SPECIAL EXHIBIT- FEATURED PRESENTATION: In conjunction with the International Gem & Jewelry Show, "Shipwreck Treasures from the Deep" Exhibit and Sale arrives in Omaha for an exciting and limited showing. Located within the jewelry show, this unique spectacle features Spanish "pieces of eight", gold doubloons, gold and silver bars and artifacts recovered from over thirty shipwrecks found around the world.

"Some of these artifacts are being shown to the public for the very first time," states Mel King, maritime artifact expert. "Ships were traveling the world loaded with treasures and were lost due to storms, poor navigation and pirates. As a result we are able to open a window into the past and learn from these incredible pieces of history."

The 80-foot exhibit traces artifacts from Cortez and the Conquistadors in the 1500's to $20 gold pieces from steam ships in the mid-1800's. The rarest items are: shipwreck bars of 23K gold, an 80-pound silver bar recovered from the Nuestra Señora de Atocha and a seventeen-pound bar from the 1520's made by Cortez and the Conquistadors. Less than 300 bars of this type are known to exist from a shipwreck found near Grand Bahama Island.

The exhibit also features Spanish Colonial silver "Pieces of 8" and "Gold Doubloons" that were minted between 1540-1750 in Potosi, Mexico City and Lima, Peru, Chinese porcelain from southeast Asia wrecks, jewelry, cannon balls, brass nested weights and other items that were used in everyday life and on the ships.