AH-WR-1063

Cabin Wreck

Galleon · Spain · Lost 1715 · Florida's Atlantic Coast

An unnamed 1715 treasure fleet wreck off Sebastian whose identity is still debated, having yielded famous jewelry finds and a royal Spanish seal disc.

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Artistic recreation based on recorded historical documents. See the documented evidence.

Interpretive Reconstruction, drawn to convey the vessel's era, type and general form. See the documented evidence.

The Vessel and Her Loss

The Cabin Wreck is one of the 1715 Spanish Plate Fleet vessels destroyed by a hurricane off Florida's Treasure Coast on 31 July 1715, its remains lying near Sebastian. First worked by the Real Eight Company in 1961, the site later produced a celebrated 1993 haul of gold jewelry believed linked to the so-called "Queen's Jewels," and in 2025 a lead disc bearing royal Spanish imagery. Despite decades of salvage, researchers remain divided over whether the site is the Santo Cristo de San Román or the Nuestra Señora de la Regla.

Vessel

Built: Not established
Builder: Not established
Yard: Not established
Material: Wood
Length: Not established
Beam: Not established
Tonnage: 471
Propulsion: Sail
Owners: Spanish Crown

Loss

Date: July 31, 1715
Cause: Storm
Location: Near Sebastian, Florida
Water: Atlantic Ocean
Voyage: Havana, Cuba → Cádiz, Spain
Cargo: Silver coins, including items later identified as part of the so-called "Queen's Jewels" find
Aboard: Not established
Lives lost: Fleet-wide, an estimated 700-1,000 lives were lost among the eleven wrecked ships; ship-specific figures are not established.
Master: Not established

The Wreck Today

Depth: 18 ft
Condition: Not established
Orientation: Not established
Discovered: January 1961
Protection: Within Florida's state-administered 1715 Fleet salvage lease system.

Position

Coordinates: Not established
Accuracy: Position not established
Nearest: Sebastian, Florida
Region: Florida's Atlantic Coast

No published decimal coordinates found; site is described generally as nearshore near Sebastian.

Evidence

Overall confidence: Sparsely documented (45/100)

The wreck's specific ship identity is not established; scholars are divided between the Santo Cristo de San Román and the Nuestra Señora de la Regla.

1715 Fleet Society
Discovery, private lease history, 1993 jewelry find.
1715 Fleet Society (Treasure of the Month, March 2021)
1961 discovery date, disputed identity between Santo Cristo de San Román and Nuestra Señora de la Regla.
Miami Herald
2025 lead disc find and tentative identification as Nuestra Señora de la Regla.