a mysterious treasure

[asakiyume]

I learned about this story from amaebi, who said it's like part of a folktale, and she's right.

"Treasure Washes up on Venezuela's Shore, Bringing Gold and Hope to a Village,"
by Anatoly Kurmanaev and Isayen Herrera; photos by Adriana Loureiro Fernandez
New York Times December 12, 2020.

Such a story! All this gold, washing up in a poor fishing village. True to folktale form, the first thing to turn up was a gold medallion with an image of the Virgin Mary on it:

The fisherman, Yolman Lares, saw something glisten along the shore. Raking his hand through the sand, he pulled up a gold medallion with an image of the Virgin Mary ... “I began to shake, I cried from joy,” said Mr. Lares, 25. “It was the first time something special has happened to me.”

After that, people found all sorts of things--"hundreds of pieces of gold and silver jewelry, ornaments, and golden nuggets."

Some people think it's ancient pirate treasure, others a miracle from God, others the wreck from some modern-day smugglers' ship, or a government operation to pacify dissatisfaction (... may I just say that I love the idea of the government's nefarious plot involving ... seeding the shore with gold?)

The New York Times commissioned a test on one of the findings, and the results indicated it was probably produced in Europe, and probably in the mid-20th century. So probably not ancient pirate treasure, unless they're time traveling pirates. But the other explanations are all still on the table.

Yolman Lares sold what he found and used the money to buy food--so the family can eat two meals a day for a while instead of just one--some sweets for his kids, and a used speaker to go with the TV he fixed, so the family can enjoy some entertainment. He kept a pair of gold earrings, though:

a pair of simple gold earrings decorated with a star. Despite the pressing need, he doesn’t want to part with them because they remind him of the ancient navigators who crossed the Caribbean guided by the stars.

“It is the only pretty thing that I have,” he said.

The photos accompanying the article are beautiful. These are just two of them, but the others, showing things like a haul of sardines or the inside of a house, are wonderful too.

Comments

[mallorys_camera]

Produced in Europe during the mid-20th century? That is just wild! Yesd, absolutely! A fairytale come true.

[asakiyume]

If you can access the NYT, you should read the whole story--it is perfection. (And if not, if you just search on the title, you'll find similar stories from other outlets.)

[mallorys_camera]

I have a perpetual NYT sub thanks to the Numbah One son, so yes, I read.

You're right: Perfection.

[asakiyume]

I'm really impressed with how the writers chose to tell it, you know? Both the magic they infused it with by starting with the story of the medallion, and also the understated but effective way they threw the poverty of the place into high relief without demeaning the people there, and the way they *also* put in an explanation for how the economy there worked in good times and how things had collapsed. I had not thought through, before reading it, how devastating a loss of access to oil/gasoline would be.

[mallorys_camera]

A close friend of mine—lifeinroseland on LJ —is Venezuealan. So, I've kept up. She says it is simultaneously worse and better than what you read.

And I agree. Incredibly well written story and the photos are amazing.

[asakiyume]

Wow! Yeah, I follow her on LJ--except that I never look at LJ anymore! I somehow thought she was Argentinian. Yikes.