Narrator: Tonight on the curse of oak
Terry: There's something going on in the garden shaft.
-Oh, yeah, there we go. -We got something right there.
-Oh, my god. -Oh, wow, look.
-What do you make of that? -That's very odd.
Gary: This is what I'd class as treasure.
Sandy: The roughness here.
It's 500 years old, at least.
-Phew -wow.
There's a canadian mining company,
They could come in and open up in the garden shaft.
Are we going to be able to actually go underground
-In that shaft? -Yep.
-Rick: That's fantastic. -Marty: Brilliant.
(chuckling)
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.
♪ ♪
Alex: Guys.
-Hey, alex. -How's it going? -How you doing?
Narrator: An exciting new day has begun on oak island
For brothers rick and marty lagina and their team
As they continue a quest to solve
A 227-year-old treasure mystery.
What's this one?
Steve g.: So, we're currently right here.
The borehole is called a.5n-13.5.
-Okay. -The water testing,
It is all pointing us to this area.
Terry: Further to that, we're looking to find
Tunnels in this area
As related to or associated with
-The garden shaft. -Right.
What are we at here?
Terry: We are at above 18 feet.
Because we are still relatively shallow.
Narrator: Today, they are drilling a new borehole
In the fabled money pit area,
Attempting to penetrate a five-foot-tall wooden tunnel,
Some 103 feet deep, which they first discovered two weeks ago.
-Gary: Oh, wow. -Marty: Whoa!
-That's a tunnel, all right. -That's really cool.
This is a previously unknown perhaps depositor-- tunnel.
That is really exciting.
Narrator: A subsequent sonar operation revealed
That the tunnel is heading north
Toward a mysterious structure known as the garden shaft.
A shaft that has been carbon- dated to the early 18th century
And where recent water testing has indicated
High-trace evidence of gold deep underground.
We don't know what the garden shaft is.
We have gold showing up in the water.
So it has turned out to be perhaps significant.
Whether it's gonna lead us to the treasure or not,
We're going to have to see.
Of course, your mind races to, you know,
This could be part of the original depositional work.
I still want the "what happened," I still want
Those last few paragraphs, and I think
We're on the cusp of writing that.
Alex: I'm looking forward to seeing what this hole brings.
Terry: Okay, we'll try and keep you up to date.
Alex: Cool, thanks, guys.
-Bye, now. -See you, alex.
Narrator: As the core-drilling operation continues at the money pit...
Rick: There he is.
...Rick lagina and billy gerhardt
Meet with renowned gemologist
And jewelry expert peter schneirla
At the research center.
Rick: Welcome to oak island, peter, I'm rick.
How do you do? Pete schneirla.
We have an interesting object inside.
Come on in, we'd love for you
-To take a look at this. -Great.
Narrator: With peter's more than 40 years
Of experience working with such organizations
As tiffany & company, de beers,
And the smithsonian institute...
Well, mate. Gary drayton, mate.
...It is the team's hope
That he can identify the piece of potential jewelry
That gary drayton and jack begley found one week ago.
We have got an old head-scratcher here.
I'm pretty sure it's old.
I don't know what the stone is,
But the setting looks old.
It's really unusual.
Just so out of place as well, where we found it.
It was in the middle of a wooded lot.
-Mm-hmm. -And I'm hoping you can
Shed some light on it, mate.
-Right here, mate. -Thank you.
Interesting.
There's a good start, "interesting" on oak island.
Narrator: What makes this artifact
So intriguing is that it was found on lot 7,
Near the border of lot 8 on the western side of the island.
It is in this area where the team discovered
A semi-precious garnet gemstone five years ago
That some believe may be connected
To sacred treasures of the knights templar.
And just this year, it is where they also discovered
A bunk hook designed for lifting heavy cargo,
As well as a possible coin
Potentially predating the 16th century.
You know, the first thing that strikes me
Is that it's a ferrous metal around the adornment item.
And this lip coming over the edge, that might indicate
A little hinged something or cover to it, perhaps.
Yeah, that's what piqued my interest as well,
Because that so reminds me of an old-style setting.
Schneirla: Yeah, so, I would have to think
That it's some kind of a pin.
Yep.
The material is glass.
Hmm.
I don't know whether that's
On a metal backing, which is known as a foil back,
Or there's actually
A colorant on the back of the cab itself.
But, you know,
Glass has been used as an imitation of gemstones
Since the roman times.
The other thing that I will mention is that,
Having looked at a lot of jewelry from all periods,
From all over the world, I've never seen a mounting like that.
It's definitely not usa.
What you're telling us is absolutely, bloody fantastic.
This has got an old feel about it.
-Yeah. -Yeah.
Narrator: Using the fisherbrand 425 series microscope,
Peter will be able to magnify the artifact
Up to 50 times its actual size.
Gary: Cool, that really is a bobby-dazzler.
Yeah, I mean, we're in blue heaven.
-I mean, this is gorgeous. -Beautiful.
So, if you look at that dark, round sphere
Up there in the two o'clock position,
You can see that's an air bubble, gas bubble.
Which does not occur in any gem material,
Except for amber and only on rare occasion.
So, that's another
Indicator that it's glass.
Rick: So, we come to the
Indelicate part of... Aging it.
Can you infer anything?
I can infer that the metal
Seems like it's a pretty
Non-evolved alloy,
-If you know what I'm saying. -Yup.
Schneirla: That style of pin
Was common back to the, you know,
1700s or earlier.
Narrator: A potentially ancient cloak pin?
Gary: Oh, my gosh!
It's another bobby-dazzler, look!
Narrator: In 2018,
While searching on lot 21, also located on the western side
Of the island,
Rick and gary found a decorative brooch
Featuring a glass stone.
So, definitive glass but
Also definitive hand-made, not modern.
Narrator: And when gemologist charles lewton-brain
Inspected it, the team was stunned by his analysis.
When you say "not modern..."
Lewton-brain: Well, glass gems
Have been around at least 500 years.
This is not your ordinary
Old brooch found in the ground.
That is a super ancient way of making wire.
Narrator: Could this artifact found on lot 7
Be related to the other pieces of ancient jewelry
That have been discovered on the western side of the island?
If so, what else might be there
Just waiting to be unearthed?
Rick: Well, from that you can infer,
Why would someone be wandering around with
An item such as this
On the western drumlin? It makes no sense.
Unless...
...There was a specific purpose
To be on the western drumlin.
Schneirla: It's a very, very exciting piece,
And as an imitation-colored gemstone, this is magnificent.
That's most unusual,
So, congratulations on finding it.
There's got to be some more gems there with it.
It's got to have friends.
And with a bit of luck we'll have you on speed dial, mate.
Because we are going to be finding some more.
-I would love that. -(laughs)
-Rick: Pleasure to meet you. -Schneirla: My pleasure.
Narrator: Later that afternoon...
-Hey, guys. -Hello, gents!
-Gentlemen. -Here we are.
-Checking in again. -Yeah.
...Rick, marty, and their business partner
Craig tester arrive at the money pit
To check on the progress
Of the core-drilling operation.
How deep are we?
48's right there in front of us,
But nothing was expected.
-Undisturbed stuff, right? -Yeah, stuff.
Marty: What will this core bring us to?
48 to 58, it should be.
-Another ten foot. -Excuse me, gentlemen.
-How deep? -Thank you.
That'd be a 55.
-55? -Yeah.
So, right at 55 is, like,
The bottom dropped right out of her.
-Really? -So you, so you stopped?
Craig: Super soft or hollow, completely?
It felt hollow.
Rick: Definitely a void.
Yeah.
Oh, baby!
Terry: I really think we're close to something.
Marty: Great!
Tedford: Bottom dropped right out of it.
Might be a void down there.
Colten: The resistance just dropped out of nowhere,
Then we pulled it out.
Narrator: In the money pit area,
While attempting to once again penetrate a man-made tunnel
Some 103 feet underground,
The oak island team has just drilled into a large void
At a much shallower depth of just 55 feet.
Tedford: It felt hollow, so I have to keep going.
Terry: Thanks, mike!
That's interesting.
The plot thickens, but, of course,
The tale is going to be told with what comes next.
We'll know something right here.
Marty: I find this cavity most interesting,
Because it's well above the bedrock.
All right!
Marty: It could have been created.
-Here we go. -Got her?
So, we need to explore this thing.
Terry: It's an anaconda for sure.
How deep are we?
Uh, stopped at 85.
-So, we cut 30 feet. -Yep.
How much do you think we're missing
Out of that last 30 feet?
I'd say approximately ten feet.
So, we've got a huge open section, right?
Oh, yeah.
Terry: That doesn't just happen.
Something has happened down there.
Rick: They have encountered a ten-foot void
At an elevation that's shallower
Than previous discoveries, so it obviously
Makes this area, the garden shaft area,
That much more intriguing.
So, we're gonna try and get a water sample out of this, craig?
-I think we should. -Yeah.
Rick: The hope is that we can determine
Whether it was natural or man-made.
Steve g.: Last year, do you remember we had
The air pocket hole in ab-13?
-Yeah. -It happened at 60 feet.
We start at 55, that just means there's potentially
Some connectivity in this range.
(drill rumbling)
Whoa!
Holy cow!
We've never seen that before.
Narrator: One year ago, as the team drilled just
Three feet west of this location,
At nearly the same depth,
Massive amounts of air suddenly rushed to the surface,
As if the seal to a pressurized cavern had been broken.
I'd say we're close to something.
This could be the indication of an offset chamber.
I mean, you know, I don't know what else would be
At 55 feet.
You've always been a proponent of that.
I have been, yeah.
Narrator: It has long been a suspicion of marty's
That whoever constructed the booby-trapped money pit
May have also built a tunnel
That leads to a chamber in dry ground,
Where the fabled treasure is contained.
Is it possible
That the team has just discovered
More evidence that this could be true?
Marty: I think the offset chamber theory is the only thing,
Really, that makes sense.
If somebody wanted to hide something where
Nobody would get it, they would've dug this deep
Illusion hole, for lack of a better word.
But the real treasure would be offset somewhere.
To my knowledge,
That's the shallowest we've seen anything
That seems to be a void.
And that cavity could be connected to the garden shaft.
Rick: You know,
It certainly continues
To provide a reason to be
Excited about finding the tunnel and figuring out
What's going on down below.
We just have to keep plugging away.
Narrator: Later that afternoon...
Gary: Do I have to tell you how great lot 8 has been to us?
There is a sea of flags in here.
...Gary drayton and jack begley return to lot 8
On the island's western drumlin.
That area where we found the brooch
And the cloak pin.
Just over there, mate.
It might just be that lot 8 was some sort of area
Of activity for some reason.
So, let's get stuck in!
Yeah, let's go!
Narrator: Following peter schneirla's analysis
Of the potentially ancient cloak pin
That was found nearby on lot 7,
Gary and jack are hoping to uncover more clues
To help identify just who
May have visited this area long ago
And if anything of great value was left behind.
-(metal detector beeping) -nice one.
Just there, mate.
(grunts)
♪ ♪
Thank you, sir.
(beeping)
Oh, still singing.
Oh!
So, it's in me hand.
Folded piece of copper, maybe?
Oh, it's definitely copper.
Very unusual, obviously two parts
-Of the same thing. -Mm-hmm.
What stands out, it's not really
Heavy-duty, is it?
But it's been used to crimp
Over a material.
I'm just trying to think of what that material is
Inside there.
It's soft.
I feel like it's some sort of a parchment
Or paper.
Very interesting, mate.
Narrator: A possible copper parchment scroll?
In 1897, treasure hunters frederick blair
And william chappell drilled into what they described
As a seven-foot-high vault
At a depth of 153 feet in the money pit.
Upon extracting their drill bit,
They were astonished to find traces of gold
And a small piece of parchment
With the letters "vi" written on it.
This discovery made some believe
That the oak island treasure
May consist of not only precious metals
But also sacred historical documents.
Could this believed parchment scroll found on lot 8
Be related to the other pre-16th century discoveries
The team has made in the area?
And if so, might it represent another critical clue
That may help solve the oak island mystery?
We haven't found anything like this before.
No, I like different, mate, and this is different.
This has got an old feel about it, as well.
And the ct scanner
Will tell us the story of this find.
It could be something very important.
I'm going to be careful
With this, put it in the bag.
With all the finds that we recovered on lot 8,
What that tells me is, this far away from the money pit,
There was some pretty interesting activity.
Let's keep moving.
Next flags are over here.
And this has given me hope
That this area would have been used
To bury treasure.
All right, see what this one says.
-(beeping) -here we go.
(beeping)
Oh, that's sexy.
Just there.
(beep)
(jack grunts)
Gary: Right, this is gonna be a good find, mate, I can feel it.
See if you got it out.
(beeping)
Yeah, all right!
It's out.
-Come on! -(beeping continues)
-(rapid beeping) -just there, oh!
Wow, look at this!
Jack: Is that iron?
Gary: It looks like iron,
But it might not be iron.
It might be something different.
Narrator: On lot 8, on the western side of oak island,
Gary drayton and jack begley have just found
A potentially important clue.
It's got that curve on it.
Maybe a bell.
-I mean, bells were curved. -Oh, I hadn't thought of that.
Yeah, the other bell metal.
Gary: That bell metal that we found on lot 4.
Jack: We'll have to have it tested.
Even though it's bell metal,
It could be used for other things.
Yep.
Narrator: After the team found a fragment of bell metal
One year ago on lot 4...
I would say it's older, yeah.
...Scientific analysis performed
By dr. Christa brosseau suggested it may be
An important clue to help identify
Who may have visited oak island prior to
The discovery of the money pit.
You'll see at the last sentence there,
It says, "bell metal was used to construct
Early cannons by the spanish and portuguese."
Yeah.
Narrator: Later in the year,
Rick, doug and members of the team
Traveled to portugal to investigate a number
Of locations that once served
As strongholds for the portuguese sect
Of the knights templar
Between the 12th and 16th centuries.
There, they were shown
A number of fascinating clues possibly
Connecting the templars to the oak island mystery.
-Oh, wow. -That's impressive.
Narrator: These included a carving
That matched one reportedly found
On the legendary 90 foot stone,
A stone road that was nearly identical
To the one the team discovered in the swamp...
...And a 15th century cannon that matched
The caliber of a believed portuguese stone shot
That was unearthed in the money pit two years ago.
Oh, look at that.
How cool would that be?
If this is bell metal and it matches that bell metal
That we found on lot 4?
It'd be a great connection between lot 8
-And lot 4. -Yeah.
Narrator: Is it possible that gary and jack have just found
More evidence that the origins
Of the oak island mystery could be linked
To the portuguese sect of the knights templar?
Okay, I'm going to bag it.
Maybe this is it.
-Yeah. -And we'll put that there.
Okay, let's go.
Narrator: The following day,
As the team continues
Drilling in the money pit area...
This is that, kind of, a destroyed, bedded clay,
Really, right here.
Seddon: This looks good.
Perfect.
Narrator: ...Jack begley arrives on lot 32, west of the swamp
Along with geophysical scanning experts robert seddon
And keith hollender of phoenix aerial production.
In the wake of numerous ancient artifacts,
As well as the stone road and pathways that the team
Have unearthed over the last two years...
So, we're on lot 32 right now.
...Rick, marty and craig
Have commissioned robert and keith to
Conduct an island-wide lidar scan
To look for other features
That could help solve the 227-year-old mystery.
Now, if there's a structure or trail,
You guys should be able to pick up on that
-With your lidar, right? -Right, definitely.
So, the lidar will be able to create the scan,
See if there's any hidden trails,
Any cobblestone trails, that's underneath all this foliage.
It'll pick up anomalies, metal underneath the ground.
We'll be able to tell if there's metal,
What types of metal they are, and be able to map that out.
That seems like exactly the type of technology
We need because hopefully it can lead us
To a trail or area that we can search
With the metal detector and recover more artifacts.
-Great. -Let's get started.
-Robert: Sounds good. -Keith: Great.
Narrator: Commonly used in archaeological and geographical surveys,
Light detection and ranging, or lidar,
Is a scanning technology that emits rapid
Laser pulses, which reflect off the ground.
The collected data is then used to generate a 3d model
Of the area, revealing potential man-made features
Not visible to the naked eye,
As well as objects and structures
That lie buried near the surface.
Okay, guys, I got the map uploaded to the drone.
It's gonna create a grid.
We're ready to take off and let it do its thing.
Okay, we'll stand back.
Stand back and we'll get going.
Rick: The objective is that we can connect
A road-like feature to a...
"x" marks the spot location, whether that be in the money pit
Or a currently unknown location.
It's about trying to understand a very complex mystery,
And these unique features might have something
To do with unraveling the totality of the mystery.
♪ ♪
It looks like you're scanning not just one lot but
30, 31, and 32 right now.
-Robert: Correct. -Keith: It's exactly right.
-Mm-hmm. -The more data that we can get, the better.
So, it looks like it's just about done, so
Now the drone's going to come home.
Jack: Great.
♪ ♪
So, now that we've landed, can we look at the data?
Well, we have to take it back and process it,
And then we can see the full picture of what we have.
Why don't we go to a couple other spots
And then we can get some more data?
Yeah, let's go for it.
-Sounds great. -Let's keep going.
Narrator: As jack, robert, and keith
Continue scanning the western side of the island,
Back at the money pit...
Terry: Could be an interesting day on the island.
Narrator: ...Geologist terry matheson,
Surveyor steve guptill,
And oak island historian paul troutman
Continue monitoring the core-drilling operation
In borehole a.5n-13.5.
Since encountering a mysterious ten-foot void
At a depth of 55 feet just one day ago,
The team has decided
To keep drilling below the 100-foot level
In the hopes of once again encountering
The wooden tunnel that may be heading
Toward the nearby garden shaft.
Hey, colten, what do you got there?
This is gonna be 108.
108, okay.
Excuse me.
So, I'm just carving this up,
Carving the turkey up here, see what we got.
It still looks pretty loose, terry.
Yeah, well it's loose right there, but then
It seems to stiffen up here.
I don't see any wood.
It's firm at the top... And then loose.
Yeah, this is all really loose.
You know, it's been disturbed.
Yeah, it's somewhat disturbed.
Everything is loose,
And that's what happens when
You're close to a structure.
I wish I had definitive evidence,
I wish I had a couple chunks of wood in here.
-Yeah. -Then you're gonna know.
The proof is in the drilling, I'd say.
♪ ♪
(machine whirring)
Hey, guys!
Check out the garden shaft!
♪ ♪
Yeah, look at that.
Tedford: Bubbles.
-Paul: Wow, look at that. -Steve g.: Oh, wow, look.
It's bubbling really good, actually.
Paul: Oh, my god.
♪ ♪
Steve g.: Oh, wow, look.
Paul: Yes, we have air bubbles.
It's bubbling really good, actually.
Paul: Yeah, it's a steady stream too.
Narrator: In the money pit area,
While drilling at a depth of some
108 feet, where they have found evidence
Of a possible structure, or tunnel,
The oak island team has just noticed
Mysterious bubbling in the water
That fills the nearby garden shaft.
So, terry, yes, there are indeed
Air bubbles in the garden.
-Okay. -On the right-hand side.
Right next to where a rock is, actually.
Terry: So, we're transmitting pressure as they case forward
From the drill rig, along that
Tunnel over into the garden shaft?
-Yes. -Yep.
Narrator: Is it possible that the team has found evidence
That the tunnel, first encountered two weeks ago,
Is, in fact, connected to the garden shaft?
And perhaps also the large source of gold
That they recently detected deep underground in the area?
Steve g.: We know there's a tunneling system
Under there that may connect
To the garden shaft.
And that's really exciting for us
Because we could potentially tunnel to the treasure.
Okay.
I sent the guys a text, let them know
What's going on in this hole.
Super, that's perfect.
Paul: We should go get the samples
For the water and the air bubbles in
The garden, steve, so we have a collection here.
We'll take a look.
Narrator: In the hopes of obtaining more evidence
Of precious metals from deep underground
Near the garden shaft, paul and steve collect
A water sample that will be analyzed
By geoscientist dr. Ian spooner.
-Well? -Hey, marty, hey, rick.
-How are you doing? -What's up?
For right now, we've got really
Interesting outcomes, very close to
The garden shaft.
Down as far as 108 is very loose.
No wood, but, I mean, that level of disruption
Or disturbance tells me that we might
Be close to a structure.
Paul: Yes, there was air bubbles about 108 to 115.
We actually started seeing air bubbles
In the front and the back of this rock
That's on the right-hand side of the garden.
So, interesting.
Marty: Bubbles in the pond over here?
-Bubbles in the garden. -Terry: In the garden shaft.
-In the garden pond. -Yeah.
-What do you make of that? -I don't know, that's very odd.
Rick: We were surprised to see the air escape from
The area of the garden shaft.
But excited about it for one simple reason:
It means there's a void or voids down there.
Possibly a tunnel connected to the garden shaft,
And we need to devise some sort of plan where
We can explore that area.
This area in particular, probably more than any
Other area over the last ten years,
This is probably the most interesting.
-Agreed. -Yeah.
Marty: Here's what I think.
You got to keep on keeping on.
All right, we'll keep at it.
Marty: Keep going, guys.
Rick: Thanks, everybody.
Terry: Take care now.
Narrator: Later that afternoon...
As jack begley continues to monitor
The lidar operation on the western side of the island...
Keith: So, you can see the idea of the smaller overlaps.
Jack: Yeah.
Gary: Always good to see you, sandy.
Thanks for coming out, mate.
Narrator: ...Gary drayton and charles barkhouse
Meet with sandy campbell, a renowned numismatist
With over 40 years of experience
Identifying and analyzing
Rare and ancient coins.
Jack and I found a really interesting artifact.
What looks like a piece of copper.
And the metals came back as, like, an older mix.
So, we're hoping you can shed some light on this artifact,
And I'm hoping it's a coin.
-Okay, let's have a look. -Okay.
Narrator: Sandy has been asked to inspect the mysterious
Copper artifact found two weeks ago on lot 7,
Which archaeologist emma culligan believes
Could date back to the 16th century or earlier.
Sandy: It's not a traditional shape,
But anything is possible.
I'm not seeing any detail at all.
And it's tapered.
Gary: Yeah.
Sandy: Usually, a tell-tale that it's, you know,
Probably not a coin.
It could be a barter piece, it could be...
Do you mean like a, like a trade token type thing?
Well, I mean, anything made out of metal
Was used for barter, right?
-Yeah. -And that's where coins
Derived from, you know, producing, you know,
Something that was easily transferred
That was made out of copper, silver, or gold.
This would be no different.
Let's weigh it and see where it fits in on a scale.
If it was some kind of trade piece,
What would be the weight on it?
It'll be in increments of grams, normally,
So...
And this piece is four grams right on the button.
What's unusual is, you know,
It's sort of an exact weight of four grams.
And it's very puzzling,
The way the edges are done on this.
Someone took a lot of time,
Probably, making that four grams, and it's...
Yeah, I mean, potentially,
It is, you know, potentially
A barter piece that would have
Value for that amount of copper at the time, right?
So, it would have monetary value.
Gary: How old is it?
It's 500 years old, at least.
Wow.
To date it more accurately would be really tough,
But because of the composition, it's definitely
That period or earlier.
It's absolutely brilliant news, mate.
-I mean, this is fantastic. -Yeah.
Charles: When you mentioned, you know, the 1500s,
My mind immediately went to the portuguese.
I mean, they were incredible seafarers.
They went all over the world.
Oh, yeah, yeah.
Narrator: A possible barter token
Dating back 500 years or more?
If so, could it be connected
To the other ancient discoveries the team
Has made on the western side of the island?
Such as the bunk hook
Designed for hoisting heavy cargo?
Or the fragments of bell metal,
Which may also be of portuguese origin?
It's very unusual, and I think,
You know, more research is needed.
Definitely, and I'm going to share this news with the guys.
They'll want to hear this.
-Thank you so much. -Sandy: All right.
-Great to see you, gary. -Gary: And you, mate.
-See you again. -All right.
Rick: I think we need to find a different way
To figure out what's happening underground in the money pit.
There is a suspicion that there is a tunnel
Underneath the garden shaft-- hey!
Hi, good, you're all here.
Narrator: In the oak island research center,
As rick, marty, craig, and other members of the team
Meet regarding next steps for potentially investigating
The garden shaft in the money pit area,
They are joined by gary drayton and charles barkhouse.
Marty: Gary, what's with the grin, buddy?
Some great news from sandy campbell,
The coin expert.
It was about this artifact
That jack and I recovered on lot 7.
It's arsenical bronze.
I was adamant it was some kind of coin.
Now, it isn't a coin,
But I'm definitely not disappointed,
Because according to sandy,
It's a trade or a barter piece.
Pass that around, mate.
The weight on it is four grams,
So it'd have been used like currency.
-It's a trade piece, though. -Yep.
Marty: It's coin-like.
It's just not government issued, right?
It would have been some merchant or something.
Gary: Yep.
Arsenic, that's an older method.
That mixture went out of style in the early 1500s.
Doug: The archaeological record shows that it was
Used as far back as the fifth millennium bc.
(chuckles)
So, it's either old or it's really old.
I'm, like, gobsmacked now.
Marty: But I like your comment, doug.
It's either old or really, really old.
Doug: The question is, what is it doing here?
-That's what we still have to find out. -Yep.
Rick: I'm amazed at this date.
Could one infer that
Templars or some other entity or persons
May have come long ago to do some work on oak island?
It's possible.
Does the timeline allow for that to have happened?
Certainly, it does.
The hope is that we can find more of this type of item.
This is a really cool piece.
Concrete evidence of an ancient artifact here on this island.
Well done-- but there is something
We want to tell you, because it's a little bit
Romantic in a sense, about what we might do this year.
-You'll like it. -You'll like it a lot, charles.
Doug, why don't you take this over here?
Yeah, there's a canadian mining company by the name of dumas.
We've been in initial discussions with them.
And they believe that they could come in
And open up and repair the garden shaft for us.
-Gary: Wow. -Charles: Wow.
Marty: We're gonna re-crib the garden shaft for all kinds
Of reasons-- because of the gold in the water,
Because of the air bubbles.
We don't know what the garden shaft is.
It's just mysterious, it's enigmatic.
It could be the location
Of the original money pit lost to all the searchers.
So, it needs to be understood better.
-How cool would that be? -That's exciting.
You gave us a wow, we just gave you a wow.
That was a big-- that's a big wow.
Well, we're not sure yet, right?
Doug: No, it's preliminary.
They're willing to meet with us
As early as tomorrow to discuss
Taking this project forward.
We're here.
-Okay, we'll set it up. -Set it up.
That's good enough for me for one day, let's go.
♪ ♪
Narrator: The following morning...
Rick: I think we're all really excited
About the garden shaft.
Craig, why the garden shaft?
What interests you about it?
The water sample had gold in it.
-Yeah, let's not forget that. -(laughs)
Narrator: ...Rick, marty, craig, and other members of the team
Have gathered in the war room for their highly
Anticipated meeting regarding a new method
To search for answers deep in the money pit area.
Rick: Doug reached out to a company called dumas.
Well, today, their team is going to meet with us.
Steve, if you can get them up.
(all exchange greetings)
Cameron: Thank you to everyone
For the ability to present
Dumas's vision
And means and methods for
The garden shaft rehabilitation project.
We're just very happy to be here today.
Narrator: Based in timmons, ontario, canada,
Dumas contracting limited is one of the leading mine shaft
Construction and engineering companies in north america.
Cameron: My name is cameron carter.
I'm the vice president of engineering
And business development for dumas contracting limited.
Joining me today is mr. Tony linton.
Tony linton is our in-house, shaft-sinking technical expert,
With our operational team in timmons joining us.
I do have a presentation that might
Help to illustrate that methodology.
First, there is an existing
Ten-by-ten wood-grip shaft to approximately
77 and a half feet depth.
The objective here is to refurbish this shaft
And make it safe for further exploration
Along the length of the shaft.
We are going to expose the shaft
Collar and build our foundation.
We will muck out the backfill from
The existing floor of the shaft.
Tony: Our intention is
To re-line the shaft
As it currently exists
In order to preserve what was there.
And then also, what we're going to do is
Injecting grout into the surrounding soils to
Slow down any water infiltration into the shaft.
Cameron: That will ensure the long-term
Stability of this shaft excavation.
Marty: Brilliant.
Cameron: We will continue to construct
The manway section
To make this shaft accessible again for personnel.
Marty: Now, wait a minute.
Are we, the fellowship members here,
Gonna be able to actually go underground
In that shaft once it's complete?
-Yep. -Marty: Wow.
This is really cool.
Marty: Are we, the fellowship members here,
Going to be able to actually go underground
In that shaft once it's complete?
-Cameron: Yep. -Marty: Brilliant.
Rick: That sounds perfect.
Narrator: In the war room,
Rick, marty, craig, and members of the team
Are meeting with representatives of
Dumas contracting limited.
So, as we descend into the garden shaft,
We can guide you and bring you
-Down into the excavation. -Okay.
Doug: I think the chance to come down and explore
That shaft is, is one of the most important things.
Yep.
Steve g.: We've encountered what we deem to be
Potential offset chambers
Or voids in the ground, so we're starting to
Collect some data for you guys
And maybe give you some targets.
Cameron: That's fantastic because we are going
To be probe drilling,
As we descend into the shaft,
To recognize and quantify where those voids exist.
Marty: Okay. All right.
Let's say we hit something, a void, whatever.
Something at, say, I don't know, 50 feet,
And we want to tunnel out from there.
Would we be able to do that?
To answer your question, marty,
We can go in any direction, at any elevation.
Okay, that's great.
Really cool.
Narrator: In order to allow members of the oak island team
To descend and explore the garden shaft,
Representatives from dumas will construct
A concrete foundation around the existing structure,
Excavate it with a massive crane and hammer grab,
And then reconstruct it with new, waterproof,
Wooden timbers down to a depth of at least
77 feet, the believed total depth of the shaft.
Cameron: The objective, again, is to rehabilitate...
Rick: The garden shaft rehab project will provide
Several unique opportunities.
You can either tunnel or expand the shaft.
You can go deeper with the shaft.
To me, it's always about
The eyes and boots approach.
And we will have a legitimate,
For the first time, eyes and boots
Approach to the money pit.
From start to finish, what's the estimated
Time to completion?
Cameron: Right now, we're forecasting
Approximately 50 days of in-the-hole
Rehabilitation work to get us
-To 77 and a half feet. -Perfect.
We've never been able to go underground
In the money pit, and yet everyone before us
For 200 and some years have been underground.
But that's an aside.
We believe that the garden shaft will supply us
With some greater understanding of the money pit,
What has been done not only in the previous 227 years
But perhaps what was done originally,
What we call the depositional phase.
Marty: The idea of rehabilitating a shaft so we can get
Underground is exciting
Because actually being there,
Actually getting down and seeing things
Is always the best, the best data.
And I think we can trace the gold in the water.
Then we can find the treasure if it's here
And figure out what exactly happened on this island.
I think that we need to get down under the ground.
-That's where I'm at. -Rick: Absolutely.
Marty: Perfect, guys.
I sense the enthusiasm, you guys are eager
To get going, that's great-- let's go find something.
-Right on. -Yeah, well, look.
Come on out and start making a shaft.
Let's go.
All right, thank you, guys.
-Marty: Thank you. -Rick: Thank you all.
Narrator: For rick, marty, craig, and the team,
The clues continue to mount,
Suggesting the truth behind
The oak island mystery is more profound
Than anyone thought possible.
Now, as they prepare for their most
Ambitious excavation ever attempted in the money pit,
Will the fabled riches finally be within their reach?
Or will the mysterious forces
That are as legendary as the treasure itself
Once again intervene?
There's only one way to find out.
It is time to dig.
♪ ♪
Narrator: Next time on the curse of oak island...
This is a lidar anomaly.
-Rick: That's incredible. -Marty: Well, let's dig it up.
Gary: Ooh, look at that!
-Laird: Looks like a handle. -Jack: To a treasure chest?
Gary: Ooh, that's fantastic!
Rick: Get us down there.
There's going to be some answers
At the bottom of that shaft.
Terry: Oh...
We clipped the edge of a beam.
This might be completely unknown.
Marty: At 70 feet, it almost
Has to be an offset chamber.
Craig: That sample came out to be
Pre-searcher time period.
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