A battle royal over deep-sea archaeology in the Caribbean

Colombia’s navy found it in 2015 with the help of a firm called Maritime Archaeology Consultants. The discovery prompted a bitter row over the wreck’s ownership. Colombia says the ship is protected as an “inalienable item of cultural interest” because it lies in its territorial waters. Spain argues that it owns the vessel because international law recognises a wreck like the San José as the property of the state whose flag it flew. The Qhara Qhara, an indigenous Bolivian group, says the precious metals on board came from their land, a claim that Colombia’s president, Gustavo Petro, acknowledged last year.