Well, Shiver Me Timbers

[CMD]

America's largest mass burial of pirates discovered on Cape Cod after 300 years....

https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/201...red-300-years/

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-5557385/Archaeologists-Americas-largest-pirate-mass-grave.html

[-=METACOM=-]

Wow, unbelievable...

[2ndoldman]

Great links Charlie. Thank you

[Ron Kelley]

Thanks Charlie, That is an interesting discovery. One thing I didn't understand in the article: If Captain Bellamy's remains were discovered in 1984 then why is there still any question whether it is him 34 years later?

[CMD]

I'd have to re-read it, I guess. I thought they were checking the DNA against a living descendent. I think it's cool that they could actually positively ID his personal gun...

[SDhunter]

Cool thread!

[CMD]

Thanks Charlie, That is an interesting discovery. One thing I didn't understand in the article: If Captain Bellamy's remains were discovered in 1984 then why is there still any question whether it is him 34 years later?

I have not gone back to re-read that, but maybe it was a misprint. I just read in recent weeks that they had identified "Black Sam" because his gun was right beside him. The shipwreck, however was discovered in 1984, but not his remains. His remains were just discovered, pending the DNA test I referenced above.

At this link is a short video describing the discovery of the ship, with a treasure valued at 400 million dollars, in 1984. I am familiar with the discovery, but have never been to the museum, and was not aware that the discoverer never intends to sell any of it.

https://www.coinworld.com/news/world...ilver.all.html

http://www.iflscience.com/editors-bl...-pirate-ever-/

"Researchers are fairly confident that they have found the remains of Bellamy's body at the site, namely because some of the skeletal remains were found immediately next to a unique decorated pistol that matches historical records of Bellamy's gun. To confirm it truly is the infamous pirate, scientists are now carrying out DNA tests on the femur bone which they will compare with the DNA of a male descendant of Bellamy living in the UK."

[CMD]

Here's another short video, describing the discovery, in 1984, of the pirate ship Whydah...

[awassamog]

Welfleet mass

[Kyflintguy]

That's pretty amazing stuff, I'd love to go to a museum sometime to see some artifacts from a sunken pirate ship. Would also be interesting to hear what else they learn from the gravesite. I thought it was very interesting to hear that the crew was so culturally diverse... Very progressive for the time. Thanks for sharing the link Charlie!

[Ron Kelley]

Sadly some of those crew members were slaves.

[Kyflintguy]

Interesting point Ron, I think in some instances they were slaves. But apparently from what I can gather, duiring the "Golden Age" of piracy racial minorities could also be actual crew members rather than only slaves. Lets be honest here, it could be hard to say how much equal opportunity there actually was aboard a pirate vessel and its likely that every crew member could be considered a slave to the Captains orders... But researchers also describe a very democratic nature of pirate vessels politics duiring the so called Golden Age of piracy. I do not know for certain only what I can conjure from others research but it seems like there is enough evidence for the academic community to substantiate that some of those minorities were in fact free as any other crew member, while engaging in acts of piracy.



https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Black_Caesar_(pirate)


https://makinghistoryatmacquarie.wor...rspective/amp/