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Archaeologists Brandon Clifford and Mark Agostini say they identified the wreck of the Portuguese ship Nossa Senhora do Cabo off Madagascar after a 16-year search. The reported $138 million figure is their estimate of the original cargo’s value in today’s money—not an appraisal of treasure recovered from the wreck. Independent confirmation of the identification has not been reported.
What archaeologists say they found
Clifford and Agostini, of the Center for Historic Shipwreck Preservation, report that sonar and remote sensing led them to a wreck near Nosy Boraha, off Madagascar’s northeast coast. The team says it documented more than 3,300 artifacts, including religious statuettes and plaques, pottery fragments, and gold coins bearing Arabic inscriptions. The researchers argue that the wreck structure and objects fit the historical record; Popular Mechanics quotes Clifford describing the identification as “supported by multiple lines of evidence.” These are the archaeologists’ claims, not an independently confirmed identification.
Popular Mechanics reported the search duration and artifact count in its February 27, 2026 account. An earlier Indian Defence Review report, published July 26, 2025, also described the discovery narrative and reported finds: Popular Mechanics and Indian Defence Review.
What the $138 million figure means
Popular Mechanics attributed an estimate of at least $138 million in today’s money to the archaeologists, based on historical records describing the ship’s original cargo. It is not a verified market valuation of the artifacts found at the site, nor evidence that the team recovered that amount. Accounts say pirates took much of the cargo; some valuables were reportedly ransomed back to Portugal.
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The distinction matters: an estimate of historical cargo value is not the same as the value of surviving material at a wreck. The reported figure does not establish what, if anything, could be sold or appraised today.
How the ship reached Madagascar
The Nossa Senhora do Cabo reportedly left India in 1721 carrying Portuguese officials, including the viceroy and the Archbishop of Goa, as well as enslaved people and valuable cargo. Near Réunion Island, Olivier “The Buzzard” Levasseur’s pirate force attacked the vessel while it was storm-damaged. The pirates took control and moved it roughly 400 miles west to what is now Nosy Boraha, formerly Île Sainte-Marie. Historical cargo details cited by Popular Mechanics draw in part on Denis Piat’s Pirates & Privateers in Mauritius.
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The people aboard are part of the story
The ship’s cargo and the artifacts are not the whole account. The reporting does not establish what happened to the approximately 200 enslaved people aboard or to the Archbishop of Goa. Their fate remains unaccounted for in the historical record described by these reports; it should not be obscured by a treasure-focused telling.
Independent reader supportYour contribution helps us test, update, and keep practical guides available for everyone.What remains unconfirmed
The reports available describe a case made by Clifford and Agostini, not independent verification by another archaeological team or an excavation publication. The artifact count is likewise reported for the team’s findings; it does not determine the cargo’s financial value. Further fieldwork may add evidence, but no conclusion beyond the researchers’ identification claim is established here. Agostini told Popular Mechanics that the site had “historically been overlooked by researchers” and expressed hope that future fieldwork would enable more analysis of the many wrecks in the area.
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