Peru Enters the Black Swan Fray

As anticipated, Peru has filed a Verified Conditional Claim in the Black Swan admiralty case, pending in the U.S. District Court in Tampa.

Peru argues that the Spaniards took the gold and silver used to mint the recovered coins without permission from the indigenous peoples of Peru.  Spain dismisses the claim, arguing that Peru was a Spanish colony at the time, not an autonomous nation.

Greg Stemm, Odyssey’s CEO, has succinctly identified the issue that Peru’s participation in the claim will raise: “[W]hether a former colonial power or the colonized indigenous peoples should receive the cultural and financial benefit of underwater cultural heritage derived from the previously colonized nations.”

Read the Marketwatch article here: “Odyssey Marine Exploration Welcomes Peru’s Filing in ‘Black Swan’ Case.”