Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade might have cheekily told us that “X” marks the spot, but in modern treasure hunting, the biggest of treasures can be located deep under treacherous seas and often involves multiple governments, little-invoked legalities and quick and furtive actions!
So begins the early 2007 real-life tale of American treasure seekers, Odyssey Marine Exploration and their Black Swan Project. Its’ purpose was to seek out, recover and make their own, the greatest undersea treasure find in human history: US$500 million worth of historic gold and silver.
The only problem? It wasn’t theirs to take.
Let’s go back to the very early nineteenth century and the Spanish frigate, Nuestra Senora de Las Mercedes, sailing home from Montevideo, Uruguay, to Andalusia, Spain. On October 5, 1804, in an inspection dispute between Captains and countries, the ship was fired upon by the English Royal Navy vessel, HMS Amphion and, with a single shot, was sunk off the coast of Portugal.
250 Spanish crewmen were lost, along with the entirety of the ship’s rich cargo.
Co-written by award-winning Spanish cartoonist Paco Roca (Valencia, 1969) and Guillermo Corral (who was a Spanish government representative embroiled in the battle for the Nuestra Senora de Las Mercedes treasure) and also illustrated by Roca, The Treasure of the Black Swan is the English-language translation of the riveting graphic novel, originally published a few years ago, now brought to North American audiences, courtesy of Fantagraphics Books.
The 224-page hardcover graphic novel details the story of the deep-pocketed and powerfully-connected American deep-sea treasure hunters, their famed discovery and their attempts to seize the treasure as their own while pitted against a small-but-resolute group of Spanish diplomats motivated to return the cultural artefacts and bounty back to Spain.
The Treasure of the Black Swan is a fascinating high seas, high stakes adventure that is steeped in real life drama, both above and below the waves, as well as in the political and legal circles between two opposed and unyielding countries. Here, the nearly unbelievable true story of immense wealth in the form of gold and silver coins – along with a country’s cultural heritage – hangs in the balance.
So compelling is this story that AMC created a six-part miniseries called La Fortuna, based on the Roca and Corral graphic novel, starring the always amazing Stanley Tucci. You can catch the trailer for the series directly below.
In the meantime, make the run to your local comic book shop or better bookstore today and pick up the incredible booty that is The Treasure of the Black Swan hardcover graphic novel!
