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Archaeologists have discovered a 400-year-old shipwreck in search of the Portuguese coast and described it as a "discovery of the decade".
The ship reportedly sank near Lisbon after returning from India with spices, experts said Monday.
"From a heritage point of view, it's the discovery of the decade," said project director Jorge Freire.
"In Portugal, it's the most important discovery of all time."
The discovery was made on September 3rd (REUTERS)
The sunken ship was found on 3 September on the outskirts of Lisbon and the items on board are "very well preserved", according to Freire.
Divers who discovered the historic ship said they found spices, nine bronze cannons engraved with Portuguese coats of arms, Chinese ceramics and cowrie shells, a kind of currency to trade slaves during the colonial period.
The objects are said to be well preserved (REUTERS)
Mr. Freire and his team believe that the ship was shipwrecked between 1575 and 1625, when the spice trade between Portugal and India was at its peak.
Culture Minister Luis Mendes said: "For a long time, specialists have considered the mouth of the Tagus as a hotspot for wrecks. This discovery came to prove it.
The discovery was hailed as the discovery of the decade (REUTERS)
The wreckage was found as part of a ten-year archaeological project supported by the Cascais City Council, the Navy, the Portuguese Government and the Nova University of Lisbon.
Additional reports by Reuters
