11x17 - Piling On
Posted: 04/17/24 08:33
Tonight on the
curse of oak island...
We have new information
about the stone pile in lot 15.
The conclusion is they
were made by the templars.
This is really cool.
This could be medieval.
That could be a
friend of the cross.
Is it a match for
other artifacts
- we found on the island?
- Yeah.
Whoa.
Those are big beams.
I've been in a lot of old
mines. Never seen this.
That's oak island money
pit history right here.
Yeah, it is.
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
man-made workings that
date to medieval times,
and a lead cross whose
origin may be connected
to 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.
That's a strong as a
wind as I've ever been in.
Yeah.
I wonder how the island did.
That's what we're
gonna figure out, right?
There's a potential
that it's really quite bad.
A new morning has dawned
under a cloud of great concern
for Rick lagina, his nephew Alex
and Jack begley as they
make their way to oak island.
Well, the causeway's there.
Yeah, I know, it
looks pretty good.
a devastating storm
known as hurricane Lee
reached the eastern
coastline of Nova Scotia,
causing torrential
rains, flooding
and millions of dollars in
damage to the province.
The swamp is full.
Yeah.
- That's a lot of water to pump out.
- It's a lot of water.
Speaking of that, I think
we'll start the pump right now.
Wow. Look how deep it is.
- You remember how deep -t-those digs were.
- Yeah.
There's-there's three,
four feet of water in there.
Finding the swamp, which
was drained several weeks ago,
now nearly refilled
with rain and seawater
is especially
frustrating for the team.
Let's start the pumps.
It means that they
will have to spend
the rest of the
week pumping it dry,
and won't be able to
explore critical areas
such as the region near the
- It's going.
- Where just one week ago,
they discovered
axe-cut tree stumps
that dated back to as
early the 14th century.
Let's go check on the money pit.
The storm has
been very detrimental
to the search agenda.
It looks okay.
Well, they're working,
that's a good thing.
Mother nature has done
what mother nature does,
and thus, we have
to have Patience.
And we will continue
to move forward.
- Good morning, Roger.
- Hey, how's it going, guys?
So, what happened?
It was rough,
with the hurricane, but
little to no damage here.
Are you ready to start
- digging again today?
- Yeah, for sure.
We've been, we dug
quite a bit yesterday.
Actually, we dug
down to 99 feet.
Wow.
The fact that the hurricane
did not prevent representatives
of dumas contracting limited
from continuing to deepen
the 18th-century structure
known as the garden shaft
means that the team's most
important operation of the year
has thankfully not
been interrupted.
So, is the tunnel exposed?
So, that's what we're...
Planning on doing next.
We're gonna get
in there and expose
that-that timber that's there.
Okay.
In the coming days,
dumas is hopeful that they
will be able to fully expose
a seven-foot-tall tunnel
nearly 100 feet deep
just below the garden shaft.
A tunnel that leads due west
into the so-called baby blob,
where high-trace
evidence of precious metals
has been detected
in the groundwater
between 80 and
Nothing detrimental
happened to the garden shaft.
We should be very
grateful for that,
because now they can
move seamlessly forward.
That's why we're here.
We're here to treasure hunt.
We're here to solve a mystery.
Anyway, rog, we're
glad that you stayed safe,
- your team stayed safe.
- Yep.
You get to that
wood, give us a call.
We've got a lot
of cleanup to do.
- So, we're gonna get after it.
- Yeah.
- Good luck today.
- Sounds good.
- All right. Thanks, Roger.
- Talk to you later, guys.
Later that afternoon...
- Hey, gentlemen.
- Hello, gentlemen.
Hey guys.
Ciao. So, I think this
w*r room in particular
might reflect what we
have long sought to do:
Establish some sort
of origination story
to the oak island mystery.
Sì.
In the w*r room,
Rick, along with
his brother Marty,
Craig tester and other
members of the team
are meeting via video conference
with archaeoastronomy expert
professor adriano gaspani.
We have professor
gaspani with us today.
We obviously have Emiliano,
and we have Michael amadio,
who is going to
be the interpreter
for professor gaspani.
As you know, we
met professor gaspani
last year outside of Rome.
He quite literally shocked
us with his interpretation
of Nolan's cross and its
import here on the island.
Boy.
- Stunning.
- Everything is just so well-built.
- Yeah. Really.
- Wow.
In 2022, Rick and
members of the team
visited numerous sites in Italy
that once served as strongholds
for the knights templar,
the medieval order
of warrior monks
who some believe made
numerous visits to oak island
in order to hide priceless
religious treasures
between the 12th
and 17th centuries.
Hey, Rick.
Check this out.
We have seen
this symbol before...
- On oak island.
- H+o stone. - Yeah.
During their visit,
they not only saw a
number of carved symbols
that have been
found over the years
on and near oak island
but also met with
professor gaspani
regarding the megalithic
formation of six boulders
that were discovered
in 1981 by Fred Nolan,
known as Nolan's cross.
According to professor
gaspani's 40 years of expertise
in the field of
archaeoastronomy,
the boulders in Nolan's cross
were positioned on oak island
to align with certain
stars in the night sky.
And furthermore, by
studying the historic positions
of those stars, he
was able to determine
the approximate time
period that it was created.
Wow.
We have tasked professor gaspani
with looking at the research
with new information
and new perspective.
Yes, some of the
additional information
we sent to professor
gaspani to consider
were the location of
the stone piles on lot 15
and the stone triangle,
to see if there's any
astronomical relevance
to those as well.
Now, after being
given the coordinates
of other megalithic
stone formations
that have been discovered
during the past two
centuries on oak island,
including the remains of five
stone piles located on lot 15
that were shaped like pyramids,
and which were first
documented by Fred Nolan
back in the 1960s,
and the stone triangle,
which was
unfortunately destroyed
by searcher activities in 1965,
professor gaspani
has prepared a report
on their possible
origins as well.
I turn it over to
professor gaspani.
I'm quite excited to listen
to what he has to tell us.
Perfetto.
Right.
Similar to Nolan's cross,
it is professor gaspani's
belief that the positions
of the five stone
piles on lot 15
were constructed long
ago, according to alignments
with specific stars,
including the sun,
as well as the position of
the moon in the night sky.
And, thus, by
calculating how long ago
the positions of the
piles perfectly aligned
with those stars in relation
to the position of the moon,
he can approximate when
the piles were created.
And so, somebody
was on the island
all those years, laying
out those piles of stones,
and the stones of
the Nolan's cross.
Wow.
- Amazing.
- That's pretty cool.
It's incredible.
In the w*r room,
archaeoastronomy expert
professor adriano gaspani
has just presented
the oak island team
with an astonishing
scientific report.
He believes that Nolan's cross
and the five stone piles,
or cairns, located on lot 15
were possibly created by
the same group of people
nearly 800 years ago.
There is a level of certainty,
a level of coincidence
which is incredible.
Right.
So, can the professor
speculate as to the people
who constructed it?
Wow.
There's intelligent
design to this, it seems.
Esatto.
The templar order?
Could professor
gaspani be correct?
If so, would that explain
why the team has
seen numerous carvings
in former templar
strongholds across Europe
that have also been
found on oak island?
Might it explain who created
the paved area in the swamp,
in addition to Nolan's cross,
the stone cairns on lot 15
and the stone triangle?
And, finally, could it also
identify who was responsible
for the high-trace
evidence of gold,
silver and other metals
that have been detected
in the money pit area?
I think Dr. Gaspani is correct.
It turns the oak island
history on its ear.
It may even turn
history as it's understood
in terms of European
contact on its ear
and in the maritimes, for sure.
The message is a secret.
It's not for everybody to know.
The conclusion is they
were made by the templars.
That's a fact.
The amazing thing is
that it was constructed
by Europeans.
The level of certainty
he has put to it is amazing.
I've always believed in the
importance of Nolan's cross.
But now we have to come
to a complete understanding
of the stone cairns,
what the stone
triangle represents.
So we need to get busy.
Yeah.
Professori gaspani, um,
it's an incredible presentation.
And we may have
some follow-up questions
after we have time to
think about it a little bit.
- Okay.
- Grazie.
The following morning,
as restoration efforts
continue across the island...
We're going deep.
Here we are right here, Charles.
Bedrock is gonna be about
Yeah.
In the money pit area,
Charles barkhouse joins
geologist Terry Matheson
to supervise a new
core-drilling operation
in borehole f.25-8.25
located 55 feet southwest
of the garden shaft.
We're very close to rf-1
and that's the reason
why we're drilling this hole.
- Yeah.
- Because we found
- such interesting artifacts in rf-1.
- Yes.
So it's very interesting.
Look at all the wood.
- That is spectacular.
- That's cool.
In 2019,
the team first excavated an
eight-foot-wide steel caisson
in this area, known as rf-1.
Incredibly, below
a depth of 100 feet,
they unearthed the
handle of a pickax
as well as massive
wooden timbers that,
just one week ago,
were scientifically proven
to have originated in Europe.
So this is a very interesting
area and hopefully,
- now we can find something else.
- Yep.
Now, because recent
water testing in this area
has also yielded high
traces of gold and silver
below a depth of 150 feet,
the team is hoping to find more
evidence of man-made workings
and ultimately, the source
of the precious metals...
Here it comes.
That have been detected
deep underground.
- Thank you, my friend.
- Eight.
What've we got?
Eight feet below grade.
- Here we go, Charles.
- Yep.
- Zero to eight.
- I think that's going to be it.
Looks like they've
locked onto cobble.
This is all we... all
the recovery we have.
Not so much to write
home about here, Charles.
Very early days, yep.
We've got quite a ways to go.
As the drilling
operation continues
in the money pit area
some 200 yards to the
northwest on lot 15...
This is an important
area for us, mate.
Metal detection
expert Gary drayton
and Jack begley arrive at
the site of the stone cairns.
It's become really important
due to professor gaspani's work.
We're looking for
anything that could allude
to that 12, 1300s visit.
Yeah. Well, now you're
in my wheelhouse, mate.
I'm from england.
I search for medieval treasure.
You ready to get stuck in?
- Let's get started.
- Okay.
When these five stone formations
were first surveyed by
Fred Nolan in the 1960s,
they were described
as pyramid-shaped
and stood between
five and seven feet high.
However, since then,
searcher activities caused them
to be partially dismantled.
First flag here.
All right. Right next
to these stones.
Great sounding signal.
Just there, mate.
Dang.
Is this one of the
piles or something?
It's out.
That's a lot of stones.
Let's see what we've got.
What have we got here?
Ooh, hoo, hoo, hoo.
Now, this is interesting.
What have we got here?
- Ho, ho.
- Is that a bit of lead?
- Yeah, a bit of lead.
- It's like a lead strip.
On lot 15, located
several hundred feet
northwest of the
money pit area...
- Now, this is interesting.
- Yeah, that is.
Gary drayton and Jack
begley have just found
a potentially important
clue near the believed
This is fantastic, mate.
It's shaped.
That could be very,
very interesting, mate,
'cause it looks decorated.
And it was made
like that on purpose.
This has the potential
to be medieval.
- You think it's medieval?
- Yeah.
- Honestly?
- Yeah. I really do, mate.
When I'm working
medieval sites in england
with me metal detector,
you find a lot of old
iron and a lot of old lead.
And then, if you're lucky,
you find medieval
silver and gold.
I think we've just scored
a really great find on lot 15,
right next to these
old stone piles.
This might link back, somehow,
to help prove professor
gaspani's work.
The so-called medieval period
was an era of European history
that lasted from
roughly 500 to 1500 ad.
Could Gary drayton be correct
that this lead artifact may
be more than 600 years old?
If so, might it
offer hard evidence
that professor
adriano gaspani's belief
that the stone piles,
or cairns, were created
in the 13th century is true?
This is fantastic, mate.
I can't wait to see
the data on this.
I think we should take
it straight to the lab.
Yep. I'm with you, mate.
- Sweet find, Gary.
- Good digging, mate.
While Gary and Jack
finish their search on lot 15...
- Hey, Roger.
- How's it going, Scott?
Good.
You've uncovered some
wood down there, now?
Yeah. So Rodney just gave
me a call not too long ago
and, yeah,
he's uncovered quite
a bit of wood, actually.
Operations manager Scott Barlow
meets with Roger fortin
in the money pit area
after being informed
that representatives
from dumas contracting limited
have finally uncovered
a large section
of the believed treasure tunnel
located just below
the garden shaft
at a depth of some
This is exciting.
- Yeah, yeah.
- This is what we've been
- waiting for.
- Absolutely, and that's why
I told Rodney to
stop and they know
before we start
excavating, I want
to make sure nothing
gets damaged,
that we'll go at it
nice and easy and-and
preserve every little
piece that's in there.
- It's a big day on oak island.
- Yeah.
Absolutely. Absolutely.
Very few people have
had this opportunity
and we're fortunate
enough to be unearthing
a very old tunnel,
potentially a depositor tunnel.
- This is exciting.
- Yeah.
- Let's go down and have a look.
- Sounds good.
Grab's out of the hole.
Working with the guys from
dumas, I mean, it's a privilege.
They're hard-working guys.
You know, they're miners.
It's back-breaking work.
They're down there.
They're on their hands and
their knees. They're chipping.
They're digging.
They're doing whatever
it takes to move this material.
But the great this about it is,
they're just as excited
as we are for this project.
They want to put their hands
and their eyes on this tunnel.
They want to see
what we want to see.
Scotty, do you want to
come and take a closer look?
Yeah.
- Yes.
- That's impressive structure.
I mean, look at the
size of those planks.
- Yes.
- The beams.
- Yeah, all logs of different sizes.
- Yeah.
- Wow.
- Look at the size of those.
I mean, we can get some
great information from that.
That's gonna be, you
know, 12 or 14 inches across.
Yeah.
It's a pretty exciting
moment to be down there
and to put eyes
on this wood that,
you know, nobody's seen
for potentially
upwards of 400 years.
Pretty incredible.
When we see this
rounded edge here,
like that looks like it
may even have bark on it.
The log, you look
at the size of that,
that rounded as an outside edge,
and we can see
the center in there
there's a lot of rings in there.
Which is great, that's a good
indicator that it's old growth.
A possibly older,
rounded timber,
found nearly 100 feet
underground in the garden shaft?
In 1804, when treasure hunters
began the first major
excavation of the money pit,
they reported finding
a series of platforms
made of round
logs every ten feet,
down to the 90-foot level.
Is it possible that this
tunnel may be connected
to the original treasure shaft?
If so, just what might the
team find at the end of it?
I can't wait to get
this uncovered
and get some of this
material out of here.
Yeah. You and I both.
We might be able to slide
that plank right out of there.
Yeah, you can
tell, there's like, say,
you got a piece here, a
piece there, a piece here.
I think that tunnel
would be probably
no more than five feet wide.
There's kind of, like, wedges,
like, if you can take
that wedge off right there.
Let's give it her try, yep.
That piece looks
like it's loose, Scott.
You might be able
to pry that right up.
Yep.
There we go. Look at that.
Definitely a wedge.
This looks like
bark there as well.
You don't get more
homemade wedge than that.
This is pretty exciting.
We should let Rick know
that we're on this and
starting to remove some stuff.
For sure he's gonna be
excited to put eyes on this.
Yeah.
I've been in a lot of old
mines, never seen this.
- Let's keep digging.
- Sounds good.
- Okay, Rick.
- All set?
All set. I'll hold
the ladder for you.
Coming down.
It is an extraordinary
moment for Rick lagina.
Having been alerted
that a large section of the
possible treasure tunnel,
located just beneath
the garden shaft
at a depth of some 100
feet, has been exposed.
Look at that. Right there. Wow.
- Those are big beams.
- They are. - Yeah.
And no two are the same.
- That's impressive.
- Yeah.
To get down there and realize
that there is hard evidence
that the tunnel is not a
interpretation, it's real,
you get a little bit of chills.
Now we need to understand
its relevance to the mystery.
Boy, I'd love to get
one of those, though.
Well, what we're gonna
do is clean some of it off
and then we're gonna try
to get the whole length out.
And I think it would
be nice to get that one.
Yeah.
And then this one here
we know is good and wide.
Yep.
And this one is
definitely rounded here.
This is much thinner here.
- And that could be an upright piece.
- Yep.
It's cool. It's very cool,
especially given
the c-14 results.
So, that's why it's imperative
that we get samples.
It is.
The whole idea of what
happened in the money pit,
you know, we have a timeline.
Earlier this year, wood
samples from this tunnel,
which the team obtained
during a core-drilling operation,
were carbon-dated
to the 17th century.
You know, you'd want to
get that piece out whole.
Yeah. Absolutely.
But now that much more of
the structure has been revealed,
the team will remove
some of the massive beams
for additional testing, in
the hopes of confirming
just when this
tunnel was created.
It's a year of pivotal moments.
Timber there.
I think the professor
gaspani's work is pivotal.
This recovery of these timbers
may be a pivotal moment
if it represents original work.
This is important.
What I'd like to see happen here
is these three
timbers right here,
even the fourth one
being the one on top,
get one pulled out so we
can see a whole length.
- Absolutely. We can get that done for you.
- Great.
If this is original depositor,
there's a good chance
that there may be treasure
at the end of this tunnel.
- Yep.
- But I also want to get Steve guptill
to come down
here and survey this.
- Yes.
- Great.
I wonder, just, you know,
have Gary come down,
scan that real quick.
- Yep.
- Yep. Absolutely.
- So, anyway, we will let you get started.
- Yes.
And I will get up
and out of your way.
My thought was, you know,
to have Gary come
down, I mean, why not?
It is a treasure
hunt, after all.
And we have exposed a new area
for him to investigate.
- Ready, Gary?
- Yep. Ready, mate.
And hope that we find
a artifact or artifacts
that can be associated
with cultural context
as it relates to the construct.
- How freaking awesome is this?
- It's pretty great.
- We got everything we need, Gary.
- Thanks, mate.
Time to unleash the beast.
You guys ready to
find some treasure?
Let's find some treasure.
Let's strike up the magic wand.
Right.
See if there's any
metals in there.
And unfortunately, I can't
get too close to this iron.
All right, mate, well,
unfortunately, no hits
but we ain't finished yet, mate.
If you can hang
on to my detector,
- I'm gonna try pinpointing.
- Sure.
- You've got it.
- It's in me hand.
Let's see what we got.
- It is this.
- What is that?
Tough to tell what it is.
I'm not getting a
rapid vibration off it,
which would tell me it's iron.
- So, this is gonna go back to the lab.
- Yep.
And hopefully, Emma's got
some great news about this.
All right.
- Good find, Gary.
- Yeah. All right.
Let's see what we got here.
Fingers crossed.
Gary, you've got another hit.
Yep. Now, what have we got here?
Yeah. We have
got a piece of metal.
Look, it's shaped.
- See that flat edge on it?
- - Yeah.
It's an interesting
shape, for sure.
You seen anything like
this from your operation?
So, it's probably from
the tunnel construction.
Yeah.
Even more curious now.
Yeah, it really is.
Could Gary be correct
that this metal artifact
may have been used
in the construction
of the tunnel?
It's fantastic news.
If so, could it be
another critical clue
that could help
the team determine
just when it was built?
All right, chaps.
I'm gonna put this
in the front pocket
there and zip it.
Do you want me to help you
do some measurements, mate?
I wouldn't mind. For
the first time, I can put
survey control
points on this tunnel
and this is gonna help me draft
and project this
tunnel accurately now
because this is the first
time we've stood on it.
Okay, mate.
I think it's great we're
doing this, Steve,
for good measure.
While Steve and Gary
complete their survey
of the tunnel beneath
the garden shaft
I think we have a
core coming up now.
Some 50 feet to the southwest...
- What do we got, Adam?
- One fifty-one.
One fifty-one.
Geologist Terry Matheson
and oak island historian
Charles barkhouse
are continuing to monitor
the core-drilling operation
in borehole f.25-8.25.
Thank you, Adam.
A borehole where
they hope to find
more evidence of another
man-made structure
- more than 150 feet deep...
- Scalpel.
That, according to
recent scientific testing
is of European origin.
Let's slice this open
and take a look.
- We've got wood here, Terry.
- What?
- We got wood.
- Wow.
Yeah. This is all
undisturbed here.
So, we must be right at
the edge of something.
You know, Terry,
the fact that we're finding
wood at this depth...
We could maybe be in
the original money pit.
So, all the more
important we get a sample.
Absolutely.
- That's what we do, right?
- Yeah.
Well, we got
another core coming.
And hopefully we'll pull up
some of that real treasure.
Yeah.
What have you got, Adam?
- One seventy-one.
- One seventy-one.
- Ooh, looks like we're into bedrock.
- Yeah.
Yep. We're into the
side of the bedrock.
Yeah.
And here's some
more of that punky,
relatively soft material.
M-Much harder
gypsum bedrock here.
Yeah.
This stuff is just as
mother nature left it.
It is an unfortunate revelation
for Charles and Terry
that the drilling operation
has reached bedrock
at a depth of some 170 feet.
However, since they
recovered evidence
of a wooden structure
less than 20 feet higher
and have also detected
precious metals in this area,
could it be that they
just missed direct contact
with something of great
importance or value?
We are in and
out of old workings.
- Yeah.
- Something went on down there.
Let's, clear this table
and hopefully have
another target to drill on.
There's still a lot of areas
where-where we haven't drilled.
Absolutely.
We'll move on.
Mystery abounds on oak island.
Certainly does.
As an exciting new day
begins on oak island.
All right, guys.
If you're ready, we're
gonna get this wood up.
- Okey doke.
- Yep.
- Let's do it.
- Rick lagina
and other members of the team
arrive in the money pit area
as massive timbers from
the potential treasure tunnel,
located some 100
feet underground,
are about to be removed
from the garden shaft.
All right, Jeremy.
Let's get her up here.
We've never had
this opportunity before
and we need to make certain
we do everything we can
to understand
what this represents.
Here it comes right here.
I absolutely hope
that this leads us
five steps closer to-to
solving the mystery.
Not quite. Now I do.
You can see in
that piece of wood
a man down there
cutting that timber,
creating that tunnel
to-to go somewhere,
hopefully, to hide treasure.
Look at that. We got
a rounded edge here
- and rounded on this side.
- Yep.
And it's adze-cut.
Yeah, that's adze-cut.
A timber cut with an adze?
Dating back to the
days of ancient Egypt,
an adze was a
type of cutting tool
designed for the construction
of ships and wooden structures,
until the 18th century,
when they were replaced
by mechanized tools.
That's a bit of oak island
money pit history right here.
So now, the question is
just how long before
the 18th century
might this tunnel
have been created?
Watch your fingers.
It's real aha moment.
There's no question about it.
After all the struggles
and all the setbacks
and all the time
and all the effort,
to see it there
in front of you...
Well, this is real history,
and I want to
hold it in my hand.
This has more going for it
than anything else so far.
I mean, this could lead
right to the treasure.
We don't know yet.
Let me just test it,
see if it's sturdy
enough for a gold dance.
Yeah. It will be.
The good news is
we still do have the
horizontal drilling.
- Still to come.
- Still to come.
Because the tunnel must be
more fully exposed and inspected
before the team can
possibly access it,
in the coming days,
representatives from
dumas contracting limited
will conduct a
probe-drilling operation
from the bottom
of the garden shaft
into the tunnel's interior
to hopefully pinpoint the
source of the precious metals
that have been detected
nearby in the baby blob.
Kudos to everybody,
especially the guys down hole,
you know, 'cause
they did the work.
Let's stay the course,
get as much
information as we can.
So, it's been a very good day.
While the operation
continues in the garden shaft,
later that afternoon...
- Hey, Rick.
- Laird. How are you? Emma?
- Hey.
- Hey.
Rick, his nephew Alex
and Doug crowell join
archaeologist laird niven
and archaeometallurgist
Emma culligan
in the oak island laboratory.
So, I see this artifact
that was found on lot 15.
Was it found close to
the, stone cairn piles?
Yes.
They are eager to hear
Emma's scientific analysis
of the decorative lead artifact
that was found just one day ago
near the potentially
located on lot 15.
Is it a match for any of
the other lead artifacts
we found on the island?
Um, so, because it's lead,
I can't give 100%
confirmation of a match.
But 99%, which
is still pretty good.
It matched a lot with
an artifact from 2021.
Which I do have
here in the lab..
That was the piece
Chris mcfarlane found a hit
as being possibly from
Scandinavian origin.
- Here we go.
- Two years ago,
while searching lot 13
between the swamp
and the money pit...
What the heck?
- That's lead!
- Yeah.
Gary drayton and Peter fornetti
found a lead artifact with
a decorative, spiral design.
This is the data
for the twisted rod.
An artifact that surprised
geochemist Dr. Chris mcfarlane
after he conducted a
form of isotope testing on it
known as laser ablation.
When we run the results
through the database,
one source would be
in eastern scandinavia.
Here it is, right here.
Lot 13... where this
twisted lead was found...
That's just
downhill from lot 15.
Professor gaspani
posited this idea
that those stone cairns were
placed there in the 1200s,
so any and all metal artifacts,
whether they're
precious metal or not,
could play a part in
identifying who was there,
possibly, in that time period.
- So, yeah. I think it's important.
- Correct. Yep.
And given this item being found
in such close proximity
to the stone cairns,
I think we have to,
follow up on that:
A possible Scandinavian
connection to the island.
I think we have to, follow up
on a possible Scandinavian
connection to the island.
In the oak island laboratory,
Rick lagina and
members of the team
have just found out
that a lead artifact
unearthed just one day ago
on lot 15, near
the stone cairns,
is a near compositional
match to the lead object
that was found two
years ago on lot 13
and may have come
from scandinavia.
It's certainly probable
if not definitive
that this is not a north
American mystery, I.E.,
it wasn't originated here.
It had to have come
from the old world.
In years past, we've
investigated the possibility
that the knights templar
were behind this mystery.
The only people that we know of
for sure that made the voyage
pre-columbian are the norse.
The historical record
and some science
puts the norse
along these shores,
like I'anse aux meadows, right?
Where else they were
is another question.
And we also know
that the templars
were at the height
of their power
in the same time period.
So, did they know each other?
It is well documented
that the Scandinavian
warrior civilization
known as the norse, or vikings,
explored and
established settlements
on the north American continent
including Iceland,
Greenland and new brunswick
as much as 1,000 years ago.
But could Doug's idea
that the vikings may have
possibly been connected
to the knights templar
as well as the
oak island mystery
have any basis in reality?
I think it's imperative to
follow up on that research.
If so, could that
explain how structures
like the paved
area in the swamp,
the stone cairns on lot 15
and these lead artifacts
came to be on oak island?
Could that also explain
the man-made workings
that were recovered from
deep in the rf-1 caisson
and which are potentially
of Scandinavian origin,
as well as the traces
of gold and silver
that have been detected
in the money pit area?
I've always said it's
a wonderful mystery,
and that's why it's complex.
And that's why it's interesting.
And that's why it
continues to puzzle.
So, when you
take items like this,
you have to find the context.
You know, you have
to find the one thing.
- And we only need one.
- One.
One that connects the norse,
perhaps norse-templar
connection,
to those constructs
up on that hill.
Now, with what we're finding
and with what professor
gaspani is-is suggesting,
your one thing might be
found outside the money pit.
We just have to find it.
Emma, laird, again,
thank you both very much.
I think we've got
some homework to do.
- Let's get after it. -All right.
- Take care, guys.
- Thank you.
- Thanks.
Another historic week on
oak island has come to an end.
And like many
others in recent years,
it may have revealed
another chapter in a mystery
that now appears to
stretch back further in time
and to further
regions of the globe
than anyone ever
dreamed possible.
As Rick, Marty and
the team continue to dig,
just what will they find?
And where might it lead them
on their quest for
the ultimate answers?
Next time on the
curse of oak island...
We found these
in the garden shaft.
It's very old.
It definitely wasn't used
to put together structures.
It could be off
boxes on a treasure.
There's a wall in the swamp.
It could be related
to the stone road.
That red stuff is what's
underneath the stone road...
That will place
that wood structure
further back in time.
Vikings had knowledge
of North America
with contacts to early templars.
They could have had
knowledge of this area.
That's correct.
curse of oak island...
We have new information
about the stone pile in lot 15.
The conclusion is they
were made by the templars.
This is really cool.
This could be medieval.
That could be a
friend of the cross.
Is it a match for
other artifacts
- we found on the island?
- Yeah.
Whoa.
Those are big beams.
I've been in a lot of old
mines. Never seen this.
That's oak island money
pit history right here.
Yeah, it is.
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
man-made workings that
date to medieval times,
and a lead cross whose
origin may be connected
to 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.
That's a strong as a
wind as I've ever been in.
Yeah.
I wonder how the island did.
That's what we're
gonna figure out, right?
There's a potential
that it's really quite bad.
A new morning has dawned
under a cloud of great concern
for Rick lagina, his nephew Alex
and Jack begley as they
make their way to oak island.
Well, the causeway's there.
Yeah, I know, it
looks pretty good.
a devastating storm
known as hurricane Lee
reached the eastern
coastline of Nova Scotia,
causing torrential
rains, flooding
and millions of dollars in
damage to the province.
The swamp is full.
Yeah.
- That's a lot of water to pump out.
- It's a lot of water.
Speaking of that, I think
we'll start the pump right now.
Wow. Look how deep it is.
- You remember how deep -t-those digs were.
- Yeah.
There's-there's three,
four feet of water in there.
Finding the swamp, which
was drained several weeks ago,
now nearly refilled
with rain and seawater
is especially
frustrating for the team.
Let's start the pumps.
It means that they
will have to spend
the rest of the
week pumping it dry,
and won't be able to
explore critical areas
such as the region near the
- It's going.
- Where just one week ago,
they discovered
axe-cut tree stumps
that dated back to as
early the 14th century.
Let's go check on the money pit.
The storm has
been very detrimental
to the search agenda.
It looks okay.
Well, they're working,
that's a good thing.
Mother nature has done
what mother nature does,
and thus, we have
to have Patience.
And we will continue
to move forward.
- Good morning, Roger.
- Hey, how's it going, guys?
So, what happened?
It was rough,
with the hurricane, but
little to no damage here.
Are you ready to start
- digging again today?
- Yeah, for sure.
We've been, we dug
quite a bit yesterday.
Actually, we dug
down to 99 feet.
Wow.
The fact that the hurricane
did not prevent representatives
of dumas contracting limited
from continuing to deepen
the 18th-century structure
known as the garden shaft
means that the team's most
important operation of the year
has thankfully not
been interrupted.
So, is the tunnel exposed?
So, that's what we're...
Planning on doing next.
We're gonna get
in there and expose
that-that timber that's there.
Okay.
In the coming days,
dumas is hopeful that they
will be able to fully expose
a seven-foot-tall tunnel
nearly 100 feet deep
just below the garden shaft.
A tunnel that leads due west
into the so-called baby blob,
where high-trace
evidence of precious metals
has been detected
in the groundwater
between 80 and
Nothing detrimental
happened to the garden shaft.
We should be very
grateful for that,
because now they can
move seamlessly forward.
That's why we're here.
We're here to treasure hunt.
We're here to solve a mystery.
Anyway, rog, we're
glad that you stayed safe,
- your team stayed safe.
- Yep.
You get to that
wood, give us a call.
We've got a lot
of cleanup to do.
- So, we're gonna get after it.
- Yeah.
- Good luck today.
- Sounds good.
- All right. Thanks, Roger.
- Talk to you later, guys.
Later that afternoon...
- Hey, gentlemen.
- Hello, gentlemen.
Hey guys.
Ciao. So, I think this
w*r room in particular
might reflect what we
have long sought to do:
Establish some sort
of origination story
to the oak island mystery.
Sì.
In the w*r room,
Rick, along with
his brother Marty,
Craig tester and other
members of the team
are meeting via video conference
with archaeoastronomy expert
professor adriano gaspani.
We have professor
gaspani with us today.
We obviously have Emiliano,
and we have Michael amadio,
who is going to
be the interpreter
for professor gaspani.
As you know, we
met professor gaspani
last year outside of Rome.
He quite literally shocked
us with his interpretation
of Nolan's cross and its
import here on the island.
Boy.
- Stunning.
- Everything is just so well-built.
- Yeah. Really.
- Wow.
In 2022, Rick and
members of the team
visited numerous sites in Italy
that once served as strongholds
for the knights templar,
the medieval order
of warrior monks
who some believe made
numerous visits to oak island
in order to hide priceless
religious treasures
between the 12th
and 17th centuries.
Hey, Rick.
Check this out.
We have seen
this symbol before...
- On oak island.
- H+o stone. - Yeah.
During their visit,
they not only saw a
number of carved symbols
that have been
found over the years
on and near oak island
but also met with
professor gaspani
regarding the megalithic
formation of six boulders
that were discovered
in 1981 by Fred Nolan,
known as Nolan's cross.
According to professor
gaspani's 40 years of expertise
in the field of
archaeoastronomy,
the boulders in Nolan's cross
were positioned on oak island
to align with certain
stars in the night sky.
And furthermore, by
studying the historic positions
of those stars, he
was able to determine
the approximate time
period that it was created.
Wow.
We have tasked professor gaspani
with looking at the research
with new information
and new perspective.
Yes, some of the
additional information
we sent to professor
gaspani to consider
were the location of
the stone piles on lot 15
and the stone triangle,
to see if there's any
astronomical relevance
to those as well.
Now, after being
given the coordinates
of other megalithic
stone formations
that have been discovered
during the past two
centuries on oak island,
including the remains of five
stone piles located on lot 15
that were shaped like pyramids,
and which were first
documented by Fred Nolan
back in the 1960s,
and the stone triangle,
which was
unfortunately destroyed
by searcher activities in 1965,
professor gaspani
has prepared a report
on their possible
origins as well.
I turn it over to
professor gaspani.
I'm quite excited to listen
to what he has to tell us.
Perfetto.
Right.
Similar to Nolan's cross,
it is professor gaspani's
belief that the positions
of the five stone
piles on lot 15
were constructed long
ago, according to alignments
with specific stars,
including the sun,
as well as the position of
the moon in the night sky.
And, thus, by
calculating how long ago
the positions of the
piles perfectly aligned
with those stars in relation
to the position of the moon,
he can approximate when
the piles were created.
And so, somebody
was on the island
all those years, laying
out those piles of stones,
and the stones of
the Nolan's cross.
Wow.
- Amazing.
- That's pretty cool.
It's incredible.
In the w*r room,
archaeoastronomy expert
professor adriano gaspani
has just presented
the oak island team
with an astonishing
scientific report.
He believes that Nolan's cross
and the five stone piles,
or cairns, located on lot 15
were possibly created by
the same group of people
nearly 800 years ago.
There is a level of certainty,
a level of coincidence
which is incredible.
Right.
So, can the professor
speculate as to the people
who constructed it?
Wow.
There's intelligent
design to this, it seems.
Esatto.
The templar order?
Could professor
gaspani be correct?
If so, would that explain
why the team has
seen numerous carvings
in former templar
strongholds across Europe
that have also been
found on oak island?
Might it explain who created
the paved area in the swamp,
in addition to Nolan's cross,
the stone cairns on lot 15
and the stone triangle?
And, finally, could it also
identify who was responsible
for the high-trace
evidence of gold,
silver and other metals
that have been detected
in the money pit area?
I think Dr. Gaspani is correct.
It turns the oak island
history on its ear.
It may even turn
history as it's understood
in terms of European
contact on its ear
and in the maritimes, for sure.
The message is a secret.
It's not for everybody to know.
The conclusion is they
were made by the templars.
That's a fact.
The amazing thing is
that it was constructed
by Europeans.
The level of certainty
he has put to it is amazing.
I've always believed in the
importance of Nolan's cross.
But now we have to come
to a complete understanding
of the stone cairns,
what the stone
triangle represents.
So we need to get busy.
Yeah.
Professori gaspani, um,
it's an incredible presentation.
And we may have
some follow-up questions
after we have time to
think about it a little bit.
- Okay.
- Grazie.
The following morning,
as restoration efforts
continue across the island...
We're going deep.
Here we are right here, Charles.
Bedrock is gonna be about
Yeah.
In the money pit area,
Charles barkhouse joins
geologist Terry Matheson
to supervise a new
core-drilling operation
in borehole f.25-8.25
located 55 feet southwest
of the garden shaft.
We're very close to rf-1
and that's the reason
why we're drilling this hole.
- Yeah.
- Because we found
- such interesting artifacts in rf-1.
- Yes.
So it's very interesting.
Look at all the wood.
- That is spectacular.
- That's cool.
In 2019,
the team first excavated an
eight-foot-wide steel caisson
in this area, known as rf-1.
Incredibly, below
a depth of 100 feet,
they unearthed the
handle of a pickax
as well as massive
wooden timbers that,
just one week ago,
were scientifically proven
to have originated in Europe.
So this is a very interesting
area and hopefully,
- now we can find something else.
- Yep.
Now, because recent
water testing in this area
has also yielded high
traces of gold and silver
below a depth of 150 feet,
the team is hoping to find more
evidence of man-made workings
and ultimately, the source
of the precious metals...
Here it comes.
That have been detected
deep underground.
- Thank you, my friend.
- Eight.
What've we got?
Eight feet below grade.
- Here we go, Charles.
- Yep.
- Zero to eight.
- I think that's going to be it.
Looks like they've
locked onto cobble.
This is all we... all
the recovery we have.
Not so much to write
home about here, Charles.
Very early days, yep.
We've got quite a ways to go.
As the drilling
operation continues
in the money pit area
some 200 yards to the
northwest on lot 15...
This is an important
area for us, mate.
Metal detection
expert Gary drayton
and Jack begley arrive at
the site of the stone cairns.
It's become really important
due to professor gaspani's work.
We're looking for
anything that could allude
to that 12, 1300s visit.
Yeah. Well, now you're
in my wheelhouse, mate.
I'm from england.
I search for medieval treasure.
You ready to get stuck in?
- Let's get started.
- Okay.
When these five stone formations
were first surveyed by
Fred Nolan in the 1960s,
they were described
as pyramid-shaped
and stood between
five and seven feet high.
However, since then,
searcher activities caused them
to be partially dismantled.
First flag here.
All right. Right next
to these stones.
Great sounding signal.
Just there, mate.
Dang.
Is this one of the
piles or something?
It's out.
That's a lot of stones.
Let's see what we've got.
What have we got here?
Ooh, hoo, hoo, hoo.
Now, this is interesting.
What have we got here?
- Ho, ho.
- Is that a bit of lead?
- Yeah, a bit of lead.
- It's like a lead strip.
On lot 15, located
several hundred feet
northwest of the
money pit area...
- Now, this is interesting.
- Yeah, that is.
Gary drayton and Jack
begley have just found
a potentially important
clue near the believed
This is fantastic, mate.
It's shaped.
That could be very,
very interesting, mate,
'cause it looks decorated.
And it was made
like that on purpose.
This has the potential
to be medieval.
- You think it's medieval?
- Yeah.
- Honestly?
- Yeah. I really do, mate.
When I'm working
medieval sites in england
with me metal detector,
you find a lot of old
iron and a lot of old lead.
And then, if you're lucky,
you find medieval
silver and gold.
I think we've just scored
a really great find on lot 15,
right next to these
old stone piles.
This might link back, somehow,
to help prove professor
gaspani's work.
The so-called medieval period
was an era of European history
that lasted from
roughly 500 to 1500 ad.
Could Gary drayton be correct
that this lead artifact may
be more than 600 years old?
If so, might it
offer hard evidence
that professor
adriano gaspani's belief
that the stone piles,
or cairns, were created
in the 13th century is true?
This is fantastic, mate.
I can't wait to see
the data on this.
I think we should take
it straight to the lab.
Yep. I'm with you, mate.
- Sweet find, Gary.
- Good digging, mate.
While Gary and Jack
finish their search on lot 15...
- Hey, Roger.
- How's it going, Scott?
Good.
You've uncovered some
wood down there, now?
Yeah. So Rodney just gave
me a call not too long ago
and, yeah,
he's uncovered quite
a bit of wood, actually.
Operations manager Scott Barlow
meets with Roger fortin
in the money pit area
after being informed
that representatives
from dumas contracting limited
have finally uncovered
a large section
of the believed treasure tunnel
located just below
the garden shaft
at a depth of some
This is exciting.
- Yeah, yeah.
- This is what we've been
- waiting for.
- Absolutely, and that's why
I told Rodney to
stop and they know
before we start
excavating, I want
to make sure nothing
gets damaged,
that we'll go at it
nice and easy and-and
preserve every little
piece that's in there.
- It's a big day on oak island.
- Yeah.
Absolutely. Absolutely.
Very few people have
had this opportunity
and we're fortunate
enough to be unearthing
a very old tunnel,
potentially a depositor tunnel.
- This is exciting.
- Yeah.
- Let's go down and have a look.
- Sounds good.
Grab's out of the hole.
Working with the guys from
dumas, I mean, it's a privilege.
They're hard-working guys.
You know, they're miners.
It's back-breaking work.
They're down there.
They're on their hands and
their knees. They're chipping.
They're digging.
They're doing whatever
it takes to move this material.
But the great this about it is,
they're just as excited
as we are for this project.
They want to put their hands
and their eyes on this tunnel.
They want to see
what we want to see.
Scotty, do you want to
come and take a closer look?
Yeah.
- Yes.
- That's impressive structure.
I mean, look at the
size of those planks.
- Yes.
- The beams.
- Yeah, all logs of different sizes.
- Yeah.
- Wow.
- Look at the size of those.
I mean, we can get some
great information from that.
That's gonna be, you
know, 12 or 14 inches across.
Yeah.
It's a pretty exciting
moment to be down there
and to put eyes
on this wood that,
you know, nobody's seen
for potentially
upwards of 400 years.
Pretty incredible.
When we see this
rounded edge here,
like that looks like it
may even have bark on it.
The log, you look
at the size of that,
that rounded as an outside edge,
and we can see
the center in there
there's a lot of rings in there.
Which is great, that's a good
indicator that it's old growth.
A possibly older,
rounded timber,
found nearly 100 feet
underground in the garden shaft?
In 1804, when treasure hunters
began the first major
excavation of the money pit,
they reported finding
a series of platforms
made of round
logs every ten feet,
down to the 90-foot level.
Is it possible that this
tunnel may be connected
to the original treasure shaft?
If so, just what might the
team find at the end of it?
I can't wait to get
this uncovered
and get some of this
material out of here.
Yeah. You and I both.
We might be able to slide
that plank right out of there.
Yeah, you can
tell, there's like, say,
you got a piece here, a
piece there, a piece here.
I think that tunnel
would be probably
no more than five feet wide.
There's kind of, like, wedges,
like, if you can take
that wedge off right there.
Let's give it her try, yep.
That piece looks
like it's loose, Scott.
You might be able
to pry that right up.
Yep.
There we go. Look at that.
Definitely a wedge.
This looks like
bark there as well.
You don't get more
homemade wedge than that.
This is pretty exciting.
We should let Rick know
that we're on this and
starting to remove some stuff.
For sure he's gonna be
excited to put eyes on this.
Yeah.
I've been in a lot of old
mines, never seen this.
- Let's keep digging.
- Sounds good.
- Okay, Rick.
- All set?
All set. I'll hold
the ladder for you.
Coming down.
It is an extraordinary
moment for Rick lagina.
Having been alerted
that a large section of the
possible treasure tunnel,
located just beneath
the garden shaft
at a depth of some 100
feet, has been exposed.
Look at that. Right there. Wow.
- Those are big beams.
- They are. - Yeah.
And no two are the same.
- That's impressive.
- Yeah.
To get down there and realize
that there is hard evidence
that the tunnel is not a
interpretation, it's real,
you get a little bit of chills.
Now we need to understand
its relevance to the mystery.
Boy, I'd love to get
one of those, though.
Well, what we're gonna
do is clean some of it off
and then we're gonna try
to get the whole length out.
And I think it would
be nice to get that one.
Yeah.
And then this one here
we know is good and wide.
Yep.
And this one is
definitely rounded here.
This is much thinner here.
- And that could be an upright piece.
- Yep.
It's cool. It's very cool,
especially given
the c-14 results.
So, that's why it's imperative
that we get samples.
It is.
The whole idea of what
happened in the money pit,
you know, we have a timeline.
Earlier this year, wood
samples from this tunnel,
which the team obtained
during a core-drilling operation,
were carbon-dated
to the 17th century.
You know, you'd want to
get that piece out whole.
Yeah. Absolutely.
But now that much more of
the structure has been revealed,
the team will remove
some of the massive beams
for additional testing, in
the hopes of confirming
just when this
tunnel was created.
It's a year of pivotal moments.
Timber there.
I think the professor
gaspani's work is pivotal.
This recovery of these timbers
may be a pivotal moment
if it represents original work.
This is important.
What I'd like to see happen here
is these three
timbers right here,
even the fourth one
being the one on top,
get one pulled out so we
can see a whole length.
- Absolutely. We can get that done for you.
- Great.
If this is original depositor,
there's a good chance
that there may be treasure
at the end of this tunnel.
- Yep.
- But I also want to get Steve guptill
to come down
here and survey this.
- Yes.
- Great.
I wonder, just, you know,
have Gary come down,
scan that real quick.
- Yep.
- Yep. Absolutely.
- So, anyway, we will let you get started.
- Yes.
And I will get up
and out of your way.
My thought was, you know,
to have Gary come
down, I mean, why not?
It is a treasure
hunt, after all.
And we have exposed a new area
for him to investigate.
- Ready, Gary?
- Yep. Ready, mate.
And hope that we find
a artifact or artifacts
that can be associated
with cultural context
as it relates to the construct.
- How freaking awesome is this?
- It's pretty great.
- We got everything we need, Gary.
- Thanks, mate.
Time to unleash the beast.
You guys ready to
find some treasure?
Let's find some treasure.
Let's strike up the magic wand.
Right.
See if there's any
metals in there.
And unfortunately, I can't
get too close to this iron.
All right, mate, well,
unfortunately, no hits
but we ain't finished yet, mate.
If you can hang
on to my detector,
- I'm gonna try pinpointing.
- Sure.
- You've got it.
- It's in me hand.
Let's see what we got.
- It is this.
- What is that?
Tough to tell what it is.
I'm not getting a
rapid vibration off it,
which would tell me it's iron.
- So, this is gonna go back to the lab.
- Yep.
And hopefully, Emma's got
some great news about this.
All right.
- Good find, Gary.
- Yeah. All right.
Let's see what we got here.
Fingers crossed.
Gary, you've got another hit.
Yep. Now, what have we got here?
Yeah. We have
got a piece of metal.
Look, it's shaped.
- See that flat edge on it?
- - Yeah.
It's an interesting
shape, for sure.
You seen anything like
this from your operation?
So, it's probably from
the tunnel construction.
Yeah.
Even more curious now.
Yeah, it really is.
Could Gary be correct
that this metal artifact
may have been used
in the construction
of the tunnel?
It's fantastic news.
If so, could it be
another critical clue
that could help
the team determine
just when it was built?
All right, chaps.
I'm gonna put this
in the front pocket
there and zip it.
Do you want me to help you
do some measurements, mate?
I wouldn't mind. For
the first time, I can put
survey control
points on this tunnel
and this is gonna help me draft
and project this
tunnel accurately now
because this is the first
time we've stood on it.
Okay, mate.
I think it's great we're
doing this, Steve,
for good measure.
While Steve and Gary
complete their survey
of the tunnel beneath
the garden shaft
I think we have a
core coming up now.
Some 50 feet to the southwest...
- What do we got, Adam?
- One fifty-one.
One fifty-one.
Geologist Terry Matheson
and oak island historian
Charles barkhouse
are continuing to monitor
the core-drilling operation
in borehole f.25-8.25.
Thank you, Adam.
A borehole where
they hope to find
more evidence of another
man-made structure
- more than 150 feet deep...
- Scalpel.
That, according to
recent scientific testing
is of European origin.
Let's slice this open
and take a look.
- We've got wood here, Terry.
- What?
- We got wood.
- Wow.
Yeah. This is all
undisturbed here.
So, we must be right at
the edge of something.
You know, Terry,
the fact that we're finding
wood at this depth...
We could maybe be in
the original money pit.
So, all the more
important we get a sample.
Absolutely.
- That's what we do, right?
- Yeah.
Well, we got
another core coming.
And hopefully we'll pull up
some of that real treasure.
Yeah.
What have you got, Adam?
- One seventy-one.
- One seventy-one.
- Ooh, looks like we're into bedrock.
- Yeah.
Yep. We're into the
side of the bedrock.
Yeah.
And here's some
more of that punky,
relatively soft material.
M-Much harder
gypsum bedrock here.
Yeah.
This stuff is just as
mother nature left it.
It is an unfortunate revelation
for Charles and Terry
that the drilling operation
has reached bedrock
at a depth of some 170 feet.
However, since they
recovered evidence
of a wooden structure
less than 20 feet higher
and have also detected
precious metals in this area,
could it be that they
just missed direct contact
with something of great
importance or value?
We are in and
out of old workings.
- Yeah.
- Something went on down there.
Let's, clear this table
and hopefully have
another target to drill on.
There's still a lot of areas
where-where we haven't drilled.
Absolutely.
We'll move on.
Mystery abounds on oak island.
Certainly does.
As an exciting new day
begins on oak island.
All right, guys.
If you're ready, we're
gonna get this wood up.
- Okey doke.
- Yep.
- Let's do it.
- Rick lagina
and other members of the team
arrive in the money pit area
as massive timbers from
the potential treasure tunnel,
located some 100
feet underground,
are about to be removed
from the garden shaft.
All right, Jeremy.
Let's get her up here.
We've never had
this opportunity before
and we need to make certain
we do everything we can
to understand
what this represents.
Here it comes right here.
I absolutely hope
that this leads us
five steps closer to-to
solving the mystery.
Not quite. Now I do.
You can see in
that piece of wood
a man down there
cutting that timber,
creating that tunnel
to-to go somewhere,
hopefully, to hide treasure.
Look at that. We got
a rounded edge here
- and rounded on this side.
- Yep.
And it's adze-cut.
Yeah, that's adze-cut.
A timber cut with an adze?
Dating back to the
days of ancient Egypt,
an adze was a
type of cutting tool
designed for the construction
of ships and wooden structures,
until the 18th century,
when they were replaced
by mechanized tools.
That's a bit of oak island
money pit history right here.
So now, the question is
just how long before
the 18th century
might this tunnel
have been created?
Watch your fingers.
It's real aha moment.
There's no question about it.
After all the struggles
and all the setbacks
and all the time
and all the effort,
to see it there
in front of you...
Well, this is real history,
and I want to
hold it in my hand.
This has more going for it
than anything else so far.
I mean, this could lead
right to the treasure.
We don't know yet.
Let me just test it,
see if it's sturdy
enough for a gold dance.
Yeah. It will be.
The good news is
we still do have the
horizontal drilling.
- Still to come.
- Still to come.
Because the tunnel must be
more fully exposed and inspected
before the team can
possibly access it,
in the coming days,
representatives from
dumas contracting limited
will conduct a
probe-drilling operation
from the bottom
of the garden shaft
into the tunnel's interior
to hopefully pinpoint the
source of the precious metals
that have been detected
nearby in the baby blob.
Kudos to everybody,
especially the guys down hole,
you know, 'cause
they did the work.
Let's stay the course,
get as much
information as we can.
So, it's been a very good day.
While the operation
continues in the garden shaft,
later that afternoon...
- Hey, Rick.
- Laird. How are you? Emma?
- Hey.
- Hey.
Rick, his nephew Alex
and Doug crowell join
archaeologist laird niven
and archaeometallurgist
Emma culligan
in the oak island laboratory.
So, I see this artifact
that was found on lot 15.
Was it found close to
the, stone cairn piles?
Yes.
They are eager to hear
Emma's scientific analysis
of the decorative lead artifact
that was found just one day ago
near the potentially
located on lot 15.
Is it a match for any of
the other lead artifacts
we found on the island?
Um, so, because it's lead,
I can't give 100%
confirmation of a match.
But 99%, which
is still pretty good.
It matched a lot with
an artifact from 2021.
Which I do have
here in the lab..
That was the piece
Chris mcfarlane found a hit
as being possibly from
Scandinavian origin.
- Here we go.
- Two years ago,
while searching lot 13
between the swamp
and the money pit...
What the heck?
- That's lead!
- Yeah.
Gary drayton and Peter fornetti
found a lead artifact with
a decorative, spiral design.
This is the data
for the twisted rod.
An artifact that surprised
geochemist Dr. Chris mcfarlane
after he conducted a
form of isotope testing on it
known as laser ablation.
When we run the results
through the database,
one source would be
in eastern scandinavia.
Here it is, right here.
Lot 13... where this
twisted lead was found...
That's just
downhill from lot 15.
Professor gaspani
posited this idea
that those stone cairns were
placed there in the 1200s,
so any and all metal artifacts,
whether they're
precious metal or not,
could play a part in
identifying who was there,
possibly, in that time period.
- So, yeah. I think it's important.
- Correct. Yep.
And given this item being found
in such close proximity
to the stone cairns,
I think we have to,
follow up on that:
A possible Scandinavian
connection to the island.
I think we have to, follow up
on a possible Scandinavian
connection to the island.
In the oak island laboratory,
Rick lagina and
members of the team
have just found out
that a lead artifact
unearthed just one day ago
on lot 15, near
the stone cairns,
is a near compositional
match to the lead object
that was found two
years ago on lot 13
and may have come
from scandinavia.
It's certainly probable
if not definitive
that this is not a north
American mystery, I.E.,
it wasn't originated here.
It had to have come
from the old world.
In years past, we've
investigated the possibility
that the knights templar
were behind this mystery.
The only people that we know of
for sure that made the voyage
pre-columbian are the norse.
The historical record
and some science
puts the norse
along these shores,
like I'anse aux meadows, right?
Where else they were
is another question.
And we also know
that the templars
were at the height
of their power
in the same time period.
So, did they know each other?
It is well documented
that the Scandinavian
warrior civilization
known as the norse, or vikings,
explored and
established settlements
on the north American continent
including Iceland,
Greenland and new brunswick
as much as 1,000 years ago.
But could Doug's idea
that the vikings may have
possibly been connected
to the knights templar
as well as the
oak island mystery
have any basis in reality?
I think it's imperative to
follow up on that research.
If so, could that
explain how structures
like the paved
area in the swamp,
the stone cairns on lot 15
and these lead artifacts
came to be on oak island?
Could that also explain
the man-made workings
that were recovered from
deep in the rf-1 caisson
and which are potentially
of Scandinavian origin,
as well as the traces
of gold and silver
that have been detected
in the money pit area?
I've always said it's
a wonderful mystery,
and that's why it's complex.
And that's why it's interesting.
And that's why it
continues to puzzle.
So, when you
take items like this,
you have to find the context.
You know, you have
to find the one thing.
- And we only need one.
- One.
One that connects the norse,
perhaps norse-templar
connection,
to those constructs
up on that hill.
Now, with what we're finding
and with what professor
gaspani is-is suggesting,
your one thing might be
found outside the money pit.
We just have to find it.
Emma, laird, again,
thank you both very much.
I think we've got
some homework to do.
- Let's get after it. -All right.
- Take care, guys.
- Thank you.
- Thanks.
Another historic week on
oak island has come to an end.
And like many
others in recent years,
it may have revealed
another chapter in a mystery
that now appears to
stretch back further in time
and to further
regions of the globe
than anyone ever
dreamed possible.
As Rick, Marty and
the team continue to dig,
just what will they find?
And where might it lead them
on their quest for
the ultimate answers?
Next time on the
curse of oak island...
We found these
in the garden shaft.
It's very old.
It definitely wasn't used
to put together structures.
It could be off
boxes on a treasure.
There's a wall in the swamp.
It could be related
to the stone road.
That red stuff is what's
underneath the stone road...
That will place
that wood structure
further back in time.
Vikings had knowledge
of North America
with contacts to early templars.
They could have had
knowledge of this area.
That's correct.