13x16 - Raising the Stakes

[bunniefuu]

[Narrator] Tonight on
The Curse of Oak Island...

[Charles] Looks like
we're getting started.

-Oh, yeah, we're spinning off.
-[Charles] We're due

-for a little good karma. Yeah.
-We are.

We just have
to find that one thing.

-[Gary] We got a signal.
-Hey, hey.

[Gary] I should be able to
pinpoint it. Ooh! Look at that.

-See if you recognize this.
-[Marty] Wow.

That might have been
an individual with Masonic ties.

Yes. Well, that is
extraordinarily cool.

All right, here we go.
It's time to lift that rock.

-[Doug] Absolutely.
-[Marty] There it goes.

-[Rick] Wow.
-[Marty] Look at that.

-Yeah!
-[laughs]

[Narrator] 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.

[Marty] Okay, this isn't
such good news, Rick.

It's not a happy thing.

We just got going on TPF-1.

A lot of pomp and circumstance,
the team all energized.

-Yeah. Yeah.
-And we are at about 25 feet,

and we're stuck.

[Narrator] Before a new day
of exploration

can begin on Oak Island,
brothers Rick and Marty Lagina,

their partner Craig Tester
and Scott Barlow

meet to discuss
a shocking setback

that has occurred
in the Money Pit area.

If you notice,
this is our current canister.

And it is digging
into fill rock.

-And we got stuck at 25 feet.
-[Craig] Yeah.

They can't pull it up,
they can't push down.

The auger, of course,
can go in and out,

-but the cans itself won't move.
-Yup.

All right. Start her up!

-Let's find some treasure, boys!
-[whooping]

[Narrator] Just one day ago,

the teams
from Soletanche Bachy Canada

and ROC Equipment
began a new excavation method

using a seven-foot-diameter
auger

in the hopes of rapidly
installing a steel shaft,

known as Top Pocket Find.

It was at that location
where soil samples collected

from more than 200 feet deep
in the solution channel

during the team's
core drilling operation

revealed high traces of silver.

But after encountering gravel
some 25 feet deep

that was used to backfill
one of the team's previous

and much more
shallow excavations,

the drilling rig was unable

to advance the steel caissons
deeper into the ground.

And while ROC Equipment's
massive rotating oscillator

could be used
to continue the dig,

parts needed
to operate it won't arrive

on the island for two more days.

So, we have
to decide what to do.

-Yup.
-[Craig] Well, to save days,

we'd just move over here
and go ahead and drill

one that had
very little backfill.

[Scott] Yes. To me,
it's a really good area because

the 1850s drill casing
that we brought up.

H.5-8.5.

-That's right there.
-[Craig] Well, we theorized

-that that core barrel could've
-Core barrel. Yeah.

-brought up that coin.
-That's right.

It was from the correct
time period when they knew

-where the Money Pit was.
-Yeah.

I just think
that's a really good location.

[Narrator] Earlier this year,

while drilling borehole H.5-8.5

to explore the solution channel
for signs of treasure,

at 178 feet deep,

the team recovered a piece
of old drill pipe

that may be connected
to a drilling operation

by the Truro Company in 1849.

That is when a 14th century
Portuguese silver coin

linked to the Knights Templar

was reportedly recovered
from the original Money Pit

by drilling foreman
James Pitblado.

The new hole location is one
of the holes that we picked.

And it's in the area that still
has very elevated amounts

of silver
and some other metals in it.

We know we're definitely gonna
go back to Top Pocket Find,

but we need to make some holes
and get down

to the bottom of
the solution channel out here,

and we don't want to wait around

so, we're gonna dig this one.

You know what?
Maybe it's karma.

-You know? Yeah.
-It's really over here.

-[laughs] Fine.
-Well, not only that, but

maybe we only need one hole.

And maybe karma's saying,
"You know what?

-It's not here. It's here."
-[Scott] Maybe that's the name

-for a new caisson.
-[Marty] Karma.

-Karma-1.
-[Marty] Karma-1.

Nice joint effort, guys.
Excellent.

-Teamwork.
-Teamwork.

-Makes the dream work.
-[laughter]

In a worst-case scenario,
or a very negative situation,

you've got to look
at the upside.

Maybe it's good karma.

Maybe we are forced
to move to this location.

This area still has
precious metals in the water

and might contain some secrets.

Okay, well, I guess it's time
to go up there and make it so.

-Yeah.
-[Rick] Yeah.

-[Marty] Karma-1.
-[Rick] Let's go.

[Narrator] Later that morning,

as the teams from SB Canada

and ROC Equipment reposition
equipment

to the new digging location
known as Karma-1...

[Craig] Is he working
his way back this way?

-[Tom] Yeah.
-[Craig] Okay.

[Tom] The cobble is so tricky.

Where we are now, I mean,

we're sort of
on the perimeter of it here.

[Narrator] ...Craig joins
Tom Nolan

and other members of the team
on Tom's property

in the northern region
of the swamp,

as they continue to investigate
a cobblestone pathway.

I know Steve's been surveying,

marking all the stakes
as they've come up,

so it'll be interesting to see
what Steve has on his map.

Yeah, everything we've found,

be it a stake or the cobble,
he's pinned it.

And you want to just continue
working your way around here?

We're just going
to do a continuous loop

right over to where we left off
on the other side.

-Okay.
-Yup.

Okay, sounds good.

[Narrator] After uncovering
numerous sections

of the cobblestone path
throughout the swamp

that have been lined

with eight-sided
wooden survey stakes,

the team is hoping to find clues

that may help determine
if it is related

to other mysterious structures
in the swamp,

such as an empty
brick and slate vault,

the potentially


in the southeast corner, which
may be of Portuguese origin

and the massive,
paved area near the center

that could be as much
as 800 years old.

[Rick] We have a multiple number
of carbon dates from the bog

that lend credence
to the belief that people

were here doing something
in the 1200s and the 1600s.

Possibly Knights Templar,
the Knights of Malta,

but are they the ones?

Are they the who?
We don't know that yet.

Maybe there'll be some answers
as the work proceeds.

Is that a stake?

[Gary] It looks
like a stake, Al.

[Alex] Where were
you digging, Al?

Just right behind me.

-Close to the road?
-Uh,

no, I think I got that closer

-to my track here. Yeah.
-Okay.

One, two, three, four,
five, six, seven, eight.

Yeah, definitely
one of those stakes.

Eight-sided, as well.

-Is it really?
-[Craig] No kidding.

I'll pass it down to you guys.

[Gary] No mistaken that.
That looks like an oldie.

No, that's...
that's the same stake

we've been finding over
and over again in the bog.

Seems to be right along
the edge of the swamp.

[Gary] And normally
when we find these

old stakes,
we find cobbles in the area.

[Tom] Yeah. They're connected.

[Alex] Should we survey that in?

-Yeah, I would think so.
-I think we should.

Yeah. Let's do that then.

I'll text Steve and let him know

that we need that surveyed
so that we can continue.

-[Craig] Okay, guys.
-Yes.

[Narrator] Due to the potential
historic importance

of the eight-sided
survey stakes,

the team has Steve Guptil
record their precise locations

to help determine
if they bear any correlation

with other features
on the island,

in addition to the cobbled path.

[Alex] We're getting close
to having uncovered most,

if not all,
of the north side of the swamp.

And one of the major finds
that sticks out is

this... this row of stakes.

[Gary] Here we go. Artifacts.

[Alex] To me, it's the alignment
more than anything.

You know, it's the combination
of all these individual stakes

that's gonna point the direction

that we need
to take the treasure hunt.

-We got a signal!
-Hey.

[beeping]

-Al!
-[Gary] We got a signal.

-[beeping continues]
-[turns off engine]

Nonferrous signal

-in that last load.
-Hey.

[Gary] I should be able
to pinpoint it.

Let's see what it is.

Let's see if it's trash
or if it's treasure.

-[beep]
-There it is.

[beeping]

Got it in my hand.

Oh-h*, what have we got here?

Wow.

[Gary] Ooh.
I think it's lead, and

I see things on there.
Do you see some kind of design?

[Alex] It does look
like it has markings.

[Gary] Almost like a crest
or a coat of arms on there.

-Mm-hmm.
-Maybe some

kind of coin or token.

[Narrator] In the northern
region of the swamp...

Guys, check this out,
what we've just found up here.

I wonder what
he's come up with.

I don't know.

[Narrator] ...Gary has
just discovered a curious

and potentially
valuable artifact.

Check this out.

Alex and I believe we see
a design on the front of it.

Sure does look like
some kind of coin or token.

[Tom] There is a pattern
on that.

[Craig] Yeah,
I see a couple lines

that are shiny, little specks

making their way through
this patina, if you will.

-What is it made of, Gary?
-There was a low to mid tone.

First, I'm thinking lead,

but I believe
it's some kind of copper alloy.

Or might be a mix--
we have found

some strange metals
on the island.

Might be even pewter.

-Yeah, it's not very heavy.
-No.

[Gary] It's a head scratcher,
isn't it?

[Craig] Yeah, it is.

Just the edges of it
remind you

of an old silver piece
of Spanish coin.

-Yeah, the front of it's busy.
-Mm.

The back is rounded,
but it's soft.

So, what we're seeing
is just material stuck to it.

That's a great sign then.

So, there's a chance
this could be,

like, an old maravedi
or some other coin.

-That's what I would--
-Yup.

Be my guess.

[Gary] I like the look
of what we have uncovered.

We don't know what it is, but
I know where it came from. Ooh!

This was bang on the deck

of the excavation in the swamp.

This has been there a very
long time. It's encrusted.

I don't know

if it's a kind of seal.

It could be a button,
but I'm hoping it's a coin.

I think we should get this back
to the lab.

-[Gary] Yeah.
-Get it back right away.

[Gary] Oh, I'm looking forward
to seeing what this looks like.

[Narrator] As a new morning
breaks on Oak Island...

[Charles] Looks like
we're getting started, Peter.

[Peter] Oh, yeah,
we're spinning off.

We're due
for a little good karma.

We are. Yeah.

[Narrator] ...Peter Fornetti
and Charles Barkhouse

oversee operations
in the Money Pit area

as the Karma-1 caisson
is about to break ground.

We have so many pieces
of equipment here.

We have
two different crane systems.

We have a front-end loader
to move material.

But what I really like
is the fact that

this year we have an auger,
which,

as it's spinning, you can see
the material come out.

It's really, really cool
to see that in action.

[Narrator] In order to get down
to the solution channel,

SB Canada and ROC Equipment
are using the massive auger bit

to rapidly drive through soil,

hard clay or debris

and bring the spoils
to the surface.

Once the Karma-1 shaft
penetrates the solution channel

below a depth
of approximately 160 feet,

the auger will be replaced
by a giant dig bucket

that will safely collect
any remaining spoils

and possible treasure.

We're moving over to the
hopefully named Karma location.

It's not in a backfilled area,

so we don't have
to worry about this rock

that caused the first one
to seize up.

If it lives up to its name
and the karma is good karma,

I hope it's one and done.

I hope we find something
in the solution channel.

Anywhere between 170 and 220
I'm really excited about.

-Yeah.
-I know

that we have 250 feet of casing,

so, if there's a deep target,
we're going to get it.

We certainly are.

We've got all the tools here

to really go deep and hopefully
find that one thing.

That you can put
in my uncle's hand.

Well, you came here
as a skeptic, right?

But you're starting
to move over to our side.

You're coming from the dark side
over to the light side.

[Peter] Based on
what we're finding,

there's more evidence that

-work was done down here.
-Yeah. Yeah.

We just have
to find that one thing,

-and it might be this hole.
-I'm looking forward

to seeing something
come up out of there

and finally
put this story to bed.

Yeah. Let's do it.
Right here. Karma.

[Narrator] As the Karma-1
shaft descends

toward the solution channel...

[Marty] All right, guys.
Today is the big day.

Big day, big boulder.

[Narrator] ...Rick, Marty
and Craig are on their way

to Lot 8 on the western side
of the island.

I have a question
for each of you.

What's under it?

I'm thinking maybe a tunnel.

That would be
absolutely fabulous.

Exciting as hell.

Well, let's go find out then,
shall we?

It's time.

[Narrator] After weeks
of patiently waiting,

they are about to remove
a massive obstacle between them

and possible answers
to the Oak Island mystery:

A 40,000-pound boulder.

While this feature
has never been documented

by previous searchers,

over the past two months,

the team has been methodically

excavating around
and beneath the boulder by hand

and discovered a series
of evenly spaced stones

holding it in place,

as well as a backfilled void
beneath it.

[Fiona] I'll show you,
there's a really good spot.

[Peter] All right.

[Narrator] After inserting
a camera into the narrow space

that was cleared
under the boulder,

video evidence was recorded
of a possible tool...

It's gold looking.

[Doug] It certainly is.

[Narrator] ...and even
a gold-colored substance.

And soil samples
recently collected beneath it

contained unnaturally
high traces of lead.

We're seeing as high
as 140 parts per million lead

in that organic matter
underneath the boulder.

[Narrator] This has made
Dr. Ian Spooner and the team

speculate that there may be
an old mine shaft underground

that the boulder is concealing.

[Marty] Morning, team!

[all] Morning!

-[Marty] Are we excited?
-Whoo!

-Absolutely.
-We are emboldened!

-You've been working on
that one, haven't you? -I have.

-[laughter]
-What time is it,

-Marty? -It's time
to lift that rock, Gary.

Oh, I can't wait
to get stuck in.

[Narrator] Now
archaeologist Laird Niven

has given the team permission
to lift the boulder

using a 130-ton crane.

Here it comes, folks.
Right there.

We're about to get this show
on the road.

It's very exciting.
I've been wanting to move

the Lot 8 boulder
as soon as I heard about it.

Every scientist
who has looked at it

says that this giant boulder

was moved into position.

Well, people don't do that
even today for no reason.

Back in the day, it would've
been a massive undertaking,

so it's very exciting as to why

this thing was placed there and
what on earth is underneath it.

[Laird] All of a sudden, the
chains don't look big enough.

[Jack] No, they don't.

[Rick] It's exciting.
You can tell

there's a little bit of a buzz
in the air that...

people are hopeful that once the
rock comes up out of the ground

that there'll be an aha moment
and you'll see something,

i.e. answers
to the Oak Island mystery.

Here, in real time,
we're gonna get an answer.

Is there something
underneath it or not?

[Marty] All right.

-Okay.
-We're gonna have liftoff.

[Scott] Everybody back up.

-Here goes.
-[Gary] Here we go.

[chuckles] Ooh.
This is off the chain.

[shutter clicks]

[Marty] Look at that.

-[Fiona] Wow!
-[Jack] No way.

-[Fiona] Wow!
-[Jack] No way.

-[Marty] Look at that.
-[Alex] Nicely done.

-[Gary] Wow. -[Marty] Piece
of cake. Big piece of cake.

[Fiona] Look how deep it was
in that bottom.

[Narrator] On Lot 8,
a crane has just lifted

the 40,000-pound boulder...

Okay. Let's go take a look.

...a boulder
that the team suspects

may have been moved
into place long ago

in order to hide
something beneath it.

[Gary] The heck is
going on under there?

Laird, you're up.

Initial observation is
there's no sterile subsoil.

We're seeing organics

that were introduced somehow.

Um, and not naturally.

[Marty] 'Cause that dark soil's
not supposed to be under it.

[Craig] Yeah.
Looks like a filled hole.

Exactly.

[Alex] And we don't see
any structures yet.

But that doesn't mean
there's nothing down there.

There could be something
much deeper under there.

-Absolutely.
-Okay.

[Laird] The boulder's
lifted out,

and it should be sitting
in glacial soils

from 10,000 years ago,

when it was
originally deposited naturally.

But all of those soils
have been removed from under it.

It confirmed 100%

that that boulder was
not in its original position.

-What time is it, Marty? -It's
time to metal detect, Gary.

-Woo-hoo!
-[chuckles]

Right. I'm gonna get stuck in.

[Laird] It's confounding
to think about

who got that out,
how they got it out.

All right, here we go.

I'll do this side first.

[Laird] And I think
it reinforces

the theory that this was
a coordinated effort

by a well-organized,
large group of people

for whatever reason.

-Nothing.
-[Gary] No.

Just not getting any metal hits.

-Not on the outside. -[Fiona]
That doesn't really surprise me

either though,
'cause if somebody did this

and was wanting to hide it,
you're really gonna be careful

about not dropping artifacts
in there, too.

[Alex] Plus,
we've excavated even some


and there's no metal.

I mean, it's just wood
all the way.

So, no metal hits doesn't mean

that there isn't something
down there much deeper.

[Marty] The conjecture
is the Lot 8 boulder

was placed for some reason.

Dr. Spooner is certain
the metals in the soil

doesn't fit the soil composition
as it should be.

[Billy] I think
you can definitively say

it was worth moving 'cause
there's all topsoil there.

-It doesn't make any sense.
-[Marty] I absolutely think

there's a possibility
that this boulder covered

something buried deeper,
in terms of potential structures

or finds that could help us
solve the overall mystery,

because it was done
a very long time ago

for an important reason.

And we haven't
figured that out yet.

I think the mystery continues.

It's possible we could've closed
the door on it just now.

We could've picked this up
and said, "Looks like it was

-in place naturally,"
but we didn't. -Exactly.

[Fiona] When it was being
lifted, I did not see

any signs of any-any sort of,

um, mechanical equipment
touching the underside.

So it's still a bit of a mystery

how they ever would have moved
this in the first place.

Okay, well let's go
to the next step,

which is sampling, correct?

And you guys got to do
your thing

-real carefully, all that.
-Cleaning up, yeah.

We're gonna clean up all
the loose soils around the edge,

clean up the loose soils
in the middle,

and see how far down it goes.

[Fiona] It could be much deeper
than what we're seeing

-on the surface.
-[Rick] I'm still very hopeful

-there's something under here.
-Absolutely.

This could absolutely be
the highlight

of this year's entire efforts.

There's no question about that.

So we just got
to let the work proceed.

You guys do your thing
and we'll come back.

-We'll keep you posted, too.
-Yeah, okay. All right.

-If we find treasure,
we'll let you know. -Okeydoke.

Let's let 'em get to work.

-[Alex] Okay. -[Marty] Gary.
Yeah. -[Gary] Thanks.

[Narrator] As the investigation
on Lot 8 continues...

...later that afternoon...

[Marty] So, now, you three
found this artifact

in the north part of the swamp.

When we first found
this artifact,

it had a big dome of dirt

-over the top. -[Alex] Yeah.
We knew we could see

markings, but we didn't know
what to make of it.

-Yeah. -...Marty, Craig,
and other members of the team

join Laird and Emma in the lab

regarding the artifact
that was found one day ago

near the cobblestone pathway.

We were hoping
it was a coin, a token.

So what is it, Laird? Emma?

Well, I learned
a new word today,

"exonumia."

-Ooh.
-Which is

nongovernment-issued,
uh, metals and tokens.

-So it's not a coin.
It's a special item. -Yeah.

[Laird] Yeah. So this is
one of the first

commemorative pieces
made in the United States.

-Wow. -Really?
-[Emma] Mm-hmm.

So now, see if you recognize
this person.

[Marty] George Washington.

-Oh.
-Yeah.

[Marty] Father of our country
right there.

-[Alex] Yeah.
-[Laird] That's right.

And if we flip around
to the other side...

...it's actually an urn.
It's a funerary urn.

-[Alex] Oh.
-So this is a-a-a medal

from 1800 that commemorates

George Washington's death

on December 14, 1799.

-Well, that is extraordinarily
cool. -[Alex] Yeah.

And the hole in the top
is deliberate,

because these were meant
to wear at a service

for George Washington...

-Wow.
-...on February 22, 1800.

-So just unique
just to that funeral? -Yeah.

And, interestingly,
Washington was a Mason.

Right? This was designed by
Jacob Perkins, who was a Mason.

That's really something.

[Narrator] Jacob Perkins
of Newburyport, Massachusetts,

was an inventor
who designed bank notes

and developed
anti-counterfeiting techniques

for U.S. currency
in the late 18th century.

He created the Washington
Funeral Medal

to serve
as a unique Masonic tribute

to President Washington,

who was also a well-known member
of the Freemasons,

the secretive fraternity
that many believe

descended
from the Knights Templar.

It's extraordinary
if you found it in Boston.

-Yeah. -Right? It's really
extraordinary to find it here.

-[Alex] Yeah.
-Yeah. They're rare.

I think it speaks to somebody
of pretty high status.

I-I find that
extraordinarily exciting.

-You do, too, don't you? I can
tell by your-- Yeah. -Oh, yeah.

Yeah, it-it-- Well,
it's like everything we find.

-It makes no sense.
-But this--

[Alex] Well, this is--
this is the second president

that's actually tied
to the Oak Island mystery.

Because there's FDR
and there's George Washington.

And they were both Masons.

-Both those presidents.
-For sure.

[Narrator] Ever since
the discovery of the Money Pit

in 1795,

Freemasons
such as Daniel McGinnis,

Melbourne Chappell,

and Franklin D. Roosevelt
have either led or been involved

in nearly every organized
treasure hunt on Oak Island.

And just as curious
are the many Masonic symbols

that have been found
across its 140 acres,

including a man-made feature
in the northern region

of the triangle-shaped swamp
that may represent

the All-Seeing Eye.

[Marty] I-I really like this.

I think this is really trying
to tell some kind of story.

-Yeah.
-Well, what's it doing here?

-I have no idea. -[Marty]
Well, listen, I would be remiss

if I didn't get
Big Brother over here.

So... hang on, let me text him.

Okay.

[Marty] "Something
you need to see."

[laughter]

[Gary] Bloody amazing, isn't it?

[Marty] He'll be here
in a minute, I think.

-[Alex] Hey.
-Hello, Big Brother.

-[Craig] Hey, Rick.
-So...

what-what secrets
do we have today?

-[Craig] Here it is.
-No secrets,

but a great story.

Who is that?

[Rick] Well, that's Washington.

-Yep.
-It sure as heck is.

[Narrator] In the
Oak Island lab,

Rick joins the team to see
the Masonic funerary medal

bearing the likeness
of George Washington.

[Laird] So, it's an 1800 medal

commemorating
George Washington's death

in 1799.

Really?

Found here, on Oak Island,
in the swamp.

Hmm.

[Marty] This almost has to be

somebody very much associated
with George Washington.

That might have been
an individual with Masonic ties.

[Marty] Yes. It fits in

with one of my pet theories.

[Doug] Yeah.
Somehow, Oak Island

-was associated with revenues...
-Yeah.

-...to fund the American
Revolution, right? -Right.

[Cort over Skype]
We know Freemasons,

who were Knights Templar,

that they had a hand
in the creation

-of the United States.
-Yeah.

[Narrator] In 2018,

author and researcher
Cort Lindahl,

along with his brother Bruce,

presented the team
with this compelling theory.

Louis Alexandre Rochefoucauld,

in his friendship
with Benjamin Franklin

and Thomas Jefferson,
may have actually told them

of Oak Island
or whatever secret was there.

[Narrator] It was Cort's belief
that secret knowledge

or Templar treasures
on Oak Island

was given
to General George Washington

and other leaders
of the American Revolution

by a member
of the Rochefoucauld family,

a family of French nobles
with ties to the Knights Templar

dating back to the 12th century.

[Bruce] They could have had
part of the treasure

from Oak Island
as a way to finance the w*r

and help establish
the new country.

[Marty] Holy smokes.

Watch your step.
This stuff is slippery.

[Narrator] Following
their meeting,

Bruce, Marty
and members of the team

examined a carving located
on the island's northern shore.

[Marty]
One, two,

three, four, five,
six, seven, eight,

nine, ten, 11, 12, 13.

[Narrator] It was a carving
believed to depict a symbol

known as "An Appeal to Heaven."

Commissioned by General
George Washington in 1775,

the symbol adorned battle flags

throughout
the 13 American colonies

to inspire support

for the revolution
against Great Britain.

[Rick] One has to remember
that in 1800,

the treasure hunt
had just started.

What was someone doing,
with a commemorative token

of George Washington's funeral,

traipsing about
in the north end of the bog?

It defies logic.

Unless that person had knowledge

of some enterprise
happening on the island.

Maybe it's possibly connected
to the group of individuals

responsible for the vault
in the swamp.

It probably would be
worth looking at

who was still living
on the island

in this period of time
that might have had sympathies

-to the revolution on-on
the American side. -[Marty] Yes.

I think that's what
it's crying out for.

-Yeah.
-Yeah. I do.

-You gonna go back there?
-Oh, yeah.

And I always say the same:
"All it takes is one good find."

-This is a good find.
-It is a good find.

-It's excellent.
-We got to get back to work.

-All right, we'll see you, then.
-Thanks. -Yeah.

[Marty] Excellent.
Excellent, excellent.

[Narrator] Later that day...

-[Craig] Hello.
-[Ian] Hey, Laird.

-Hey, Fiona.
-Hi.

-Wow.
-Boulder's gone.

That's pretty impressive.

[Narrator] ...Craig,
Jack and Dr. Ian Spooner

arrive at the site
of the Lot 8 boulder.

It came up like nothing.

Zero resistance.
And interestingly,

it looks like this
may have been all

-rock-lined.
-[Ian] Yeah.

And we now have the opportunity

to see if there's metals
in that soil

that might tell us a little bit
more about what was happening.

-Yeah.
-It may help guide your work

because if we see
an area that's,

you know, high in metals,

-we should be really careful
with that. -Yeah, okay.

I think it's a good idea
just to run a quick XRF.

Okay.

Your machine's taking a-an image

-right off the surface, right?
-Right off the surface. Yeah.

So, we can do the top
of the upper layer,

the top of the lower layer,
and even hit it from the side

-to get different ideas? Okay.
-Yep.

[Ian] So, let's get
this thing sparked up.

I see you brought in
the, uh, A-Team here, guys.

-[soft laughter]
-Uh, I'm gonna come down there,

and you guys can tell me
what's going on.

[Craig] Just getting ready
to test the soil down there

-for anything else.
-[Ian] Anything else, yeah.

-Well, let's run the XRF.
-[Ian] Yes, so,

I'm gonna scamper down there
and do some scans.

Okay.

[Narrator] Because Dr. Spooner

has previously detected lead
in the soil beneath the boulder,

he will now scan the entire area

that was previously covered
by the boulder

with a Vanta XRF spectrometer.

By emitting a stream of X-rays,

the device can identify
various types of metals

in the soil that may not be
natural to the environment.

[Ian] So, we should be
all warmed up.

-This is ready to go.
-[Marty] Okay.

But, uh, I'm gonna
get down in there...

Well, I like
the instant gratification

-of that machine,
so hop on down there. -Yeah.

[Marty] Lead shouldn't be
in those organic soils.

There's nothing
around the boulder.

So, it's another indication

that this thing
covered something.

A handheld XRF gives you
immediate data on the elements

that might be in various
quantities in the soil.

I want to know
what's underneath it,

and I want to know in a hurry.

[Fiona] So, you're
in the area right now,

where we had
the high lead samples.

[Ian] It's showing something

that I didn't see
in the other sample...

Oh.

-...which is some silver.
-Yeah.

[laughter]

[Fiona] Silver is exciting,
isn't it?

[Marty] Yes, it is.

It's showing some silver,
and copper there.

[Fiona] Silver is exciting,
isn't it?

-Yes, it is.
-[laughs]

[Narrator] On Lot 8,

Dr. Spooner has just made
a stunning discovery

in the soils that were covered
by the massive boulder.

So, to be clear,
then you're finding

more of the silver content
in the lower layer,

not in that upper layer.

Well, and that's
very preliminary.

-It has to go to Emma.
-Could that be

from something seeping up
that you could be detecting?

If there was silver here
at one point,

it could leach into that soil.

Well, what if
it's still there, underneath?

Yeah, I think
there's every possibility.

[Narrator] Could Fiona
be correct

that Dr. Spooner
may have detected evidence

of a large cache of silver

buried deeper below
this feature?

If this was an air shaft,
for a tunnel,

then there would be forces

that would be bringing up,
let's say mists and things.

-Yeah.
-Super saturated air

that could carry along
and then condense under here.

Yeah, but where's
the silver coming from?

-Treasure, right? Yeah.
-Yeah!

Well, that's the conjecture.

I think it goes much deeper.

Lifting the boulder
initially confirms

that it was placed by people.

The next step, uh,
is for the archaeologists

to carefully excavate

the dark soils and then see
what's underneath them.

Silver is just as exciting

as gold when you're
talking about a treasure hunt

and you're talking about coins.

I mean, the Pitblado coin
didn't have any gold in it.

It was a silver coin,
with copper.

Silver and copper.
Showed up right here, so...

I want to know
where the heck it came from,

and we don't know that yet.

Interesting results.

Anomalous results,
we need to do more work.

-Yep.
-And Craig and I

-got plenty of other work to do.
-[Fiona] Okay, that's great.

[Marty] Perfect.
All right, let's get after it.

[Fiona] Okay.

[Narrator] Two days later...

[Rick] Welcome to the w*r room.

I am very enthusiastic about
what we will learn today.

[Narrator] ...as operations
continue across the island,

members of the team
meet via videoconference

with archaeoastronomy expert
Professor Adriano Gaspani.

To me, the most inscrutable,
hard-to-understand,

uh, data in the swamp
are the stakes.

The position of them,
the orientation of them.

I believe they are trying
to tell us something.

So, I tasked Emiliano
with getting in touch

with Professor Gaspani and
having him look at that data.

The professor has done
an incredible amount of work

with Nolan's Cross.

That also goes
through the swamp.

Yes.

[Narrator] In 2022,

Professor Gaspani
conducted a peer-reviewed study

of the six megalithic boulders
that form Nolan's Cross.

Based on historical alignments

that the boulders had with
certain stars in the night sky,

Professor Gaspani believes
that Nolan's Cross was created

in approximately 1200 AD

by members
of the Knights Templar.

It's almost undeniable,

these stakes are put in these
orientations for a purpose.

Professor Gaspani's
unique perspective,

using archaeoastronomy--
stellar, solar alignments--

he may be able
to give us a timeline.

And if indeed it can point us
in the right direction,

or give us
the elusive bull's-eye,

it would be fantastic.

I would like to welcome
Professor Gaspani

and, uh, Marzia Sebastiani,

who's, uh, kind enough
to translate

for Professor Gaspani.

Thank you.

[Narrator] Now, after receiving

Steve Guptil's detailed survey
of the eight-sided stakes

that have been discovered
in the swamp...

[Narrator] ...Professor Gaspani

has completed his analysis

of their possible
historical alignments

with specific stars
and constellations.

[Marzia] So, these are
the stakes

that are located in the north.

It's two separate groups:
red and light blue.

And there's one
very interesting aspect.

[Marzia] Why is this
so important?

[Marzia] Deneb is the main star

in the Cygnus constellation,

and we have a map of the Cygnus
constellation on Nolan's Cross.

[Emiliano] This very peculiar
stellar alignment

that Gaspani found
for the stakes

share the same constellation
with Nolan's Cross.

[Narrator] When Professor
Gaspani reported his belief

that Nolan's Cross
was constructed around 1200 AD,

he came to that conclusion

by matching
the location of the boulders

with historical positions
of certain stars in the sky,

including Deneb
in the Cygnus constellation,

a constellation that multiple
researchers over the years

have suggested
aligns with the cross.

[Doug] Very interesting.

[Marzia] The two sets

of stakes
were dated astronomically.

[Marzia] And make us think,
once again,

that this link

with Templar culture
was present.

[Emiliano] This is
mind-blowing to me.

[Marzia] My conclusion
is that Europeans

with Templar culture
were present

on Oak Island

in the 13th century.

-It's quite astounding.
-[Narrator] In the w*r room,

Professor Adriano Gaspani
has just presented his analysis

that a line of the eight-sided
survey stakes found in the swamp

could date back
to the 13th century,

and share historic
stellar alignments

with the boulders
of Nolan's Cross,

meaning that both features
may have been created

by the same people
nearly 800 years ago.

[Steve] If those stakes

represent something
from the 1200s,

then that means
there's a plan out there.

And so, for me,

that's probably
the most important piece

that I've taken from this,

because what we're missing
is that plan.

Right? And it goes back
to even what we found this year:

the Lot 8 boulder

and the Lot 5, uh, marker stone.

Many of us here believe
that those are potentially

settlements in that
time period, the 1200s.

They might be part of a bigger
plan to survey a treasure.

[Emiliano] Maybe
we-we haven't found

other structures
that carry those alignments,

and they're still there.

[Tom] What we need to do

is-is target some areas.

There's three large boulders

that form the stem
of Nolan's Cross.

The stem of the cross
goes through the bog,

not very far
from the stakes we found.

I think we'd be crazy
not to search that.

Who knows what
we can find in there.

[Rick] I think Nolan's Cross

is saying something to us
that we have yet to understand.

There is a New World,
Old World connection

vis-à-vis these stakes,
these structures

and these alignments.

I would like to go back and
revisit the stem of the cross.

It's too significant.

I think within that
construction, there are clues

that will be
incredibly instrumental

in helping to solve
this mystery.

My hope and belief

is that we finally put
a few puzzle pieces together.

The stakes are reflective
of something,

and I think the work in the bog
needs to continue.

-Right.
-I think we should all,

uh, be quite proud

of where we have taken
the Oak Island mystery to date.

And it's things like this
that will help

tell the story, and the story,

hopefully, eventually,

will lead to the treasure.

So, Professor Gaspani,
we all, as we sit here,

we're exceedingly interested
in pursuing this,

and, uh, we want to thank you
both very, very much.

-Grazie mille.
-Grazie mille.

Thank you. Thank you.

-[Alex] Ciao.
-[Rick] Ciao, yeah.

[Narrator] For Rick, Marty
and their team,

a week that began
with a daunting setback

has ended with renewed hope
that they are closing in

on the truth behind
the 231-year-old mystery.

Having now discovered evidence
of precious metals

buried deep
in the Money Pit area,

and beneath
a megalithic boulder on Lot 8,

compelling new data has affirmed

that Oak Island's secrets
could stretch back

nearly 800 years.

So, now, as the team digs deeper
for the ultimate answers,

the stakes
for what they may find

have never been higher.