2007年VOA标准英语-Modern Salvage Company Finds Treasure Trove at

By Steve Mort
Tampa, Florida
03 July 2007
 

An American company is in the process of determining the value of a haul of sunken treasure, thought to be the biggest ever discovered. Odyssey¹ Marine² Exploration says it is examining more than half-a-million coins from the shipwreck³ as part of a find that could net it around half a billion dollars. The bounty⁴ has sparked public interest in the controversial business of treasure hunting. Steve Mort reports for VOA from the Florida city of Tampa where Odyssey Marine Exploration is based.

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Crates of coins from the shipwreck being unloaded from a cargo airplane

The image to the left shows part of what is probably the biggest haul of shipwreck treasure ever found -- the result of a secret operation code-named "Black Swan", off the coast of Europe.

Odyssey won't reveal the identity of the ship, or even when it sank, to avoid giving clues to other treasure hunters. Odyssey will only say it went down in international waters.

In the crates are 17 tons of silver and gold coins and other valuables arriving in the U.S., destined⁶ for a secret location.

Mark Gordon

Mark Gordon, from Odyssey Marine Exploration, says an expert in 17th century coins estimated the value of the haul.  "He looked at a representative sample of the coins and in amongst the group that he saw he was able to determine that there were values ranging from $400 to $4,000 for individual coins, and the mean value of the group that he looked at was about $1,000," says Gordon.

Those crates could hold about half a billion dollars.  In the U.S., a big media splash about the "Black Swan" hoard⁷ has triggered a new fascination⁸ in pirate ships and treasure.

Eugene Holseybrook came to see a company exhibit in Tampa.  "I like it. I've actually visited some of the exhibits and find it very interesting,"  he said.

Odyssey estimates there are some three million shipwrecks⁹ worldwide. The company combs the seabed using a special underwater vessel¹⁰: operating it costs $35,000 a day.

If treasure is found, the company determines if anyone may have a claim to it -- unlikely in the case of a pirate-ship -- then petitions a U.S. court to get ownership.

Odyssey's Vice¹¹ President of Attractions, Roger Kurz, says once the court rules in favor, the bounty can be sold.  "We send our Zeus, our remotely operated vehicle, down to pick up more artifacts, then we put them into the conservation phase," says Kurz. "And if we find one, or two, or three items then we would put them in the Odyssey collection which we keep forever. If we find more than that then we put them for sale so that guests throughout the world can retain a piece of history."

Odyssey is the only publicly traded treasure-hunting company in the U.S., but the business is unpredictable. It reported a net loss of $3.8 million in the first quarter of 2007.

A coin from a shipwreck expedition

However, Executive Vice President Mark Gordon is upbeat.  "We're inventing an industry and I think we may be at the point now where maybe the oil industry was near the turn of the century. Our financials are public, anyone can look at them. We run a very episodic business -- when you have a find, and you can monetize the find, you're very profitable."

Critics, such as the Institute of Field Archaeologists, accuse private companies like Odyssey of "ransacking¹²" shipwrecks for profit. And Odyssey is in a legal wrangle¹³ with the Spanish government over the Black Swan treasure. Spain says it might be one of their galleons¹⁴ that went down in its territorial¹⁵ waters.

But Odyssey says it will press on with its work - and has even teamed up with the Walt Disney Corporation to cater¹⁶ to the public appetite for sunken treasure.

1 odyssey   

n.长途冒险旅行；一连串的冒险

参考例句：

• The march to Travnik was the final stretch of a 16-hour odyssey.去特拉夫尼克的这段路是长达16小时艰险旅行的最后一程。
• His odyssey of passion, friendship,love,and revenge was now finished.他的热情、友谊、爱情和复仇的漫长历程，到此结束了。

2 marine   

adj.海的；海生的；航海的；海事的；n.水兵

参考例句：

• Marine creatures are those which live in the sea. 海洋生物是生存在海里的生物。
• When the war broke out,he volunteered for the Marine Corps.战争爆发时，他自愿参加了海军陆战队。

3 shipwreck   

n.船舶失事，海难

参考例句：

• He walked away from the shipwreck.他船难中平安地脱险了。
• The shipwreck was a harrowing experience.那次船难是一个惨痛的经历。

4 bounty   

n.慷慨的赠予物，奖金；慷慨，大方；施与

参考例句：

• He is famous for his bounty to the poor.他因对穷人慷慨相助而出名。
• We received a bounty from the government.我们收到政府给予的一笔补助金。

5 crates   

n. 板条箱, 篓子, 旧汽车 vt. 装进纸条箱

参考例句：

• We were using crates as seats. 我们用大木箱作为座位。
• Thousands of crates compacted in a warehouse. 数以千计的板条箱堆放在仓库里。

6 destined   

adj.命中注定的；(for)以…为目的地的

参考例句：

• It was destined that they would marry.他们结婚是缘分。
• The shipment is destined for America.这批货物将运往美国。

7 hoard   

n./v.窖藏，贮存，囤积

参考例句：

• They have a hoard of food in the basement.地下室里有他们贮藏的食物。
• How many curios do you hoard in your study?你在你书房里聚藏了多少古玩？

8 fascination   

n.令人着迷的事物，魅力，迷恋

参考例句：

• He had a deep fascination with all forms of transport.他对所有的运输工具都很着迷。
• His letters have been a source of fascination to a wide audience.广大观众一直迷恋于他的来信。

9 shipwrecks   

海难，船只失事( shipwreck的名词复数 )； 沉船

参考例句：

• Shipwrecks are apropos of nothing. 船只失事总是来得出人意料。
• There are many shipwrecks in these waters. 在这些海域多海难事件。

10 vessel   

n.船舶；容器，器皿；管，导管，血管

参考例句：

• The vessel is fully loaded with cargo for Shanghai.这艘船满载货物驶往上海。
• You should put the water into a vessel.你应该把水装入容器中。

11 vice   

n.坏事；恶习；[pl.]台钳，老虎钳；adj.副的

参考例句：

• He guarded himself against vice.他避免染上坏习惯。
• They are sunk in the depth of vice.他们堕入了罪恶的深渊。

12 ransacking   

v.彻底搜查( ransack的现在分词 )；抢劫，掠夺

参考例句：

• She was ransacking the stores for Jim's present. 她正在彻底搜寻各家店铺，为吉姆买礼物。 来自英汉文学 - 欧亨利
• Ransacking the drawers of the dresser he came upon a discarded, tiny, ragged handkerchief. 他打开橱柜抽屉搜寻，找到了一块弃置的小旧手帕。 来自辞典例句

13 wrangle   

vi.争吵

参考例句：

• I don't want to get into a wrangle with the committee.我不想同委员会发生争执。
• The two countries fell out in a bitter wrangle over imports.这两个国家在有关进口问题的激烈争吵中闹翻了。

14 galleons   

n.大型帆船( galleon的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• The larger galleons made in at once for Corunna. 那些较大的西班牙帆船立即进入科普尼亚。 来自互联网
• A hundred thousand disguises, all for ten Galleons! 千万张面孔，变化无穷，只卖十个加隆！ 来自互联网

15 territorial   

adj.领土的，领地的

参考例句：

• The country is fighting to preserve its territorial integrity.该国在为保持领土的完整而进行斗争。
• They were not allowed to fish in our territorial waters.不允许他们在我国领海捕鱼。

16 cater   

vi.(for/to)满足，迎合；(for)提供饮食及服务

参考例句：

• I expect he will be able to cater for your particular needs.我预计他能满足你的特殊需要。
• Most schools cater for children of different abilities.大多数学校能够满足具有不同天资的儿童的需要。