Eighteenth century ship washed up

Interesting wreck materializes overnight

Ponte Vedra Beach in Florida was transformed when the remains of a very old ship was washed up onto the sand.

Julie Turner and her 8-year-old son were taking an early morning walk when they made this fascinating find.

Spanish Main Antiques owner Marc Anthony, a self-proclaimed treasure hunter, told Action News Jax the ship appeared to be from the 18th century.

He said it is extremely rare for such wreckage to wash ashore.

"To actually see this survive and come ashore. This is very, very rare. This is the holy grail of ship wrecks," Anthony said.

Action News Jax was there as an archaeology team surveyed it.

"Taking lots of notes, doing drawings, mapping it out. There are so many details that go into trying to assess the date, where it came from," Tonya Creamer of St. Augustine Lighthouse and Maritime Museum said.

She said it is up to the state to decide what to do with the wreckage.

"This is state land, state beach area, so we just share our knowledge and our information, what we’re documenting right now, with officials and its up to them what to do next," she said.

With thanks to Jacqueline Church Simonds