Huge anchor from Queen Anne's Revenge hauled from sea bed
A huge anchor believed to be from Blackbeard’s boat, the Queen Anne’s Revenge, has been recovered from a wreck in just 20ft of water off the North Carolina coast.
The 3,000lb anchor is just one of around 250,000 artefacts so far brought up from the wreck, which was first discovered in 1996 near the town of Beaufort.
Some of the other artefacts recovered include cannon, ammunition, navigation and medial tools and personal effects, like jewellery and gaming pieces.
An exhibition of many of the objects recovered from the sea bed is planned for June 11 at the North Carolina Maritime Museum.
News of the anchor’s recovery chimes neatly with the release of the latest Pirates of the Caribbean film, in which Blackbeard is brought back to life by British actor by Ian McShane.
Blackbeard, or Edward Teach, was born in Bristol in 1660 and fought as a privateer for the British before turning to piracy.
He became one of the most fearsome corsairs of his era, and was said to tie burning fuses into his beard to scare enemies.
He ran aground near Beaufort in 1718 and lost his ship. He died five months later in a fight with the Royal Navy off Ocracoke in North Carolina.
Legend has it that his headless corpse swam round his boat five times before he finally died.
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