Original subtitles

[narrator] Tonight on The Curse of Oak Island...

[Charles] We have a core, gentlemen.

[Terry] This must be the solution channel.

[Scott] That has the ability to hide treasure.

-[Charles] I got something right in here. -[pinpointer beeping]

-[Terry] Oh. There it is. -Yeah, it's there.

-[pinpointer beeping] -Ooh.

Ooh-hoo! What have we got here?!

Well done, mate.

[Isabelle] Oh, my gosh.

Laird, can you tell if this is a jewel?

-It is high-grade. -Made in the Old World?

Yep. That takes us to a whole new level.

♪ ♪

[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.

♪ ♪

[Terry] Uh, just firing up here.

[Steve] I'm pretty hopeful about this.

I think it's gonna be a good borehole.

The thing I like about this one in particular:

we're gonna hit the western side of the solution channel.

Another area where the treasure might have dropped.

[narrator] A fresh morning on Oak Island

brings renewed hope for brothers Rick and Marty Lagina

that they will soon hold in their hands the answers

to a 230-year-old mystery.

Let's face it, guys. It's very exciting, right?

The reason we're drilling this is because of the collapse.

-That's where it could've gone. -Yep.

[narrator] The team is drilling a new borehole

known as H-9.25,

located in an area where new water testing

showed more evidence that suggests the treasure may lie

some 200 feet deep in the solution channel.

It is also in this region that soil samples

are currently being tested to confirm those results.

Tell me how close we are to the key wells, RF-1, H-8.

[Steve] So, we're five feet south of H-8.

That's very close to the Chappell Shaft, then?

We are in the southwest corner of the Chappell Shaft.

-So, we're in an area I like. -Okay.

[Marty] I see lots of wood.

[narrator] In 2017,

the team dug the five-foot diameter H-8 shaft.

[Mike] We're rotating down, but every now and then, we have to

come up, clean our teeth out because of the wood, right?

[narrator] And at 170 feet, it hit a large object

that may have been the legendary Chappell Vault...

...a seven-foot-high wooden box that treasure hunters

Frederick Blair and William Chappell reportedly

drilled into back in 1897,

and extracted gold shavings,

along with a piece of parchment bearing the letters "VI."

But unfortunately, the H-8 caisson may have

pushed the possible vault somewhere deeper

and potentially into the solution channel.

Could it be possible that the precious metals

the team detected in this area came from the damaged vault?

I think the Chappells had the Money Pit correct.

They just didn't go deep enough, as we've learned, right?

Yeah, 'cause of the collapse.

And so, I'm pretty hopeful about this.

I think it could be a good borehole.

If I had to pick the most likely hole

to actually encounter some of this deeply fallen treasure,

I would think it's this.

[metallic clank]

Is he slipping?

[Marty] The biggest thing to me is that the H-8 canister

started going down on its own.

Right about the point where we were pretty excited

that we might be finding the vault, the plug just fell.

We lost all the material.

Well, that sure sounds to me like the solution channel

being able to swallow things up, including treasure.

So we're gonna see if we can find it.

You know what I'm looking for.

I want you to find an actual bit of treasure.

-That's what I want to find. -Exactly.

-And put the big boy down on it. -Yep.

Yeah, all right, guys.

Seriously, I think my work here is done.

-Yeah. -Just find me some data

and a coin would be nice.

-Sounds good, Marty. -Sound good?

-Sounds great. -See you, guys. -Okay.

[narrator] As H-9.25 descends

deeper towards the solution channel...

-[Billy] Today's the day, Gary. -[Gary] Yeah.

-We're on Oak Island. -Yep.

-The possibilities are endless. -That's right.

[narrator] ...Alex Lagina and members of the team

continue to expose a stone feature

in the southwest corner of the swamp,

one that may be connected to a road-like structure

several yards to the north,

where they found part of a European hand cannon

that could be as much as 800 years old.

We're just gonna comb through this

and work our way closer into the swamp...

-[Alex] Got it. -...hopefully find some artifacts.

And keep our eyes open.

You never know, we might find some old wooden stakes.

I mean, one of the most important artifacts we found

in this area was

-the ship's railing, which was just over there. -Yeah.

I think that dated to the 600s?

Right. Okay, well, if you dig, we'll metal-detect

and keep our eyes peeled and see what we find.

-Yep. -Let's find some artifacts.

[Rick] I couldn't enumerate the number of finds

that have been made in the bog to date.

They've been expansive and extensive and important

in the search for answers here on the island.

But there's a lot of information missing.

-What do you got? -[Gary] This is interesting.

A piece of shaped wood.

Kind of reminds me of when we were digging in this area

and we found that ship's rail.

Oh, yeah.

[narrator] Over the years, the team has found

numerous ship-related artifacts all across the swamp

that have been dated to between the 1600s

and the seventh century.

Huh. It's great condition,

but it's been buried in the swamp for a long time.

[narrator] Could Gary be correct that they have found

another piece of ship's railing in the southwest corner?

If so, might it be related

to the stone structures in this area

and help them learn more about their origins?

-[Gary] It's kind of plank-ish. -Mm-hmm.

And it looks like it's curved and beveled.

Maybe I'm seeing things, but kind of looks shaped like that.

This-this face really does.

I mean, that's cut.

And here as well.

Yeah, at first, I thought it was, like, a piece of railing.

Yeah. No, it looks...

at first glance, it looks like

-it's shaped that way deliberately. -Yeah. Yeah.

[Alex] We might be able to show that to a shipwright,

somebody who knows the older techniques of making a ship.

Yeah. I wonder if it's big enough for C-14.

I like the fact that this wood's got beveled edges.

Now, that always looks like

planking to me.

And that's important because it's well out of place

buried in the swamp.

It's definitely big enough for C-14.

-So, we can figure out how old it is. -Yeah.

Definitely an interesting piece. I'll put that to one side.

I still believe we're just scratching the surface.

[narrator] As the dig continues in the swamp,

several hundred yards to the west on Lot 5...

[Isabelle] Found a small shard of creamware.

[Ethan] Oh, nice.

It's really, really small, though.

[Ethan] Yeah. Perfect.

[narrator] ...Laird Niven and the archaeology team

search for more clues

in the round feature near the shoreline.

After recently finding a sixth Venetian bead in this feature,

which could be related to the Knights of Malta,

and unearthing a sixth Roman coin nearby

that may be linked to the Knights Templar,

the team is working to prove that numerous groups

may have occupied Lot 5 at different times

long before the discovery of the Money Pit.

Oh, wow.

Got some pearlware.

-Oh, nice. -Yeah.

-Again, small, but-- -Yeah.

We'll have to do more analysis on this, I guess.

Yeah.

Uh, what are the dates on the creamware again?

Uh, creamware starts around 1762.

-Okay. -And then the pearlware

would start around, uh, 1775.

Okay.

[Rick] I have long believed that this is

a multigenerational attempt,

uh, over decades, perhaps even centuries,

to hide or safeguard something.

I can't prove it-- yet--

but the finds associated with the Lot 5 feature,

they're very interesting

and thought-provoking and intriguing.

[Ethan] Oh, nice.

What'd you find?

Looks like red earthenware.

Oh. It's got a really nice design on it.

Wow. That's a great piece.

[Isabelle] It's a big piece.

Yeah, it's got a really nice floral design.

[Isabelle] The coarse earthenwares are hard to date.

It can be anywheres from 1750 to 1830, so--

-Okay. Right in our time range. -Yeah.

-Great find. -Oh, thank you.

-You're welcome. -I'll bag it up and see

-if there's any more in there. -Yeah.

Oh, my gosh.

Laird. I think I just found something really cool.

[Isabelle] Oh, my gosh. Laird.

I think I just found something really cool.

Okay.

[narrator] While digging in the rounded stone foundation

on Lot 5,

Isabelle Whittier has just uncovered

a potentially important clue.

Check this out.

[Laird] Oh, nice.

Can you tell if this is a jewel?

It's meant to look like a jewel, an imitation of a jewel.

-Okay. -We found a larger one,

but clear, just over here.

It looked like costume jewelry.

Then we found out it's kind of a technique that was developed

in the 1740s in France.

That's so cool.

Imitation jewelry became very popular

with the French royal family.

-Oh, that's awesome. -Yeah.

[narrator] In the early 18th century,

French jeweler Georg Friedrich Strass

invented simulated gemstones.

By mixing elements such as bismuth, thallium and lead

with glass powder,

a paste-like substance was formed.

It was then heated and molded to create artificial stones,

nearly matching the brilliance of actual gems.

One year ago, the team found a simulated diamond

just outside of the round feature.

[Isabelle] Would this be valuable?

[Laird] I think back in the mid 1700s,

it probably was.

[narrator] If Laird is correct that this is a similar artifact,

could it be another clue to help identify one of the groups

that occupied the stone foundation

prior to 1795?

Emma can actually XRF the side

and tell you what kind of metal it was sitting in.

So, we know that it was set into something

and displayed on someone's clothes.

If she finds out that it's set in silver or gold,

-that just takes us to a whole new level, right? -Yeah.

Just-- it just adds a lot of significance

-to this little tiny artifact. -Yeah.

[Laird] Adding to the intrigue.

-[chuckles] -Yeah, that's-that's really exciting.

I can't wait to get that back to the lab

and see what Emma says about it.

-Me, too. -That's cool.

We're finding some neat stuff here.

Yeah.

[narrator] The following morning...

[Billy] Back again?

[Katya] It's good to see you. Good to be back.

-You know I love the swamp. -Yeah.

-Let's get started. -All right.

[narrator] ...Katya Drayton and Derek Couch

join Billy to search for more artifacts

near the stone feature

in the southwest corner of the swamp.

[Billy] Something shiny on top there.

-Might be a piece of glass or something, right? -Oh, yeah.

Right there?

-Big ol' piece of glass. -Yeah.

[Katya] So, a really great way to tell if glass is old or not

is any imperfections.

Glass nowadays is made manufactured.

There's hardly any imperfections.

Bubbles, seams,

anything that may give you an idea if it's

handblown is a great way to identify if glass is old or not.

This is probably from a bottle.

This would be like an older...

maybe like a medicine bottle or something.

It's square on the edge,

so that's how you know it, like, has some date to it.

And it's small as well, so this is an older piece.

-Which is good. -Yeah.

By learning what type of glass this is

and what it was used for, we can see who was here

and what they were doing.

-We'll keep this. -[Derek] Yeah.

-That's some wood. -Here we go.

-A little round piece, Katya. -[Katya] Let me see.

[Billy] That's cut there, isn't it?

-[Katya] That cut? -[Billy] Yeah, that's cut.

-[Katya] Wow. Good eye, Billy. -Yeah, that's a great one.

It's really deep for wood.

Three and a half, four feet probably.

That's way below that sand.

Dr. Spooner would say that's the topsoil

before the swamp was formed.

That's down in the depth of the ship's rail.

That's a find right there, I would say.

How close are we to where the other ship's railing was found?

Uh, less than a hundred feet.

It's one of the deepest finds that we've had

in the swamp of a piece of cut wood.

-This could mean something. -Right.

[narrator] In 2020, the team found a piece of ship's railing

while digging near the southern border of the swamp.

Incredibly, it was carbon-dated

to as early as the seventh century.

[Billy] There's been a lot of people that thought

that there had been ships in the swamp.

So, I think it could be very significant.

[narrator] Is it possible that the team has found

a related discovery in the southwest corner of the swamp?

[Marty] If there's a ship of some sort out there,

it would fit really, really well

to any of the theories

that somebody came here and buried old-world treasure.

We have so many ship-like artifacts at this point.

But extraordinary theories take extraordinary data.

I don't think we quite have that yet,

but here's another piece.

If this is a piece of a ship,

I bet you there's more pieces of ship.

I'd rather find what the ship is carrying, Derek,

so let's look for that, right?

That's true. That's true.

-That's why Katya's here. -Right.

-Well, let's try and find some more. -Yeah.

-Keep the lookers peeled. -Yeah.

[narrator] As the search in the swamp continues...

[Laird] So, thank you, everybody, for coming.

We have a really interesting artifact from Lot 5.

[narrator] ...in the lab, Emma Culligan

is about to share her analysis of the artificial gemstone

found one day ago on Lot 5.

This looks like the-the paste jewelry gem.

That's exactly what it is.

So, this one's obviously dark.

And the one we found last year was white,

-was clear. -Mm-hmm.

And, I guess, you can explain the composition.

Well, it's pretty much the same thing as last year,

but this one is black, and it's black due to

the addition of manganese and calcium.

Um, and it has less lead in it,

which is why it's not as brilliant.

So, it's not as shiny or sparkly.

They're called diamantés, like, as the official term.

The purpose of it is to be dark and matte.

But it's the same era, similar composition.

And the fastener, there's a trace of tin around the edges,

which we also found in the composition

of last year's jewel as well.

And something like that would've been made in the Old World?

-Yep. -Not here?

No. Early to mid 1700s in France.

[Emma] And from the composition, I can tell you that it is,

like, high-grade.

And it was for people of the upper class.

-Mm-hmm. -Yeah. -'Cause it would have the same

amount of shine, or even more shine, than the diamonds.

So, these are not trade items per se?

[Laird] I think what makes it not a trade item is

the fact that it was mounted.

If it was a trade item, they'd be loose.

I see.

Just reading your report there,

no earlier than 1734 or no later?

[Emma] Well, the oldest possible date's 1734,

'cause that's when it was really being invented

-and introduced. -Mm-hmm.

-So, after 1734? -Yeah.

[Laird] Fashion travels quickly.

Especially with the upper class and the new shiny thing.

When did it go out of style?

It went right into the Victorian era.

But this high-quality,

represents probably the initial phase

before it percolates down and the cheaper copies are made

-for less affluent people. -Mm-hmm. -Mm-hmm.

What's it telling you about what was going on

-on Lot 5? -[Rick] Yeah.

-Well, I think it makes a statement about stature. -Mm.

I think this was, uh, a higher class of people.

[Emma] So, with the black paste jewel,

I have seen references to military uniform.

Timeline-wise, it does fit the Duc d'Anville's expedition here.

Mid 1700s, French.

[Rick] Very interesting.

Timeline-wise, it does fit the Duc d'Anville's expedition here.

[narrator] In the Oak Island lab,

Emma has just confirmed that the simulated glass gem

found in the round feature on Lot 5 is French in origin

and dates back to the mid 18th century.

[Alex] You know, the Duc d'Anville's expedition

was mid 1700s, French.

Um, something to keep in mind.

[narrator] In 1746, France launched an armada

to reclaim Nova Scotia from Great Britain.

It was led by an admiral known as the Duc d'Anville,

a nobleman from a family with connections

to the Knights Templar dating back to the 12th century.

Unfortunately, due to severe storms

and a wave of disease, the mission ultimately failed.

I found eight pages of what looks like a ship's log.

[narrator] But curiously, in 2017,

Doug Crowell discovered an 18th century ship's log

in the provincial archives

stating that one of d'Anville's ships

carried a large cache of treasure

to a wooded island in the vicinity of Oak Island,

where the crew buried it in a deep pit.

[Alex] This is, uh, a very strong indicator

that somebody of high status was on Lot 5.

We know that the Duc d'Anville did come here to Nova Scotia,

and indeed the d'Anville family has

a connection to the Knights Templar.

If there was some, uh, incredible treasure

out of history, uh, that made its way here to North America,

it could've been done as part of the Duc d'Anville's expedition.

[Craig] Finding these things that belong to somebody

in a military position, I wonder:

Why were they on the island?

What were they doing?

[narrator] Is it possible

that the two simulated French gemstones found on Lot 5

could be connected to the treasure

reportedly buried by the crew of the Duc d'Anville?

The dots are very far apart right now, right?

But we're accumulating them.

-But you're accumulating them. Exactly. -Yeah.

[Rick] You know, there's always been

the idea that, uh, there might be

an association here with Duc d'Anville.

The archaeological efforts are strongly hinting at

multiple occupations on Lot 5,

from the 1200s right up through 1750.

I believe this was a multigenerational attempt

to hide something.

And perhaps the Duc d'Anville was a part of that endeavor.

This is step by step, clue by clue,

and every clue is important,

'cause at some point, they will connect up.

-At some point, they will tell a story, so... -Yeah.

[Rick] Thank you for-for bringing us down.

It's a, it's an interesting find,

but I hope we can learn more about it.

-All right. -Yeah. -All righty. -Thank you.

-Thank you. -Thank you.

[narrator] As the team concludes

their meeting in the lab...

-[Billy] We got to keep looking. -Let's do it.

[narrator] ...Billy, Katya and Derek continue to search

in the southwest corner of the swamp.

Ooh.

Wow.

I mean, look at that.

[Derek] That's excellent.

That is a cut stake if I've ever seen one.

Yeah. It's so close to the last find we just had.

[Katya] Oh, my god.

[Derek] That's pretty cool. That's definitely cut.

Here.

-Guess you'll need a bigger bag to put the stuff in. -[chuckles]

[laughs] Definitely.

I know it's soaked, but it's a really heavy piece, too.

-[Katya] Mm-hmm. -[Billy] Yeah, well, it's soaked

'cause we're below the level of the ocean here, right?

It's so preserved and basically clean, right?

Because it's in a perfect environment to store wood.

Yeah.

[narrator] A hand-cut wooden stake?

-[Rick] There's another one. -[Gary] Geez.

What in the world is happening?

[narrator] Because the team has found

a number of survey stakes lining stone features,

such as the structure that was recently uncovered

several yards to the north,

is it possible that they have just discovered more evidence

that the two features may have been built by the same people?

If so, just who was it?

We can get a lot of information off that.

[Billy] I think so, yeah.

I'm sure there's a purpose for that.

Just-- that is definitely cut. And so is the other one.

Yeah, it's a bigger piece.

-Right. Right. -Bigger cut.

This gives Dr. Spooner more information.

Yeah. We've got some potential here.

I'm excited to keep going.

We'll work to keep the lab busy.

-Yeah. -Yeah.

[narrator] As another day dawns on Oak Island,

while drilling continues in the Money Pit area...

-[Ian] Hey, Gary. -[Gary] Hi, Ian.

-Derek. -Hi, Dr. Spooner.

-How are you doing? -Good.

[narrator] ...Dr. Ian Spooner joins other members of the team

in the swamp to examine the area

where the wooden survey stakes were found next to

the newly uncovered stone structure, one day ago.

The stakes were 100% not in the sand.

-They were in that peat layer. -Yep.

[Billy] Which is quite deep and just below the sand.

To be in that peat layer, period, under that much sand,

we absolutely know people were here a long, long time ago.

[Ian] So, if I can leave with one suggestion,

what I'd like you guys to do, if you can fit it in,

is get me a sample of the peat.

If I can date the peat here and it's old, too,

then I know that the stick, if it's younger,

was put there by people.

And, uh, if that stick dates into one of our bins of 1200,

you know, 1700, uh, then it tells us

there was activity in this area at that time,

-which is totally new. -Right.

[narrator] Peat is composed of decaying plant matter

that forms when it is submerged under brackish water

for long periods of time.

Because the wooden stake the team found was embedded

in the peat layer just beneath the stone structure,

if Dr. Spooner can date the peat, he may be able

to determine just when the stone feature was created.

We've had these sort of three age sort of categories here,

one that's 600 to like 1200, you know, that-that era.

And then we have the 1600s, you know, to the 1700s.

-Yeah. -Uh, and then we have

the more, sort of, I call post-depositor kind of era.

So, we got three kind of categories

of potential human activity here,

and I want to see where that fits.

Right.

[narrator] By dating organic materials

associated with the man-made structures in the swamp,

Dr. Spooner has determined that the paved area near the center

could be as much as 800 years old.

The possible Portuguese stone road

in the southeastern corner may be 500 years old.

And the so-called Eye of the Swamp

may have been built as early as 1680.

And there's been some nice, big clumps

of peat coming up in the digs, especially over there,

where there is sand as well,

so I'll save you a big clump of peat with all the wood in it.

That-That's perfect. That's what I need.

[Rick] I think that the carbon-dating

of the wood in the swamp,

the work that was done, the discoveries that have been made,

can only lead to one conclusion: that the work was

long, involved and purposeful.

To me, what it says is

this was a multigenerational endeavor here,

and there's possibly more than one treasure

hidden across the island.

-Okay. So, I'm off to lab. Thanks, guys. -Bye, mate.

-We can't wait to hear your results. -[Ian] Yep.

-Thank you. -Thanks.

See you later.

[narrator] As the dig continues in the swamp...

[Terry] We did hit the bedrock plateau.

Hopefully, we'll go right down into the solution channel,

could be in the next run.

We have a core, gentlemen.

[narrator] ...over in the Money Pit area,

the drilling operation in borehole H-9.25

has nearly reached a depth of 200 feet.

H-9.25's still got a few things to tell us.

Hopefully, we'll get to find that open area

-that could've taken the treasure. -Yep.

[Rick] Given its proximity to H-8,

there's every reason to believe that

we are in the area of the original Money Pit.

Remember, we are in the area

where something significant happened.

That's some very loose material right there.

This must be the solution channel.

[Rick] We lost the so-called vault in H-8.

Where did it go?

And we believe it went to the solution channel.

That's the perfect targeted zone.

The hope is that there'll be something in the core.

A man-made something.

-[Terry] Adam, what do you got? -[Adam] Two...

-212. Yeah. -212?

This is promising-looking stuff, really.

-Yeah, it's gooey. -Very gooey and loose.

Bring her in.

Yeah, this is the loose material we're looking for

right here, guys.

-[Scott] There's the conditions we need right there. -Yep.

[Scott] That has the ability to hide treasure.

A little messy.

All right, now we're starting to get a look at it.

198 down to 215 in front of us, guys.

This loose material looks like it starts

at the 198 mark and goes down to...

-probably be at 202, would you say, Charles? -202.

We may have gotten a little bit less recovery

going down through the slurry as well.

-Sure. -Yeah.

Well, less recovery means there--

it was literally a void, mostly water, I guess.

That's the good thing.

Now, this is cakey

and less likely to accept a treasure down into it.

This stuff up here is, of course, much looser.

And this is, this is the stuff that really should be set aside.

-We'll send some off to the lab, hopefully. -Yeah.

There you go, Charles. See what you see.

This is the good stuff right here,

as we move up along this one.

Got to find the one thing.

-[pinpointer beeping] -I got something right in here.

-Okay. -Interesting.

-I wonder-- -Want to pull some of that out, Terry?

That's okay.

-[pinpointer beeping] -Yep.

-I'm getting a hit right there. -[chuckles] Here.

-This is tough stuff-- -Yep, right in there.

Tough stuff to work with, let me tell you.

-Come over here so you don't lose it. -Yep. -Yeah.

-All right, there you go. Yeah. -Fresh area here.

Not there.

-[Terry] Not there? -[Charles] Nope.

-[pinpointer beeping] -There we go. -Oh, there it is.

[Charles] There it is right there.

-[pinpointer beeping] -There it is right there.

I'm getting chirps right here. Just right in there.

You know, you get fooled sometimes by

the-the screws in the table.

[Terry] Okay, let-- we're gonna have to bring this over, then.

-[pinpointer beeping] -Yeah, it's there. -It's in there.

Yeah, put it right on the table.

[narrator] In the Money Pit area, the team is detecting

traces of metal in a drilling core

recovered from more than 200 feet deep

in the solution channel.

-[pinpointer beeping] -Nope, it's in here.

[pinpointer beeping]

-Now dump that over in a different pile, so-- -Yeah.

[Scott] That's weird.

-[pinpointer beeping] -Oh.

What's that?

-It's on your-- It-It's on you. -Oh.

[Charles] Yep, it's on me right there.

I wonder if this is the same thing that we're getting before.

-Yeah. [stammering] -You know? The little, the little flecks.

-Yeah. -Yeah, this is a real conundrum here.

[narrator] The team is frustrated to once again

detect signs of metal in their drill core

but then recover no objects.

However, could these hits also mean that they are

once again detecting metal flecks in the soil

and are getting even closer to a long-lost treasure

that now lies somewhere nearby in the solution channel?

I know Marty was really interested in this last time,

wh-when this occurred, so we probably

-should get him involved here. -Sounds good.

[line ringing]

Hey, Marty. How are you?

I'm here in the Money Pit with Charles and Terry,

and we have another interesting core.

Right around 198 all the way down to 208,

we had some very, very soupy material.

And we had ambiguous hits with the, uh, metal detector.

It would, it would beep and go off and seem to be detected,

and then we couldn't find it in the mud.

-Correct? -Yep.

It's in the right area, the right depth,

the right conditions.

You know, there's no coins staring at us,

but who knows what to expect, right?

[Marty] The pinpointer hits, the preliminary indication

of metals at the base of the solution channel

could be an indicator that we are in the right spot.

We're hoping that this is something that eroded

from a treasure that's very close by.

Maybe it's coming from the Chappell Vault,

if it's really there.

We're gonna take all of this and set it aside, Marty,

and we're gonna be sure we do a good analysis of all of it.

Yeah.

[Marty] It needs to go to the lab.

The sediments, carefully analyzed,

could yield bits of precious metals:

silver, gold perhaps.

Look, this is what we're looking for:

something from the scientific reconnaissance data

to tell us where to go to actually find the treasure.

We're bagging the whole thing, for sure, Marty. No question.

We'll keep you informed as we go. Talk to you soon.

[narrator] Later that day...

Okay, mate. I'm hoping we can find something

to help the archaeologists understand what the heck went on

in that round feature and the rectangular feature.

[Rick] Works for me.

[narrator] ...after the discovery

of the 18th century simulated gemstone...

All right. Let's find some artifacts.

-[metal detector beeps] -Cool.

[narrator] ...Rick and Gary search through

spoils that were removed from the round feature on Lot 5.

[Gary] Come on, give a signal.

[metal detector beeping]

Here we go, mate. We're in business.

Nonferrous artifact just there.

I don't think we got to dig very deep.

It's gonna be in those surface layers.

[metal detector beeping]

That sounds really good.

Let me see what we have got here.

[pinpointer beeps]

[pinpointer beeping]

[pinpointer beeping]

This is my favorite part.

[pinpointer beeping]

Ooh. A bit of roundness.

-Look how little that is. -Oh, yeah.

[Gary] That's a tiny little cuff button.

Look at how little that is, mate.

-Tiny. -Yeah.

But you can definitely see it's got a tiny little loop

-on the back. -A little knob there.

[narrator] Could this small button be related to

the artificial gemstones found in and near the round feature?

If so, might it help identify one of the groups

who occupied Lot 5 before the discovery of the Money Pit?

[Gary] It could be like a little,

kind of like a decorative button, say,

off a lapel or something like this.

Definitely copper alloy by the sound of it.

Another nice little artifact

for Emma to hopefully shine some light on.

I think, at this point,

we always talk about grouping artifacts.

-The archaeologists should group the buttons. -Yeah.

And then maybe catalog them and give them

to a button expert, say, who can say,

"This, stylistically, this represents this era.

Stylistically, this represents this era."

-It's not just a button anymore. -No.

It's a, it's a piece of data.

-It's a piece of history, I should say. -Yeah, it is.

Okay, I'll put it in the bag.

And we'll keep gridding.

[metal detector beeping]

Yeah, we got a good hit here, Rick.

-Really good hit. -[grunts]

Shovel it or...?

I'll try pinpointing it first.

Sounds like a great hit. That's nonferrous, mate.

That is not a nail.

[pinpointer beeping]

[pinpointer beeping]

-It's in my hand. -Oh.

Ooh-hoo! What have we got here?!

-[Gary] Ooh-hoo! What have we got here?! -[pinpointer beeping]

I know what that is.

[narrator] While searching spoils removed from

the round feature on Lot 5...

[Rick] What is it? It looks like a stone.

[Gary] No, it is not a stone, mate.

[narrator] ...Rick and Gary have found

another potentially important clue.

I think what we have found, Rick, is something

really, really special and unique.

That is a folded over coin.

Really?

That's a copper coin that's been folded over.

Look, you can see the shape of it.

Never heard of such a thing.

I have, but not in North America,

because I have found these types of artifacts

in Europe before metal detecting.

-[Rick] Really? -[Gary] Yeah.

Normally, when you find something made of

copper, silver or gold and it's completely folded over,

I believe this is a talisman, uh, to ward off bad things.

Somebody would fold this piece of metal over,

and they would put it in the ground to ward off bad luck.

When would that, kind of, ritual be prevalent?

300 or 400 years ago.

-Really? -Yeah.

[narrator] The ritual of folding coins

as symbols of good luck

or an appeal for God's protection

dates as far back as the times of Ancient Rome.

However, this practice was prevalent

throughout Europe between the 12th and 18th centuries.

[Gary] It's more than likely 1700s, 1600s.

That would be the right time frame for Lot 5.

Oh, yeah.

[narrator] Is it possible that this folded coin

was left in the rounded feature on Lot 5 by someone who wanted

spiritual protection for themselves?

Or perhaps for something they brought to Oak Island?

If so, could it be related to the artifacts found here

that have been linked to the religious orders

of the Knights of Malta and the Knights Templar?

The real story here is:

Why a folded coin?

What was truly happening on Lot 5?

If that is a coin, you just don't throw money away, right?

-No. -You just don't do that.

You do it for a reason. That's intentional.

-Right? -Yeah.

If you think about it, back even in the 16, 1700s,

or way beyond there, those people had

a different understanding of the world.

And so, they did things like this.

[Rick] I have always believed, as have many others,

that the work that was done on Oak Island was meant

to protect something outside of temporal wealth.

I think what was put here was meant to advance something,

an idea, a belief, a concept,

something of either significant historical value

or religious value.

You know, this island has resisted efforts

to find the treasure for 230 years.

There's something on this island,

and I believe whatever was here is still here.

Look at that. Well done, mate.

This is absolutely fantastic, mate.

A first for Oak Island.

Absolutely. Never seen anything like it.

Didn't know the tradition.

That is a clue as to what may have happened over there,

-at least part of the story of what happened over there. -Yeah.

[Rick] I'm sure it will find a safe home.

Oh, yeah. I know where this little beauty's going.

And I'm gonna bypass the bag.

-But this is going straight in the top pocket. -Top pocket.

[Gary] That's absolutely fantastic.

And we're gonna show it to our favorite lady

at the lab, Emma, and we'll find out what this is.

-I want to know, mate. -[laughs]

-Let's get back to the lab. -Okay.

-Okay. -Cool.

[narrator] After uncovering new evidence of man-made workings

in the swamp and traces of metal in the Money Pit,

an artifact surfaces

that may be related to the struggles many have faced

in trying to solve this mystery for more than 200 years.

Was a treasure of profound religious value

really brought to Oak Island over the course of centuries

by people who were all deeply devoted

to ensuring that it would never be found?

And could it actually be protected

by supernatural forces?

The Laginas and their team won't stop digging

until they know the truth.

But just what must they endure to find it?

Next time on The Curse of Oak Island...

-[Katya] Oh, wow. -[Derek] What is that?

[Katya] That's exactly like

the stakes we found near the vault.

[Rick] I truly believe there's still another vault there.

-[Adam] Whoa, whoa, whoa. -[Terry] There it is. The void.

-[Charles] That's right. -Is that natural

or is that an open cavern?

Only a sonar can tell you that, really.

All right. Well, that's what we'll do.

-Hopefully we'll find the one thing. -Cross your fingers.

-We're in the cavity. -[Terry] Yep, you're in.

[Rick] We'd love nothing better than to see

-a man-made cavern or vault. -[Ken] We've got an opening.

This is not natural.

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