Original subtitles

NARRATOR: Tonight on The Curse of Oak Island...

SCOTT: There's a big layer of rocks

right across this whole area.

Just like the paved area.

This looks clearly man-made.

We have got an hit.

I'm hoping it's a big jewelry box down here.

Look at that.

It could be one of the stones

from a Masonic High Priest breastplate,

who had buried the Ark of the Covenant on Oak Island

centuries ago.

GARY: Holy schmoly! Heads up!

The vault-- we're about 30 feet above it right now.

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.

♪ ♪

-PETER: There's some wood. -GARY: Yep.

-CHARLES: There's no mistaking that one. -GARY: No.

NARRATOR: A morning of renewed excitement

has begun on Oak Island,

as brothers Rick and Marty Lagina,

along with their team,

press forward in their quest

to solve a 227-year-old mystery.

How deep are we, Ian?

Somewhere between 72 and 74 with the excavation.

You know, we got some wood up higher,

but it was just chewed-up pieces.

But now this is 70 feet and onwards.

Much bigger.

RICK: Really? Wow.

NARRATOR: Working with representatives

from Irving Equipment Limited and ROC Equipment,

the team is currently excavating a ten-foot-diameter shaft

in the Money Pit area known as D.M.T.-2.

It is a shaft that may not only be on course

to intercept the original treasure shaft

but also a seven-foot-high, concrete-encased box

known as the Chappell Vault,

which was first reported by treasure hunters

at a depth of 153 feet back in 1897.

It was just adjacent to this location where prominent

Oak Island treasure hunter and Freemason Gilbert Hedden

dug his own 12-by-24-foot shaft in 1937,

hoping to reach the vault.

But unfortunately he had to abandon the effort at a depth of

just 124 feet when he ran out of funds to complete the project.

So, it feels as though we're grazing the Hedden Shaft,

-and now we're kind of coming back into it. -Yeah.

-Charles, is this-this consistent? -What's up?

Yeah. Yeah.

I firmly believe that that shaft is collapsed on the east side.

But we will cut into the shield and the shoe

-once we get to depth, so... -Right.

And that's quarter-inch steel

that it's gonna have to go through, so...

I already made mention of that to Danny.

-And he said, "No problem." So... -Okay.

NARRATOR: When Gilbert Hedden constructed his massive

124-foot-deep wooden shaft,

he installed a heavy metal plate at the bottom,

along with a six-foot-high brace-- or shield--

in order to secure the structure into the ground.

If the Oak Island team does encounter

the Hedden Shaft's shield, it will offer hope

that they are on course to recover the legendary vault

that Gilbert Hedden was unable to reach.

How much water's in there?

A lot. It's kind of interesting, 'cause Danny said

that he hasn't seen it move that fast

in any of the other cans we've put in.

So, part of me wonders if we're getting down to a...

a depth, or close to a depth,

where there's a lot of hydraulic conductivity,

be it shafts or be it tunnels.

Those things are moving around.

Maybe that's why the water came so quickly up.

And that can is near where we got the high trace gold.

Right.

NARRATOR: Two other factors that make Rick,

Marty and their partner Craig Tester

especially optimistic that Gilbert Hedden was on track

to making a major discovery

are that just two years ago

they themselves unearthed a concrete-like substance

potentially related to the Chappell Vault

in this very same area.

And just this year, they also obtained

elevated traces of both silver and gold

while conducting water tests in previously drilled boreholes.

RICK: It's possible that at 150 feet,

it's where the vault would reside.

But there is one other data point

that is certainly of interest, and that is that

there was high gold and silver levels

in the water sample within the confines of D.M.T.-2.

So, is it saying that this might be

the area where the Money Pit actually is?

The data points are supportive of something being done there.

GARY: We got more wood coming up.

-Morning, Rick. -Hey, Andrew.

How we doing this morning?

-Good. How are you? -Good, good.

-What's the word? -We're getting there.

We're really pushing forward here. Um...

Danny's pressures don't seem to be spiking right now,

which is a good indication

for us that we're into wood right now.

RICK: Right. Well,

we're spot-on location-wise. Hopefully around 150 feet,

-give or take, there might be something. -Yep.

MARTY: I wish we had definitive data,

but we're going to learn things as we dig deeper.

We c-certainly aren't gonna stop till we get

to about 150 to search for this vault.

From here on, we need to be constantly vigilant

-about what's coming up out of the can. -Yeah.

Talking about what's come up, we got another load in the bins.

Okay, off you go.

GARY: See what we got in this one.

NARRATOR: While Rick Lagina continues

to supervise the excavation of D.M.T.-2...

...later that morning...

STEVE G.: All right, guys. It's just right up here.

NARRATOR: ...metal detection expert Gary Drayton,

along with Jack Begley and surveyor Steve Guptill,

arrive on Lot 8.

Located on the western side of the island,

Lot 8 has continued to produce compelling clues

that may be critical in helping to solve

the Oak Island mystery.

All right. So, this is the anomaly.

-Okay. -As you can see, it's an indentation.

There does seem to be some sort of a depression in the ground.

Yeah! So, I'm gonna say this is probably one

of the most interesting anomalies we've had this year.

And it's just strictly based on the data.

There is a VLF hit right here, so that just means

there's something going on under the surface.

NARRATOR: Three months ago,

in an effort to vet a reported 14th century map of Oak Island

that the late author and researcher Zena Halpern believed

to have been created by members of the Knights Templar,

the team conducted a magnetometry survey

that identified a large metallic anomaly

buried more than ten feet underground.

Since then, they have unearthed several near-surface artifacts,

including a ship-making tool

that could date back to as early as 1500 AD.

And just one week ago,

Rick Lagina, Oak Island historian Paul Troutman,

and members of the team identified more evidence

of several possible buried objects

using ground penetrating radar.

So, we have a first anomaly at five feet,

second anomaly at 19, 20.

STEVE G.: So, the mag hit starts in this corner.

NARRATOR: Now the team is looking for more clues

that predate the discovery of the Money Pit in 1795

in order to obtain a government permit that would allow them

to conduct a large-scale excavation

of the mysterious anomalies.

GARY: I'm sure we'll find some stuff here.

I'm hoping it's a big jewelry box down here.

STEVE G.: Well, it's gonna be something.

-JACK: Yeah. -I mean, this whole area is a hot spot.

-Yeah. -All right, guys. I got to run, though. Let me know.

-I hear you, mate. Cheers. -Thanks.

All right, let's start gridding it out.

MARTY: Lot 8 clearly is anomalous.

Because of all the finds and because

of several things, like LIDAR and Zena's map,

and there's a mag anomaly there, too.

There's a lot of iron in this area, for sure.

MARTY: All kinds of things that don't make sense

'cause nobody ever lived there.

It makes you wonder what happened on Lot 8.

(beeping)

-We have got an hit. -Oh.

Right in the area that Steve last marked.

Right there, mate.

RICK: We're trying to understand the whole island.

We're trying to understand

everything as it relates to the story,

the mystery that is Oak Island.

It's gonna be tough digging.

JACK: Yeah.

RICK: We know the Money Pit is of interest.

And now we have some new research and some new theories

that leads us to these other X-marks-the-spots.

(grunts)

-(beeping) -It's out.

GARY: Yeah, and it's quite a strong signal,

by the sound of it.

You're on it.

Ooh.

Wow!

GARY: Wow! Look at that.

Let me see what this is. Let me put this away.

Yeah.

It's heavy, heavy, heavy.

NARRATOR: While investigating an area on Lot 8

where a number of large objects may be buried deep,

more than ten feet underground...

Big chunky piece of iron.

JACK: That's fantastic.

...metal detection expert Gary Drayton

and Jack Begley have just unearthed

a potentially important clue near the surface.

You see how it's mushroomed there?

JACK: Oh, but it's been beat on a bunch.

GARY: Oh, without a doubt, mate. Look.

That looks like it's the head of it.

And the best way of describing this, it's an iron rod.

-It could be a chisel. Yeah, exactly. -Top of a chisel. Yeah.

When you hold it in your hand like this,

you-you get the feeling that, yeah,

it could have been a chisel, mate.

This has got a swages

hand point chisel feel about it.

I think this is a very, very old piece of history

we're holding in our hands, mate.

-That's incredible. -Yeah.

Carmen dated the hand point chisel

and the swages back to the Middle Ages.

-Oh, really? -It was way back

to the 1400s, mate.

Well, then what the heck is going on in this area?

GARY: I don't know, mate.

NARRATOR: Over the past three years...

-That looks old to me. That looks hand-forged. -Sure.

Huh.

...the team has not only recovered

a similar metal artifact near Smith's Cove

on the eastern end of the island

but also two iron tools known as swages

here on the western side of the island...

...which blacksmithing expert Carmen Legge believed

to be of great significance.

For tunneling?

Wow. (chuckles)

Feel how heavy that is, mate.

NARRATOR: Could this iron object

that Gary and Jack have just found also be that old?

And if so, could it possibly be connected to the large anomalies

that have been detected much deeper below ground?

-JACK: It's a cool find. -Yeah.

JACK: We're finding more things

like swages and rock chisels and other objects

that lead to work being done

on the western side of the island,

previous to the discovery of the Money Pit.

So how are these tools related?

And why were people doing work on the western side?

Marked.

I'll put the flag in.

But you know what, mate,

I think we should get this back

to the archaeology trailer now

so the guys can start working on this.

-Right away, yeah. -We'll come back.

What a fantastic day.

♪ ♪

NARRATOR: The following morning...

CHARLES: Now, there's some good chunks.

...as the excavation of the D.M.T.-2 Shaft continues

in the Money Pit area...

-RICK: Morning, gentlemen. -ALEX: Hey, everybody.

-Hi, guys. -Hey, guys.

NARRATOR: ...Rick Lagina and Craig Tester

have gathered members of the team in the war room

for a videoconference with Scott Clarke,

a 32nd degree Freemason

and Oak Island researcher from Toronto, Canada.

So, gentlemen, we all know Scott Clarke.

Morning, guys.

NARRATOR: Earlier this year,

Scott presented the team with his theory

that the 17th century English nobleman Sir William Phips

may have conspired with an American Freemason

named Andrew Belcher to hide a massive cache of silver

in the Money Pit sometime around 1687.

We very much look forward to your presentation.

NARRATOR: However, in light of the team's recent finds made on Lot 8,

Rick has invited Scott to present new research connected

to another discovery that was made there three years ago,

the red garnet brooch,

which gemologist Charles Lewton-Brain believes

could date back more than four centuries.

I'll pull it out

so that everyone can take a look at it.

At the time, I think we all

declared it to be the first piece of treasure

that had been found on Oak Island.

Mm-hmm.

RICK: It still is quite stunning.

I believe that the information you've...

come up with probably will reveal a lot more about it.

Uh, yeah, hopefully. I mean,

I-I know you keep referring it-- to it as, uh... a brooch.

I have a different possible interpretation.

So, I've always believed that the key

to the Oak Island mystery lies within the equally enigmatic

and cryptic brotherhood of Freemasonry.

So, as I had thought more about this garnet,

it occurred to me that it was actually the perfect color,

size and general shape as one of the stones

from a Masonic Royal Arch High Priest breastplate.

In Freemasonry, the 13th degree of the Scottish Rite

is called the Royal Arch of Enoch

or Royal Arch of Solomon.

The High Priest is essentially the head

of the Masonic Royal Arch chapter

and wears these Royal Arch breastplates

in a specific Masonic ritual

meant to mimic the breastplate of judgment

worn by the biblical high priests.

So, the making of the original breastplate

is described in the Book of Exodus in the Bible.

On it were 12 precious and semiprecious stones

arranged in four rows of three,

representing the 12 tribes of Israel.

According to the King James translation of the Bible,

one of these 12 stones was stated

as being a carbuncle, or deep red gemstone.

Nowadays, a carbuncle is most often associated

with a red garnet like the one found on Oak Island.

So, I superimposed the Oak Island garnet and setting

over one of the breastplate stones.

I think you can see here it's very similar

to the ones on the other plate.

ALEX: That matches pretty well.

Pretty well.

But what would a Masonic Royal Arch

High Priest breastplate be doing on Oak Island?

NARRATOR: Ever since the Money Pit was discovered in 1795,

the secretive fraternity known as the Freemasons,

which many researchers claim descended

from the medieval order of the Knights Templar,

have been closely tied to the Oak Island mystery.

Several of their members,

such as Franklin Delano Roosevelt,

have not only led various treasure hunting companies,

but various Masonic and Templar symbols

have also been found across the island,

symbols that include crosses, triangles

and carvings of the letter "G," representing the divine creator.

RICK: I think well and truly it has been proved

that the Masons had an interest in Oak Island.

But what does that mean?

Does that mean they were here watching over it?

Does that mean they were here searching for something?

Does it mean they were here protecting something?

So, connections to Royal Arch Freemasonry in Nova Scotia

go back at least 250 years.

The breastplates they would have had

may also have been quite old,

having been passed down within lodges.

One High Priest

was intimately connected to Oak Island

in the early 20th century

and would also have worn one of these very rare breastplates

during certain Masonic Royal Arch rituals.

As it turns out, Melbourne R. Chappell

was Grand High Priest from 1954 to 1956.

Chappell was also a longtime Oak Island landowner

and treasure trove license holder

and even owned Lot 8,

where the garnet and setting were found.

Mel first became involved with Oak Island,

of course, when he worked with his father

William Chappell in 1931.

NARRATOR: Born and raised in Sydney, Nova Scotia,

M.R. Chappell was the primary owner of Oak Island

from 1950 to 1977.

However, his connection

to the treasure mystery began in 1897,

when he was just a child.

That year, his father William

drilled into the massive box deep in the Money Pit

that would come to be known as the Chappell Vault.

Although he was never able to recover the treasure

that his father believed he'd encountered,

is it possible that M.R. Chappell

came to have secret knowledge

through his position as a Freemason

about what may be buried on Oak Island?

There's always the possibility that any earlier Masons

prior to 1795 made use of certain Masonic rituals

to hide an actual sacred treasure on the island.

So, Mel Chappell may have actually had

a Masonic Royal Arch breastplate on Oak Island

for the purpose of acting out a Masonic ritual.

The breastplate was used in a specific Masonic ritual

meant to mimic the retrieval of the Ark of the Covenant

from a secret vault underground.

CLARKE: These breastplates, they were used in a specific

Masonic ritual meant to mimic

the retrieval of the Ark of the Covenant

from a secret vault underground.

Wow.

NARRATOR: In the war room,

32nd degree Freemason Scott Clarke

has presented the team with his theory

that the semiprecious garnet found four years ago on Lot 8

may have been connected to a Masonic ritual

and also to one of the most sought-after

missing religious artifacts in history.

CLARKE: But would there have been any reason for Chappell

to have potentially conducted Masonic rituals on Oak Island?

The answer is yes.

In the earliest days of Freemasonry,

these rituals were meant to be as realistic as possible.

It is held once each year on the Day of Atonement

in a very secret place, underground,

with neither door nor window, with a trapdoor at top.

In fact, the description of this vault,

with its nine arches, sounds almost identical

to the early accounts of the Oak Island Money Pit,

with its alleged layers every ten feet, down to 90 feet.

It's possible these guys were...

doing the ritual to hide something.

Or perhaps Chappell or any earlier Masons

were ritually paying homage to their predecessors,

the Knights Templar, who they knew had buried

the Ark of the Covenant on Oak Island centuries ago.

NARRATOR: From the 11th to the 12th century AD,

the military order of monks known

as the Knights Templar operated in the Holy Land

to protect Christian pilgrims during the Crusades.

Their base of operation was established on Temple Mount,

the site of the original Temple of King Solomon

and the last known location of the Ark of the Covenant.

In 1307, the order

was disbanded by Pope Clement V

and persecuted by King Philip IV of France.

Some researchers have speculated

that this was done in order to confiscate their treasures,

including the lost ark.

However, 18 Templar ships

are believed to have escaped from La Rochelle, France,

loaded with the order's priceless valuables.

Is it possible that researchers such as Scott Clarke

and the late Zena Halpern

have been correct in their belief

that the Templars hid their treasures,

including the Ark of the Covenant, on Oak Island?

And if so, could the proof lie buried on Lot 8?

It's very interesting, Scott.

You've thought outside the box, and there are ways to follow up.

If the garnet found specifically on a lot once owned

by Freemasons can be proven to be from a Masonic breastplate,

there could actually be other items on Lot 8

which could turn out to have Masonic significance.

RICK: Is that possible,

as Scott suspects, that that indicates

a depositional chamber for religious artifacts?

It's certainly possible.

But you have to take the theory

and put it in the field.

Could this be related to the Lot 8 anomaly?

Perhaps.

I think a dig is warranted.

I think the suggestion, from what you found, Scott,

is that there may be a stronger Masonic connection

than we realized.

Chappell was actively engaged in the treasure hunt,

spending money looking for treasure here.

So it makes sense that he knows

there's something here somewhere.

Yeah.

To me, it goes together.

CRAIG: I think it's very interesting.

Just realizing how many people of significant importance

in the Freemasons

were involved with Oak Island is-is amazing itself.

And then this specific brooch might be part

of that breastplate is very interesting.

RICK: Scott, we will do some follow-up,

and we will certainly stay in touch

and let you know if we find out anything at all.

Sounds good.

RICK: All right.

Well, thank you very much.

♪ ♪

NARRATOR: The following morning...

RICK: Just gonna get

-that piece of wood there. -Yeah.

...while Rick Lagina oversees the excavation

at the Money Pit...

...Marty Lagina joins Jack Begley,

Gary Drayton and members of the team on Lot 8.

Well, it's time to dig, huh, guys?

-Yep. -Yep.

NARRATOR: After following up

with the authorities,

they have been granted permission

to conduct a five-foot-deep excavation

at the site of the mysterious anomalies.

The OKM says there is an anomaly here at five feet and one at 20.

But if I can get you down five,

-that thing might say something. -GARY: Oh, yeah.

This'll get us another five.

The GPX 5000.

It's pulse induction, mate.

-This is Big Bertha. -Yeah.

NARRATOR: If they succeed

in finding evidence of human activity,

they can apply for a permit

that would allow for a much deeper

-investigation. -MARTY: All right!

-What do you say we dig? -GARY: Yeah. -SCOTT: Let's do it.

GARY: Okay, mate. I'll get settled.

MARTY: What I would really like to see as I'm digging

is something that is buried there

of significance. So...

obviously, a chamber of some sort would be fabulous.

So, you know, to hit metal,

to hit concrete,

to hit wood, even.

To find wood here,

say five feet down, would be gigantically significant.

It would be hiding something.

And of course, every bucket,

you're always looking for signs of treasure.

That's a heck of a lot of rocks.

We're in nothing but rock.

Yeah, I noticed all those rocks coming up.

Looked like someone had filled this area.

All of this here?

It all looks like it's fill.

It's disturbed.

SCOTT: It's just like

the paved area. There's just a big layer of rocks

right across this whole area.

NARRATOR: A possible paved area?

In 2019, while conducting

an excavation in the middle of the swamp...

Looked like deeper paved area.

Like multiple rocks?

Yeah. A stacking of rocks.

...Billy Gerhardt uncovered a massive stone-paved area

stretching across the middle of the brackish bog...

Holy crow.

I think something's really important here.

...which geoscientist Dr. Ian Spooner carbon-dated

to as early as 1200 AD.

Although the team has yet to determine

that feature's purpose,

could this feature here on Lot 8

have been created to conceal the large anomalies

that have been detected deeper below?

And if so, could it be evidence

that Scott Clarke's incredible theory

about a priceless treasure connected to the Knights Templar

is true?

-Is it disturbed more this way? -LAIRD: Yeah.

-So I should go that way? -Yeah.

(whirring)

(creaking)

That's a pretty big rock.

(creaking)

Come out of there.

(groans)

(shuts off engine)

That boulder is a bit like an iceberg, isn't it?

-(chuckling) -Yeah.

There's a lot going on down there.

Wouldn't you say, almost for sure, that's been dug before?

-It looks like it's been disturbed there. -JACK: Oh.

LAIRD: But you see all the organics

below the boulder.

MARTY: Mm-hmm. It suggests

that somebody dug, then pulled the rock and put it there.

GARY: I just know there's got to be something deeper.

Could be an hatch.

LAIRD: This might lead to something much greater.

JACK: The boulder's out of place, and there seems to be

a disturbance underneath it.

It suggests

that somebody dug, then pulled the rock

-and put it there. -Yeah.

NARRATOR: On Lot 8,

located on the western side of Oak Island,

Marty Lagina and members of the team

have just uncovered evidence

of human activity where previous GPR and magnetometry scans

have indicated large metallic objects

or structures may be buried up to 20 feet below.

Don't look like we're the first ones out here,

-for sure. -LAIRD: Yeah.

The biggest issue is, where did that boulder come from?

MARTY: If the boulder was placed by human intervention,

we're talking about tunnels or vaults or whatever

could be below that.

I think we should dig more

around that rock and just

-go down and see what we got here. -LAIRD: Sure.

-So, that's the plan. -Yeah.

(beep)

We have a couple clues

that what happened here appears to be so extensive.

It could certainly have been people hiding treasure.

So I think we have to dig deeper

to find what we're looking for.

It's unique enough to pursue it.

Am I below five feet?

Yeah, I'd say you're at five feet.

(engine shuts off)

Going in.

No. Not hearing anything.

Try on the side of this boulder.

No.

Quiet as a church mouse.

Dang.

-Was worth a try. -MARTY: Yeah.

All right. So what does that mean to us

and our little treasure hunt here?

I'd like to find something. (chuckles softly)

The surface metal detecting finds

tell us someone's been here a long time ago.

Some of those finds were old, in this area.

And although we haven't found anything today, I mean,

we can't put an "X" through this spot.

Yeah. Exactly.

MARTY: We have an anomaly to report

in the sense that we have black

-organic stuff under the boulder. -Yeah.

The deeper one, though, I think we're at the limit,

-so... -Yep.

NARRATOR: Although the team has now dug

to the five-foot limit that is possible today,

the fact that they unearthed what appears to be

a purposely-placed paved feature

and a massive artificially-placed boulder

means that they will need

to apply for a more extensive permit

in order to conduct a much deeper excavation

of the Lot 8 anomalies.

We'll head back.

We need to report to my brother and then decide

what else to do here.

JACK: All right, cool.

-Scott, will you fill it in? -Yeah.

-So let's go. -(beep)

I have a feeling we haven't seen the last of this place.

JACK: Yeah, me, too.

♪ ♪

NARRATOR: Later that afternoon...

MARTY: Yeah, this is exciting. I mean, I-I-I got high hopes for this.

NARRATOR: ...Rick, Marty Lagina and their partner Craig Tester

arrive at the Money Pit area

as the excavation of the D.M.T.-2 Shaft continues.

What's the latest?

We're looking at around 89 feet with the excavation.

And the can currently sits at 104 as well.

We're cutting very light, very low pressures with this one.

Just going down real easy?

Really, really easy.

What's that mean, Craig?

Well, I think we're getting close to the bottom

of the Hedden Shaft, where

it's probably going to be the softest.

You know, 120-foot level to 125,

that's going to be the bottom of the shaft.

Yeah.

RICK: Once we get down to a depth

right around 123, 124,

we will be below Hedden Shaft.

At that point,

we reach that horizon

where we hope to find something.

Thanks, Andrew.

I'm gonna go down to the wash plant 'cause

there's not a whole lot of people down there.

MARTY: All right, we'll see you in a little bit.

Another one coming.

That is a lot of wood.

CHARLES: That is a lot of wood.

GARY: That's nice.

Ho, ho, ho! Come to papa!

Look at that!

Fantastic!

A double-cut wood chip.

Both sides.

-That's great news. -What is that?

-Wood chip. -Axe-cut wood?

-Yep. -Yep.

NARRATOR: An axe-cut wood chip?

Found at a depth of some 90 feet in the D.M.T.-2 Shaft?

Those big wood chips are similar to what we saw

on the stone road.

-There's chips from axes everywhere. -RICK: Wow.

NARRATOR: One year ago, while investigating

the stone road in the swamp,

which may date back five centuries or more,

the team found a massive amount of axe-cut wood chips,

which Dr. Spooner believed had been utilized

for the feature's construction.

IAN: All the wood chips that we see

are from them throwing them down on the swamp

so they could put the rocks on something

when they built the road.

NARRATOR: Is it possible that the team has just

found evidence of human activity that could date back

to the same period as the stone road in the swamp?

Or perhaps even the features just unearthed on Lot 8?

-We can bag that. -Yeah.

(machinery grinding)

DANNY: Got to say, that's a new noise.

(clanking)

Man, that's-that's turning way too free.

-MARTY: Whoa! -DANNY: That's troubling.

That's troubling right there.

We got to be cutting something.

NARRATOR: It is a potentially critical moment

in the Money Pit area

as the D.M.T.-2 caisson appears to have encountered something

out of the ordinary at a depth of approximately 105 feet.

DANNY: That woke everybody up.

ANDREW: Yeah.

Well, we got it now.

Yeah, you're cooking now.

MARTY: What we're trying to do here is come down on

some of the things that people who came before us did.

They-they talked about grinding on metal

that they couldn't get through,

or potentially concrete.

And each time that was associated with something

special like, of course, the treasure vault.

So I want to know more about this.

CRAIG: Well, he got through the zone.

It was about two feet.

What does he think that obstacle was?

We're not sure. It should be coming out here any time.

Piece of a big boulder, maybe?

Could be just a big boulder, yeah.

That's kind of what we were speculating about.

Just strange characteristics the way that it was acting.

We'll find out very soon.

MARTY: All right, here we go.

GARY: Look at that!

-Big bucket. -Wow.

This is fantastic.

-Ready? -Yep.

Come look at this.

GARY: Wow, it looks old.

Yeah.

Could be a sign of old construction.

-Maybe we're into the older stuff. -Okay.

Can you take a quick look at this?

That looks like a peg.

They wouldn't have used a peg in

Hedden's stuff, would they?

-I doubt it. -You know,

why don't we do the float test? Dan Blankenship's float test.

If it sinks, he always said it was old.

-Sinks like a rock. -Sinks like a rock? It's old.

If it was a much older shaft,

they would have used pegs

-to secure the timbers. -Yep, yep.

-Instead of nails, right? -Yep.

NARRATOR: A wooden peg or dowel,

recovered from the D.M.T.-2 Shaft?

Because both Gilbert Hedden and Professor Irwin Hamilton,

who constructed shafts in this area more than 60 years ago,

used machine-cut lumber,

could this wooden dowel

mean that D.M.T.-2 has now cut into ancient man-made workings?

If so, might it also be an indication that the team

is finally zeroing in on the legendary Chappell Vault?

Big brother. We're at about 108 feet.

Um, lots of wood. Looks like Hedden.

All of it looks like Hedden

except for a few odd pieces like

that pin. And it sinks.

All right, do any of the timbers have dowels in them?

No. I've not seen, not observed any of that.

We'll probably try to send it in for C14.

RICK: The wooden peg was just simply the type of fastener

associated with an older structure.

So indications are that this area could be of interest.

One has to entertain it is indeed associated with

the original work and, thus, perhaps

in close proximity to a treasure.

And we have possibly different pieces of wood coming up.

Yeah. I think we've got

some older pieces of wood coming up now, mate.

-Oh, wow! Thicker timbers as well by the look of it. -Right.

RICK: We have to be very vigilant and, as the wood comes up,

separate what we deem to be Hedden Shaft

from what we deem to be

original depositional work.

So, all eyes on deck and we have to make some snap judgments.

That looks older.

Yeah, that does. That's cut.

Axe-cut.

Yeah, definitely axe-cut.

RICK: Is that a dowel or is that a drill hole?

There, you can feel it.

-It's spongy, kind of. -MARTY: Wow.

That's about the oldest looking thing that's come out of there.

CRAIG: Yep.

-RICK: So, where are we? -113.

113? Okay, and the can?

-124. -Okay.

That should be the end of the shaft, shouldn't it?

Yeah, with the can.

Well, it's an interesting area right here.

It is. Just so many questions.

-Yeah. -We'll figure it out.

-Sounds good, thank you. -You're welcome.

GARY: Let's find some good stuff.

Come on, metal, where are you?

I'd like to see some coins come up here.

-Check that out. -Wow.

What the heck would that be for?

RICK: What the heck would that be for?

Rick seems to have a knack for finding

-stuff nobody else finds. -I know.

I tell you, big brother, you have a knack for

finding stuff nobody else finds.

Lift that.

Geez!

That is heavy.

What on earth would the purpose of that be?

-I don't know. That's weird. -Yeah.

NARRATOR: In the Money Pit area, Rick Lagina

has recovered a potentially ancient piece of wood

from the spoils that were just unearthed

from a depth of some 120 feet

in the D.M.T.-2 Shaft.

MARTY: Sinks like a rock.

What kind of cuts on it? Can you tell?

MARTY: It's center-cut.

-CRAIG: Yeah. -Let's bri...

-God, that thing is heavy. Lift that sucker. -Oh, wow.

Might be oak, too.

That's pretty cool.

MARTY: The square piece of wood found in D.M.T.-2

is really interesting.

It's not from the Hedden Shaft.

It seemed to be much older,

there's no doubt about that.

It's different, uh, and that alone is substantive.

I think there is definitely hope for this caisson.

I'll go down this side.

(beeping)

Got to go for that.

Yeah. It's somewhere in there.

Come on, Pete. Dig us something good up.

Here, let me see if I can pinpoint it.

Here.

-Yeah. It's a big piece of metal. -Yeah.

I've no idea what it is.

PETER: We got another one coming out with way more of it.

That's what it is.

Holy schmoly! Heads up.

-Charles. -Yep.

There's the plate.

Look at all the nails sticking out of it.

That's a huge plate.

Yep.

Are we that deep that that could be the shield?

-Yeah, I would say so. -Has to be.

Well, how about that?

-That's very interesting. -(laughs)

NARRATOR: Now that the team appears to have reached and removed

the heavy metallic shield that Gilbert Hedden installed

at the base of his shaft in 1937...

That's a piece of history there.

Oh, definitely a piece of history.

...it only offers hope that in the coming days they may be able

to reach what Mr. Hedden could not:

the fabled Chappell Vault.

RICK: There is only one Hedden Shaft on Oak Island.

So, it's part of the history and the lore.

This means we're at the deepest part of the shaft.

And then the hope is that anything underneath

that will be something that would be highly relevant

to the quest for answers regarding the mystery.

Hey, Andrew.

We think we're probably

through the Hedden Shaft.

-Are we? -Yeah.

RICK: Well, it's getting dark.

I think we're done for the night.

-Call it a day? -Yeah, I would.

-You agree? -Yeah.

It's not going anywhere.

Sure. Sounds good. Thanks, guys.

MARTY: We, and a lot of other searchers,

have looked for this thing since 1897

when it was first described.

So, each time we get down to

that depth we are eagerly hoping we find that vault.

And we're hoping this time it's it.

It's got to be out there somewhere. Right, Charles?

It's out there. You just haven't found it yet.

Yeah, well, we're about 30 feet above it right now.

I hope so.

-(Marty laughs) -RICK: We'll find it.

-CRAIG: Yep. -RICK: Let's go.

NARRATOR: What began as a search for buried riches

227 years ago

has evolved over time into a mystery

involving much, much more.

And for Rick, Marty, Craig and their team,

as they continue to unearth the hidden history of Oak Island,

just what might they discover about the history of the world?

Will it involve a vast treasure

of plundered gold, silver and jewels?

Priceless artifacts created at the direction

of an all-powerful God?

Or will they find that some secrets about the past

were never meant to be revealed?

Next time on The Curse of Oak Island...

Wow! Look at that.

This might be the missing link to treasure in this area.

Never in a million years had I expected to find a link

to Portugal and to the Knights Templar.

-That's astounding. -Whoa!

-MARTY: That can's going down fast. -RICK: Wow.

We're right at the vault.

We should be finding something here

pretty quick. This is it.

Wow, this is a big find.

We've caught a piece of this vault.

-It's amazing. -Oh, baby. -(laughter)

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