Original subtitles

Narrator: Tonight on the curse of oak island...

-Gary: This is the day! -Swamp dig, day one.

Jack: Whoa!

See the woody material there?

That's the structure.

This is old.

Gary: 1700s, baby!

-you've got to be kidding me, mate!

-Does that have a hole in it? -Gary: Yeah, it has.

Jack: You'd have something like that if you were

digging shafts!

Craig: That sample came out to be

1320 to 1440.

-What? -Wow. -There is a date

-that it does match. -Zena's map?

-Yes. The knights templar. -Holy smokes.

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,

mysterious fragments of human bone,

and a lead cross whose origin may stretch back

to the days of 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.

rick: It's going to be an exciting day.

Ian: Oh, yeah.

For me, it's a big day, at least, because

-we're investigating into the swamp. -Yup.

Narrator: As another morning dawns on oak island,

brothers rick and marty lagina,

along with their team, are about to begin what they hope

will be a revealing and historic exploration

of man-made workings in the triangle-shaped swamp.

Uh, I've never seen a feature like this under,

you know, 12 inches of mud.

And it's unique enough that it's

a feature of fairly significant purpose.

Mm-hmm.

I mean, the archeologists are-- aaron was talking to me.

He said, "I want to look at this.

-I want to see this."

you know, so, when archeologists get excited,

you know, I do, too, you know?

-do you hear that? -Yup.

-There's rock here.

-that could be it. -Yeah.

Narrator: Three weeks ago, after conducting

a sonar operation

that revealed a possible structure

beneath the muck and mud...

It's wide.

It's huge.

-this was built with purpose. -This is very interesting.

Narrator: ...Rick lagina

and geoscientist dr. Ian spooner discovered

a massive flat surface while probing the area,

composed of stone and measuring

some 20 feet wide by 70 feet long.

It is dr. Spooner's speculation

that this feature might be connected in some way

to the 16th century pine tar kiln located on nearby lot 15.

A pine tar kiln that is believed to have been utilized

in the construction of the original money pit.

Today is an important day in terms of

advancing our understanding of the swamp,

specifically this feature.

Could it be connected to the so-called treasure story

or-or the money pit?

That is a possibility.

But we need to come to

a firm understanding of what this feature is.

Okay. Swamp dig, day one.

-Yup. -So here's my thought.

Uh, I really do want to see how this is built.

-Yeah. -I'd like to see

-just a small area. -Yeah.

And the deal is here just to go slowly at the start.

-Yup. -Let's just sort of think about it--

this 15 feet towards shore.

Doesn't look like much right now.

But when we get it cleaned off, it'll...

Start telling its secrets, I think, so...

Gary: And I'll search here,

and I'll search wherever you dump the spoils, as well.

In terms of putting the spoils, I mean, it's your call.

We'll swing it out of our way as far as we can get it

out of the way, for now, I think.

-Let's stick with that. -Gary: And one other

important thing-- where we gonna put the treasure?

I feel that this area is gonna be

the mother lode of artifacts.

-This is the day!

-rick: Okay. -Okay.

We're talking too much, and not enough

-work is getting done, so... -Yup.

...Let's get to work.

Narrator: Although they intend to install

a massive steel cofferdam

around the southeastern corner of the swamp later this year,

since they have received the necessary

government permits to drain and begin excavating,

the oak island team has decided

to pump the brackish water out of the area,

so that billy gerhardt can use a 16-ton excavator

to remove the dense muck and reveal

exactly what this stone feature is.

As billy's pulling the dirt away,

what we're looking for is some sort of framework.

There must be some sort of artificial support

underneath the stones.

So, we'll get a good look at the surface,

and then, hopefully, billy can continue to pull back

and reveal the possible connection

between the feature and the upland.

Gary: Come on, let's have a target.

It is interesting.

On this side, it is really quite flat.

I wonder if those rocks there are reflective

of a path going up.

Ian: Yeah, yeah, yeah.

That sounds to me the most logical.

Gary: Come on, billy.

Bring me a bucket of treasure.

Ooh, coal!

This is interesting!

-Yup. -Gary: What is that?

Old pottery!

: Oh, come to papa.

Look at that, mate! We're getting coal,

and we're getting blue glazed pottery.

This is fantastic.

Narrator: Coal and pottery

found near a stone structure in the swamp?

Could these be important clues that might help determine

not only that this feature is man-made but perhaps also

who made it and when?

I shall have to keep an eye out for pottery and other artifacts.

Yeah, no, for sure.

This is getting interesting, billy.

Billy: Exactly.

Narrator: While rick lagina continues

to oversee the excavation in the triangle-shaped swamp...

-Here's marty now. -Oh, good.

Narrator: ...His brother marty joins oak island historian

charles barkhouse and geologist terry matheson

as they continue the sonic core drilling operation

in the money pit area.

-Hey, marty. -Hey, marty. -Terry!

-Well? -And here we have the majestic

g-5.5.

-How many wells have you drilled? -This is the ninth

in a detailed sequence of well laid-out holes...

-Yeah. ...Where we feel there's a strong

possibility there might have been

migration and descent of

the vault or the broken-up vault.

Narrator: Although the team recently drilled a borehole

some 50 meters north of this area,

where oak island theorist erin helton suggested

they would find an approximately 1,000-foot-long corridor leading

to a treasure chamber on the western end of the island,

no corridor was found.

Now that the covid-19 pandemic has greatly reduced the time

that they have to conduct any searching

in the money pit area this year,

the team has returned their full focus

to drilling a number of six-inch-wide boreholes

down to depths below 200 feet.

They are looking for evidence of a massive cavity,

where they believe a treasure vault may have fallen

because of more than two centuries

of digging by previous searchers,

along with a series of cave-ins

caused by an elaborate system of man-made flood traps.

The theory is, when the money pit collapsed,

it could have really collapsed into a cavity.

So we're trying to delineate

and define the extent of this cavity

because that's where it's possible any treasure fell to.

So, basically,

here's the nine detailed holes we've done

and the detailed pattern in this area.

Here we are here on this hole, g-5.5.

Anything in red, we haven't drilled yet.

We're following a systematic pattern

-so that we're not missing anything. -Marty: Yeah.

When we find it, it should be a relatively vertical,

open material, and hopefully a few little

-coins of silver and gold. -Something.

Or at least anything. Broken-up chests.

Yeah, something like that.

That's what we're all hoping on.

-All right. Well, carry on. -Very good.

-All right. Keep drilling. -All right.

Take care.

Narrator: As charles barkhouse

and terry matheson continue

to monitor the drilling operation

at the money pit site...

Gary: All roads lead to the swamp.

Narrator: ...Rick, jack and gary,

-along with dr. Spooner... -Oh, perfect. Perfect.

Narrator: ...And heavy equipment operator billy gerhardt continue

collecting evidence of human activity

as they work to uncover the mysterious

flat stone feature in the swamp.

Ian: It's kind of surprising just how wide this is.

Rick: For me, it's all about, how'd they build it.

-Ian: Yeah. -Gary: Rick!

Check these out, mate.

More coal and more pottery.

And whenever we've seen this kind of pottery

around the money pit,

laird's always got excited 'cause this is the old stuff.

This is in the 1700s.

And to me, this is exciting finding it here.

Narrator: Blue glazed pottery

dating back to the 1700s

and matching discoveries made deep in the money pit area?

Could this pottery be valuable evidence,

suggesting that the stone surface

in the swamp is in some way connected

to the original money pit treasure vault?

More of the old blue glazed pottery.

And this is old stuff.

You can just tell it-- that patina.

And this is cool.

I got to keep an eye on the spoil pile, mate.

It's getting interesting up there.

oh! Beautiful!

What the heck is that?!

Rick: What'd you find, gary?

Uh, I don't know what it is.

Narrator: While investigating a large flat stone structure

in the oak island swamp,

metal detection expert gary drayton

has just made what could be an exciting discovery.

Look at that!

The heck is that?

Look at it.

It's, like, blue. It's got the...

Rick: It's layered.

Ian: Can I see?

Um...

Rick: It's weird.

Gary: Yeah, that is.

Almost like it's fractured or broken.

Ian: Wonder if it's a jewelry of some sort.

Gary: You're right, mate.

It could be a piece of jewelry.

Just broken. Look at that, mate.

Reminds me of, like, an old decorative brooch.

Narrator: A decorative brooch?

Found in the oak island swamp?

-Oh, my gosh!

-it's another bobby-dazzler! Look! -It's a...

Narrator: Could it be in some way connected

to the other brooches that rick and gary

have found over the last three years

on the eastern end of the island?

One of which was not only more than 500 years old

but also plated with gold.

I don't think we can do much more over here.

It's just too lumpy.

Rick: 'kay.

But over there, it gets... Quite flat.

Which is very interesting.

Again, nature doesn't order itself that way.

You can start to see these flat stones.

It-it doesn't look like much right now,

but billy just can't do much more in here.

Billy: Yeah, I-I think you need

to let it dry maybe a little bit.

Then it would shovel easier.

Yeah.

Narrator: Although the team has pumped

nearly all of the standing water out of the swamp,

the thick muck covering the stone structure

is currently too wet to be completely removed.

Because of this, the team will halt excavations for the day,

in the hopes that, within 24 hours,

the mud will be dry enough

so the team can fully expose the feature.

-Rick: Well, tomorrow, then. -Gary: Yeah. -Billy: Yep.

Rick: We'll be hard at it.

Narrator: As rick and the team

finish up in the oak island swamp...

Well, what are we doing right now?

They're putting the gyro down.

Narrator: ...Marty lagina checks back in at the money pit

for a progress report on borehole g-5.5.

What's t.D. Of this hole?

Uh...

G-5.5 now complete to 230 feet.

-230. -230 even.

G-5.5 was okay, but it was just another hole.

You get recovery?

We're getting very good recovery.

That's what's in front of you here.

You can see some bedded sediments right here and...

Here and...

-Clay-rich material there. -Yeah, but this doesn't look like stuff that

-stuff could move around in very easily. -No.

Marty: So, from a technical standpoint,

the drilling has gone very well.

They've been able to reach total depth.

But, remember, this is supposed to be a treasure hunt.

And I was hoping, as always,

that they'd bring up some indication of treasure.

But I think the drilling program in the money pit,

at any moment,

could reveal something dramatic.

Have you found any evidence

of the famous collapse in these nine holes?

We haven't seen anything that looked like a debris field, no.

Where the hell did that collapse go, charles?

I don't know. I don't know, marty.

It went somewhere.

It's down there. You just haven't found it yet.

-Trust me. It's down there.

are any of them, charles, where you would expect,

most likely to be, the collapse?

-Yes. Yeah. -Which ones?

Uh, the ones near rf... Rf-1.

We-we assume that that's where the collapse is.

Marty: Have we drilled those yet?

-Yeah. -We've got a couple. H-6.5, I think,

is gonna be the next one.

We're gonna be watching that one.

Look at that.

-Marty: Oh, yeah. -See those two marks here?

I just wondered if these two marks

are-are actual roman numerals.

Narrator: Last year, while excavating

an eight-foot-wide borehole known as rf-1,

the oak island team recovered

hand-cut timbers with roman numerals carved into them

from a depth of approximately 100 feet.

They also retrieved ancient tunneling tools

and coconut fiber, leading the team to speculate

that rf-1 may have contained some of the collapse

from the original money pit.

Now, having completed a series of boreholes

where the team's research

suggested the original money pit might be,

they will now drill a new borehole near rf-1

called h-6.5,

where they hope to finally locate the treasure vault

people have been looking for since 1795.

Well, we knew this was gonna be a systematic process,

-so... -Terry: Yeah.

Well, carry on.

Terry: Very good.

Narrator: Later that afternoon...

Rick: Every time we meet in the war room, it's important.

Narrator: ...Rick lagina, along with members of the team,

have gathered for a presentation

that oak island historian doug crowell has prepared

regarding a recent and curious discovery

on lot 15.

Also joining the meeting are archaeologists laird niven,

miriam amirault and dr. Aaron taylor.

We all know about the, uh, mound up on lot 15.

And doug has done some amazing research.

But I will say, you know, in-in all fairness,

that I am a bit skeptical.

Because serpent mounds, what little I know of them,

-are ancient. -Mm-hmm.

Rick: Doug, if you want to make this presentation,

-I look forward to it. -Yeah.

Like any curiosity on the island,

this thing just kind of was a surprise to us this year.

-It didn't look natural. -Mm.

What is this thing?

Narrator: Two weeks ago,

doug crowell alerted rick, marty and members of the team

to a mysterious snake-shaped mound of earth and boulders

not far from the 16th century pine tar kiln on lot 15...

Aaron: Sort of reminds you of, uh...

A little bit like the serpent mounds

-in ontario. -Yeah.

Narrator: ...A formation,

which, according to archaeologist dr. Aaron taylor,

resembled a 2,000-year-old ceremonial feature

located in keene, ontario, canada,

known as the serpent mounds.

So, as a curiosity on the island,

I think everything has to be scrutinized

as to does it have any importance to our hunt or not.

Right? So I've looked at the history of serpent mounds.

I've looked at the history of the symbolism of serpents

to see how it might play into any of the theories

that have ever been presented to us to follow.

So, if you don't mind, I'm gonna share my screen here.

So, this is what I see,

an aerial view of what I see when I look at this mound

and the mound that's out in front of it.

This is where it resides on the island.

It's to the east of the swamp, up on the top of lot 15.

It's really almost on the highest point of the island.

This is one that's in otonabee, canada.

It's 189 feet long,

four to five feet high.

Ours is about four feet high.

And I measured it-- roughly 134 feet.

There are individual mounds, or cairns,

around the outside of the ontario serpent mound as well.

So, just as a comparison,

they're all of stone and soil construction.

They're all an average of four feet high.

Located on prominent hillsides overlooking water.

Nearby individual cairns or mounds.

We have all that in this structure.

Whether it's an actual mound or not...

those elements are present.

Rick: What I was most impressed by was that the serpent mounds,

literally across the globe,

had rock cairns or these stone features

in close proximity to them.

Well, if this is a serpent mound,

we also have these features in close proximity.

To me, that was impactful.

Doug: So now I'm taking a look at

why it might be important to different theories.

Actually, it's interesting.

In going through this, I found this.

This is from 1885.

Scott, if you can unroll that.

This is all the major religions of the world,

when they came into being.

Even before there was sun worshippers

and christianity, there was serpent worship.

Um, serpent worship, just around 3000 bc,

was the predominant religion in the world.

Now...

This is one of the seals

from the 12th century of the knights templar.

One of their grand masters.

Abraxas.

He's a composite god

that has the legs and feet of two serpents.

Ancient gemstones had this image on them.

And it was said that a lot of these gemstones

were in the templar's treasuries.

Mm.

Doug: Serpents seem to represent knowledge,

and knowledge is power.

If this mound that we're looking at has any relevance to that,

it could have been created as a symbol of the knights templar.

Island historian doug crowell

has just presented the team with an incredible theory.

According to his research,

the serpent-shaped mound recently discovered on lot 15

may represent an ancient symbol for knowledge

connected to the knights templar.

It looks man-made. It doesn't look natural.

Then did it have a purpose that's relevant

to what we're trying to achieve on the island?

Craig: Just looking at it, in general,

it-it's a massive site.

You know? So something was going on.

Um, I do like the tie that, you know, part of

its belief system include the serpent.

I agree.

Well, I mean, we've dubbed it the serpent mound.

Like you say, that has yet to be proven.

Now, look at here.

This is from the freemasons.

Serpent and the cross.

"a symbol used in the degrees of knights templar

"and knights of the brazen serpent.

"the cross is a tau cross 't,'

"and the serpent is twined around it.

"this is an important part of the following masonic symbolism:

The 25th degree."

this is one of the rites for the masons,

the serpent and the cross.

Rick: Wow.

Narrator: Ever since the discovery of the money pit in 1795,

the secret society of builders known as the freemasons

have been closely linked to the oak island mystery.

Not only have prominent searchers

such as daniel mcginnis, m.R. Chappell

and franklin delano roosevelt,

who led a hunt for the treasure in 1911, been members,

but many of the fraternity's symbols, such as triangles,

the all-seeing eye

and the letter "g," representing the divine creator,

have been found on the island.

Numerous theories have also been presented over the years

linking the predecessors to the freemasons,

the knights templar, to the original deposition of treasure

on the island.

But these ideas were

nothing more than pure speculation.

That is, until three years ago when

rick lagina and gary drayton

discovered the lead cross at smith's cove,

a cross that not only perfectly matched

templar carvings found in southern France

but was scientifically proven to have been made

from lead mined in that region

and more than 700 years ago.

Think about how many structures we have uncovered to date.

We have the wharf.

We have the u-shape structure. We have the serpent mound.

I mean, how did all these

very intensively laborious structures

just rise up without people noticing?

-Without some record? -Those are just the reasons why

I think it's worth investigating this particular mound

to see if it can tell us anything,

particularly the date of construction.

If we can determine the date of construction

or perhaps its purpose,

-maybe it'll be helpful in our hunt. -Mm-hmm.

Laird, your thoughts?

Laird: Well, I mean, it-it's definitely a mystery.

Um, I think it's worth pursuing it,

and, uh, yeah, hopefully, the truth lies in the ground.

I agree. There's really no other choice.

It's a mysterious island. Who knows what lies beneath?

So, I think we have

a consensus that it needs further investigation,

and that's sufficient for-for this meeting.

I look forward to some answers.

Narrator: The following morning...

Ian: I think we should clear off to the right.

You'll locate the edge 'cause it'll just drop off.

-All right. -Narrator: Rick lagina

along with geoscientist dr. Ian spooner,

metal detection expert gary drayton,

jack begley

and heavy equipment operator billy gerhardt

have returned to the swamp.

They are eager to resume efforts to reveal

the massive stone feature recently discovered

in the southeast corner.

Okay, so, we're starting to get into it.

Oh, there's a little bit of rock.

Ian : Whoa!

Great. Billy!

I think what we'll do is we're just gonna try

to throw a piece of plywood down there

and take a look at that edge.

Yeah.

Ian: Oh, yeah, that's perfect.

Hey, here, take a look at this.

And, so, here's...

Right off the bat, this is kind of cool.

It's been piled up

on a little bit of an angle there, right?

-That's... That-that's the structure. -Jack: Yeah.

Ian: So, they built this

three stones thick.

Narrator: Piled stones, three layers thick,

forming a pathway or platform on the bottom of the swamp?

But for what purpose?

That's impressive.

Ian: Yeah, so, it's not vertical.

It's-it's angled up.

This is nicely stacked.

Rick: It is beautifully stacked, yeah.

Narrator: Could the stone feature the team has uncovered

be connected to the massive stone paved area

discovered last year and which dr. Spooner dated

to as early as 1200 ad?

Rick: This feature, it's certainly very unique.

Eerily similar to the first paved area.

A little bit flatter would be my assessment.

But they're eerily strange and eerily similar.

: So, what is going on?

Billy: The difference of this

to the paved area, though, is the paved area

had some big rocks and looked like people built around it.

This is 100% built.

-Rick: Hard to deny that's built. -Ian: Yeah.

Billy: Dr. Spooner, is there any way that we can

date on top of when these rocks were built?

It's on top of material that we know

has got a date of in the early 1700s.

We dated that layer.

We got a date. It's a good date.

1700s, baby!

or: In the oak island swamp,

rick lagina and members of the team

are just beginning to uncover

the mysterious flat stone feature

which geoscientist dr. Ian spooner

believes to date some 100 years prior

to the discovery of the money pit.

Ian: What's critical here, again, is they built this

on the swamp when it wasn't a swamp.

They used three or four courses of rocks.

-They built up here. -Rick: Mm-hmm.

Ian: Disarmingly flat surface.

Tilts up towards the money pit.

Gary: That's good.

If it's going on an incline,

-straight towards the money pit. -Ian: Yeah.

Let's just hope it was a one-way road.

Ian: Yeah. The thing is

it's all that kind of stuff that tells you it's a...

A-a structure and not just a feature.

They needed some kind of structure here

that was st... Uh, that was stable.

And even with two meters of water,

this high, you could move

quite a big barge, ship, whatever you want to do.

The only reason you'd make this is to make a platform

to do something else from.

Narrator: A road or platform?

Could it be a stone wharf used centuries ago

for the purpose of transporting something

out of the swamp and to the money pit?

And if so, could it also be connected

to the 200-foot-long anomaly,

detected two years ago deep in the middle of the swamp

by seismic scanning,

which eerily resembled an ancient sailing vessel?

Ian: So, no matter what it is,

it's built. But right now,

I have no idea what the purpose of it is.

And I think we need artifacts to figure that out.

So, what do you want to do now?

Ian: I mean, at this stage, I think we've done enough.

I think it's time to bring in the archaeologists

because they'll want to look at this layer

down here and see if they see anything.

So, this is the artifact layer because this was built on this,

and so it's that layer that things would fall down on.

Really, what we need to do is find artifacts

to place this in context of time,

and then we start putting things together.

Start maybe thinking

there was something happening with great purpose

going towards that location.

Rick: You know, things are starting

to round to mid-to-late 1600s, early 1700s,

well before the so-called find of the money pit.

Almost a century before.

So, something's going on.

I'm impressed by this wall.

The next step is, to ian's directive,

get the archaeologists in here, render an opinion.

But before we go, I wouldn't mind gary metal detecting this.

Gary: Yeah, I was thinking that.

I've got a great plan. You guys get up here

-and let me down there.

rick: Good day, everybody.

Narrator: Later that day...

Marty: We've got some more data

that, uh, craig has for the team here.

Narrator: Brothers rick and marty lagina,

along with their partner craig tester,

have gathered members of the team in the war room.

Craig, I believe you have some data

regarding the serpent mound,

-correct? -Craig: Yeah, I sure do. Uh...

There was two pieces of charcoal that were found

that, uh, we sent into beta analytical.

Narrator: One week ago, while investigating

the mysterious serpent-shaped mound on lot 15,

alex lagina,

along with archaeologists dr. Aaron taylor

and miriam amirault,

discovered burned charcoal, offering evidence

that significant human activity occurred around this feature.

I'm gonna bag this and run a carbon-14 date on it,

which will tell us when it was burned.

Craig: Do you have either of them with you?

Doug: We have the, uh, charcoal

from the cross section of the body

along with the, uh, nail that was found in that charcoal.

203? That artifact?

-Yes. -Craig: Okay. That one had a date

of 1320 to 1440.

-Period? -Jack: What?

Wow. No-no brackets?

-No.

doug: There is another date that it does match.

-Zena's map? -Yes.

It might be the knights templar.

Narrator: Charcoal found within

the serpent-shaped feature on lot 15?

Dating back as early as the 14th century?

This is virtually the same time period

as a reported knights templar map of oak island

given to the team four years ago

by the late author and researcher zena halpern

as well as the lead cross found three years ago

at smith's cove.

Could they all be connected and be corroborating evidence

as to who is behind the oak island mystery?

What do you say to that, aaron?

That changes the history of the entire region

if that's true.

The only people we know that were prior

to, uh, 1496

were the vikings.

I mean, if you find

a european object dating back to that date,

um, I mean, that puts history on its... On its head.

Marty: If that date is real,

you know, holy smokes.

Those dates tie with a templar influence.

You know, I've always been dubious

about those sorts of things, but...

But here's science.

Craig: Obviously, anytime we get

such an outlier,

it's worth taking the extra steps to make sure

-it's good data. -Aaron: Incredible. If that date

comes back, that's one of the most important, uh, features

in north america. I mean, it changes everything.

And I don't use that lightly.

Rick: I mean, those are early,

early, early dates.

Would it be fantastic? Yes.

But then what happened here?

Is it activities over centuries?

And who was involved? I mean, then it makes

the who, what, when, where, why and how of this thing

even more interesting and complex.

Well, I don't know if it's just me,

but we're getting all kinds of data

that just keeps pushing it back, pushing it back,

and making this island more and more significant.

So once again, uh, to avoid analysis paralysis,

let's get back to work. Agreed?

-Sounds good. -Thanks, everybody.

Rick: See you, guys.

-narrator: As another day begins

on oak island, rick lagina

and billy gerhardt clear brush and small trees

from the southeastern corner of the drained

triangle-shaped swamp...

So I'm gonna zigzag in this direction

and see what we've got.

Narrator: ...While metal detection expert

gary drayton and jack begley begin investigating

the recently-discovered stone pathway

for important clues that could help determine

when it was made and what it was used for.

All we need is one good signal.

It's a regular hive of activity here.

-Jack: Laird, aaron. Hey. -Hey, guys.

-Wow. -Hey, guys.

-Look at the structure. -Wow.

So what...

-What is this? -We've just been

calling it "the stone feature."

maybe this is some sort of a pier.

Maybe it's a road.

But it's definitely some sort of a construction.

I mean, it does look like a roadway, doesn't it?

-Gary: It really does. -Yeah.

-This is more impressive than the paved area. -Yeah.

-It looks more well-built. -Yeah.

Jack: But it's pretty obvious

to you guys, as well, that we have a structure here.

-Oh, yeah, most definitely. -Yeah. Yeah.

What's really... I think the interface, so it's where...

Where this hits the land, I think is gonna be

-pretty interesting, too. -Yeah. -Jack: Mm-hmm.

Especially, you know, maybe

there are associated structures that we can't see.

-Yeah. For sure. -Jack: Yeah.

Dr. Spooner had specified that, from cores that he had taken,

he knows that that layer is, like, 1700s,

-early 1700s. -Gary: Yeah.

-Right. -But if this was some sort of a road,

then maybe they were hauling something up there.

So, gary and I-- we're down here detecting

-to see if we could get any evidence, and... -Yeah.

There's a lot of stuff

that can get lost in and amongst those rocks.

I think this potentially is a very exciting area, and we just

have to be slow and methodical.

What's really exciting, too, is,

because it's in an anaerobic environment,

preservation is amazing.

-Yup. -Jack: It's gonna be in

-pristine condition, yeah. -Aaron: Potentially, yeah.

Okay, we'll continue metal detecting,

and hopefully flag some good targets.

Laird: All right.

-Good stuff, guys. Thanks. -Great.

-Keep in touch. -Gary: Okay, mate. -Aaron: See ya.

You see the area, the other side of the swamp here,

where the guys have been cutting the trees--

well, all that is squashed down now.

So, I say we get stuck in, mate,

and do some metal detecting just over there.

I've got high hopes for this area.

-Coins or artifacts, mate. -Mm-hmm.

-That's what we want. -Yeah.

good-sounding target just here.

Somewhere in that area, mate.

-you got to be kidding me, mate! -Oh!

-It's a coin! -Gary!

-It's a coin, mate! -Oh, yeah.

-What is it? -An oldie, as well!

-It's a british one!

that's crazy! Here's an old british coin.

-What's that say? -"1919."

oh, man. It's not that old, though.

-No. Yeah. -Oh, it's not. Oh, no.

Oh, that's not a... Dang.

Beautiful coin that. I was excited there.

But this-- I just would have loved it to be older.

Was not expecting that. That's crazy, isn't it?

Oh, yeah.

There could be anything in here.

target here, jack.

Jack: I got some good hopes for this one.

That is a hole.

jack: I should've got it.

-jack: More? -Yeah.

-just take that chunk out there, mate.

Might be more to it.

Jack: I sure hope so.

jack: Wow. Come on, be something good.

Let me make sure.

What have we got here, mate?

-Oh, a nice old pin. -Oh!

-Gary: Look at that. -That's great!

Yeah, that is old.

Narrator: While investigating a mysterious

stone pathway in the southeastern corner

of the oak island swamp,

metal detection expert gary drayton and jack begley

have just made a potentially significant discovery.

Jack: Does that have a hole in it?

Gary: Yeah, it has.

Oh, man, that is cool.

It's been punched through.

That hasn't been drilled. It's been punched through.

-Oh, yeah. -'cause, you see, round on that side

and oval on that side.

That is some kind of specialty tool.

It's like a...

-wow. Yeah.

-A plumb bob. -Yeah, it's like a plumb bob.

-Yeah, because... -Oh.

...You'd have something like that

-if you were digging shafts. -And...

I believe you're talking 1600s, 1700s easy with that one.

Narrator: A plumb bob?

And possibly four centuries old?

Dating back to the time of ancient egypt,

a plumb bob is a leveling tool

used to ensure that structures such as wooden shafts

or stone buildings are both vertically straight

and properly centered during their construction.

Could it be that gary and jack have just found

another key piece of evidence of man-made workings on oak island

prior to the discovery of the money pit in 1795?

If so, is it connected to the mysterious stone structure

that the team has just uncovered

or something else hidden in the swamp

that they have yet to find?

It is really, really cool.

It'd be interesting to see what carmen legge thinks of this.

Yeah.

-Rick's got to see this. -Rick, come here.

Gary: Get your eyes on this, mate.

Rick: Hang on.

Tell us what you think this is.

I wish I could tell you with any type of certainty.

Have a gander at that, mate.

It was filled in when we first found it.

-I was thinking a really old spike. -How heavy is it?

I... Oh, it's heavy, mate. You feel that.

Look at that hole that's been punched through the top, mate.

Jack: Yeah, and if that's a plumb bob,

it's more evidence that they were digging shafts and tunnels.

Yeah. Perfect plumb bob.

-I agree with that. -Yeah.

'cause you'd need a tool like that to be able to measure

and not only just make sure

your shaft was straight but get a proper measurement of depth.

Yeah, that's very cool.

it is crazy.

Who knows? You know, when you find a plumb bob,

there might be a shaft in this area or some kind of tunnel.

-So, yeah. -It's a window into time.

It is. It really is.

Carmen can put a-a use to it and maybe a date to it.

Yup. That'll tell a tale.

We need certainly to take a hard look at that.

I mean, if you're gonna drive a shaft,

you certainly need a plumb bob.

You know, it's very plausible.

It's enticing. It's interesting.

What it says is there are answers in that swamp,

and we need to get to the bottom of it.

Whatever it is, it's bloody old.

-This is beautiful. -Yeah. -Yeah.

I still think there's something else in association with that.

-I... But we got to find it. -Yeah.

Okay, we got to get to the bottom of it.

You got to get to the bottom of it.

-Good job. Good luck. -Gary: Thanks. Cheers.

Jack: Well, we'll find some more.

Narrator: After another week of persistent and careful exploration,

rick, marty, craig and their team

appear closer than ever to revealing the secrets behind

the 225-year-old oak island mystery.

Secrets that just may be more incredible

and historic than anyone ever thought possible.

Might the new discoveries that they have made on lot 15

and in the oak island swamp

help to finally resolve the burning questions

of who, what, when, where, why and how?

Perhaps they have just found the pathway

to the answers.

Narrator: Next time on the curse of oak island...

Aaron: What's exciting is

it's like some sort of cribbing.

-Oh, yeah! -And it keeps going.

Good find, mike.

-Look at that head. -Laird: It could,

in theory, go back to the early 1700s.

-Woo-wee! -You sound excited.

-It's an old coin. -jack: All right!

To me, the money pit is related to the mound.

Marty: Maybe you're looking at spoils from

-the original money pit. -There you go.

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