A LARGE STASH of artefacts from the Spanish Armada has been discovered off the coast of Sligo.
The find, which has happened just off the coast of Streedagh, has turned up a number of bronze cannons, a gun carriage wheel, a ship’s cauldron and a number of other smaller items.
These have come from the wreck of La Juliana which was discovered on the seabed over the course of the winter. The site was considered vulnerable to the weather and illegal interference.
The wreck dates to 1570 and was initially a trading vessel which was later used as a warship during the Spanish Armada campaign of 1588. The ship would have carried around 325 soldiers and around 70 mariners.
Out of the 130 ships involved in the Armada, 26 have been lost off the coast of Ireland.
Work has been taking place at the site since last month, when two large guns were recovered engraved with depictions of San Iovane and San Matrona.
Speaking about today’s find, Minister for Arts, Heritage and the Gaeltacht, Heather Humphreys, said that she wished to extend her thanks to the local community in Steedagh, Grange and Mullaghmore for continuing to support the project.
She went on to say that she would not see any problem with the work being brought back to be displayed locally once conservation work had been carried out on the artefacts.
It was estimated that due to the conservation work needed it could be two years before any of the items were ready to go on display.
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