one time, there was a lot of pressure
-on that timber. -Yeah.
NARRATOR: Is it possible
that the fracture in the original shaft
is related to the tunnel that is believed to run below it
at a depth of some 95 feet?
A tunnel that originates from the nearby Baby Blob,
or believed treasure zone?
ROGER: When we first identified this crack, we stopped all work.
The best thing to do, safety-wise, is to install
this next set just above this one here,
secure everything real nice and tight,
-and then we can remove this damaged set... -Yeah.
...and then brace that damaged set
real tight with another timber just below the other one.
NARRATOR: Although the team from Dumas
will be able to secure the new section, or set,
of the Garden Shaft
to ensure that the structure won't collapse,
unfortunately, it means they will be delayed
in finding out what lies at the bottom
or in the tunnel that runs just several feet beneath it.
RICK: This project is now delayed by weeks.
They're doing everything they can,
but time and weather close in.
We all want answers, but at the end of the day,
the prime directive is, as we, uh,
do with every enterprise across the island: safety first.
ROGER: Well, the positive thing about this is you're gonna have
one big solid shaft now...
-Yeah. -...to the bottom of 82 feet.
Well, you know, Rick often says that, uh, no treasure
is worth somebody getting hurt.
-I agree. -I'm gonna let you get back to work.
I got a couple things to take care of,
but I'll check in with you later.
Sounds good, Charles.
CHARLES: Okay, Thank you.
NARRATOR: While operations continue in the Money Pit area...
RICK: So, everybody knows the ongoing efforts
we have made,
making the information hunt every bit as important
as the treasure hunt.
NARRATOR: ...Rick, Marty, Craig
and other members of the team meet once again
with Italian researcher Emiliano Sacchetti
via video conference in the war room.
RICK: And so, to that end today,
Emiliano Sacchetti has come up
with some intriguing information.
It was not unlikely
that Templars brought back relics from the-the Holy Land.
NARRATOR: One week ago, Emiliano shared research
supporting the theory of the late Zena Halpern
that members of the Knights Templar
made repeated visits to Oak Island
between the 12th and 14th centuries
in order to hide priceless religious treasures
from Italy and other European nations.
Doug is head of the research committee.
NARRATOR: Now, after conferring with Oak Island historian Doug Crowell,
and conducting follow-up research in Italy himself,
Emiliano has prepared what he believes
will be an even more astonishing presentation.
EMILIANO (over video): I actually just finished
some scouting, and I'd like to start
from a-a little town which is close to Osimo,
in the northeast of Rome,
and on the-the Adriatic coast of Italy,
uh, where I found a-a very interesting
underground cave system.
That cave system was used
by the Romans, and in medieval times,
also by the Templars.
I found some really interesting symbolism.
Yeah, Steve's got a picture of it, actually.
It-it's pretty amazing.
STEVE: You want me to share that, Doug?
DOUG: Yes, please.
-MARTY: Look at that, Gary. -SCOTT: Oh wow.
-MARTY: There it is. -GARY: Yeah.
DOUG: It has a cave as part of its system
that looks a whole lot like our lead cross.
-GARY: What a spitting image,
-isn't it? -(chuckles): It is.
EMILIANO: That cave system,
uh, it's really impressive.
NARRATOR: In the war room,
Italian researcher Emiliano Sacchetti
and Doug Crowell have just informed Rick,
Marty, Craig and members of the team
that a man-made cave system near Osimo, Italy,
which was used by members of the Knights Templar
between the 12th and 14th centuries,
matches the exact design of the 14th-century lead cross
that was found on Oak Island back in 2017.
It's pretty amazing how close they match.
Tell me about it. Who'd have thunk it, eh?
Yeah. The head's offset.
RICK: Yep. And the arms are even disproportionate a bit...
-Yeah. -...just like the cross.
MARTY: Well, you know what?
We have information that ties that shape to Templars
-because of your trip to France. -Yeah.
RICK: We've found representations
of the cross in Domme prison.
So to find this cave system from so long ago,
it's remarkable.
They are certainly very similar.
To me, that's very interesting, because the Templars
might be associated with the work here.
I think there's a lot to be learned.
DOUG: Now, the interesting thing about this
-is everything colored there... -MARTY: Mm-hmm.
...is part of the cave system,
I think, that's, uh, accessible right now.
Wow, they were, they were busy, weren't they?
Yeah. There are, there are literally miles and miles
of caves under this town.
ALEX: Well, I think this
-is worth investigating. -MARTY: Oh, for sure.
MARTY: What about that coin, that Roman coin?
Could you find somebody over there that could verify that?
-Yep. -EMILIANO: I can definitely try
-and, uh, make arrangements. -MARTY: Perfect.
And not just a Roman coin,
we've got that serrated lead disc.
-Whatever that is. -Which... Yeah.
There's quite a few things you could take to Italy.
RICK: Oh, absolutely. I mean,
everybody around the table is
articulating that, you know, a field trip
is-is worthwhile, and I know you would like to go to Italy.
I would, but I was thinking,
I already got to go into one cave system this year,
so, you know, I would gracefully say
I could hold the fort down here while you go.
Somebody has to, right? We got a lot going on here.
We've got a lot going on.
-I'm gonna ask you if I can... -(laughter)
...if I can, if I can take your son with me.
You don't need to ask, apparently.
While we're delayed on the Garden Shaft,
we need to be moving forward
on everything else we can move forward on.
And for Rick,
I think Italy is a prime candidate
to continue this search in Europe.
Peter, would you be interested?
Oh, yeah. I'm in.
MARTY: Every time we've sent an expedition
to Portugal, France, England, Scotland,
any of those places, we've come back with-with data
that sure appears to be relevant to Oak Island.
I-I think maybe we should reach out to Corjan Mol as well.
I know he has some research he's been conducting in Italy.
MARTY: I agree.
-Let's, uh, let's do that. -(taps table)
RICK: Well, then I think, look, I think we're all in.
Perfect. I'll start making arrangements.
Well, we'll see you sooner rather than later,
so I guess for right now we'll say ciao.
-EMILIANO: See you soon. God bless. -Perfect.
-RICK: Ciao. -Bye, everybody.
GARY: It sounds like all roads lead to Rome
-and Oak Island. -(laughter)
NARRATOR: For the Laginas and their team,
the quest to solve the 228-year-old Oak Island mystery
is once again leading them
thousands of miles across the ocean.
Will their journey culminate in a revelation
that finally proves just who visited Oak Island
centuries ago?
While the team scours ancient sites
and archives for the clues,
the digs on the island will continue
in order to find what those visitors may have buried
deep underground.
Next time on The Curse of Oak Island...
CHARLES: We're getting gold and silver signatures.
This is where the real Money Pit could be.
-Absolutely. -EMILIANO: Welcome to Italy.
RICK: We're looking for a possible Templar
-connection to Oak Island. -Oh, Rick, have a look at this.
-CORJAN: Oh, look at that. -Oh, wow. -Fantastic.
We're at the bottom where the timber stop.
So we're about to boldly go where no one's gone before.
RICK: There is a direct connection to Nolan's Cross.
This is a very real Templar connection here.
That's amazing.
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