From lost golden cities to pirate loots: 10 treasures worth looking for

Image: Bjorn Pierre

Everyone has, at some point, imagined stumbling across a hidden chest of gold or a mysterious jewel lost for centuries. Most of us only strike gold in our dreams, but history is filled with treasures that have yet to be discovered. While some are probably tall tales, others may be buried just beneath our feet. Here are 10 of the most curious (and glittering) mysteries still unsolved.

Image: Daniel J. Schwarz

Centuries ago, there was an entire city gleaming with gold, hidden deep in the thick, uncharted jungles of South America. In the 1500s, Spanish conquistadors became obsessed with this dazzling vision, driven by tales of a great ruler who offered invaluable treasures to the gods and covered his body in gold dust.

The promise of limitless wealth lured expedition after expedition into dangerous territories, where many lives were lost along the way. Yet, despite many years of searching, El Dorado was never found. Was there truly a golden kingdom, or was it nothing more than the world’s most extravagant legend?

Image: János Venczák

In 1216, King John of England somehow managed to lose an entire royal treasure convoy while crossing a tricky inlet in the North Sea known as The Wash. According to lore, the heavy wagons were swamped by the incoming tide and never resurfaced. Crowns, jewels, and priceless relics disappeared into the muck. Historians estimate the haul would be worth millions today.

Image: Alex Boyd

The Wild West outlaw Jesse James became famous for robbing banks and trains with style, but the bigger mystery is what happened with the priceless loot. Did he tuck away the money for a rainy day? Campfire tales insist he buried it in caves, canyons, and lonely hillsides, supposedly leaving behind cryptic maps and clues.

Generations of treasure hunters have chased after the myth, shovels in hand, hoping for a jackpot that never turns up. If James is chuckling somewhere, it’s likely at the sight of modern folks still poking around the prairie, convinced his ghost left them a scavenger hunt to play.

Image: Peter Burdon

When conquistadors captured the Incan emperor Atahualpa in 1532, he made an offer that could outshine any ransom in history: a chamber packed floor-to-ceiling with gold and silver. While some of that treasure was taken, much of it mysteriously vanished after the Spaniards executed the king anyway. And we’re not talking mere trinkets; historians estimate hundreds of thousands of pounds of precious metal. To this day, no one knows where the rest of the bounty is.

Image: Andrej Sachov

Back when pirates ruled the world, British privateer Henry Morgan became famous for plundering Caribbean towns, carting off gold, silver, and whatever else he could find. Rumor has it, he didn’t spend it all but stashed mountains of riches on remote islands. San Andrés locals will even guide you to "Morgan’s Cave." Spoiler alert: it’s totally empty—unless you count bats and sea breeze. Treasure or not, the cave’s real prize is probably the tall tale itself.

Image: Marcus Woodbridge

In the 1500s, a Portuguese ship set sail carrying what can only be described as a floating fortune—around 120,000 pounds of gold, along with crates of jewels, spices, and other exotic goods from the East. But before it could reach Europe, a violent storm struck near Sumatra, sending the vessel and its priceless cargo to the bottom of the sea. Despite centuries of searching, the wreck has never been located. For modern treasure hunters, it remains the ultimate fantasy.

Image: Nicholas Nduati

Legend has it that during the 1940s, Japanese general Tomoyuki Yamashita secreted away thousands of tons of gold somewhere in the Philippines. Over the years, treasure hunters have dug, scanned, and explored, occasionally uncovering small trinkets but not the vast bulk of the WWII loot. True or not, the story continues to fuel the imaginations of swashbucklers who keep exploring jungles and tunnels, leaving local hardware stores empty of shovels, metal detectors, and digging gear.

Image: Abimelec Castillo

When Spanish forces conquered Mexico, the vast treasure said to belong to Emperor Montezuma seemed to vanish into thin air. Chronicles speak of mountains of gold, silver, and dazzling artifacts, yet none were ever officially recovered. Some legends claim the riches were hidden away in secret caves, while others insist the treasure was dumped into Lake Texcoco.

The truth remains a mystery, but the allure hasn’t faded. And who knows? If you happen to stumble across a golden mask or bright jewel while wandering the streets of Mexico City, you’ll have uncovered one of history’s most tantalizing legends.

Image: Nadjib BR

Pirate William Kidd’s name is forever tied to the rumor that, before his capture, he secretly buried a fortune somewhere along his sailing routes. Ever since, countless maps have surfaced, each claiming to point the way to his hidden gold, with locations ranging from the Caribbean islands to the rocky shores of New England. None of these supposed guides has ever led to the treasure, yet that hasn’t stopped adventurers from trying their luck.

Image: Francesco Ungaro

A fleet of twelve Spanish galleons once departed from Havana, Cuba, their holds packed to the brim with gold, silver, and sparkling gems destined for Europe. But fate had other plans. An unforgiving hurricane smashed the ships against reefs and dragged their cargo to the ocean floor off Florida’s coast.

Over the centuries, divers and fortune seekers have managed to recover scattered coins, jewelry, and fragments of the wreck; yet, the vast majority of the treasure remains hidden beneath the waves. So, if your next vacation to the Sunshine State involves a trip to the beach, it might be worth bringing along a snorkel!

These towns are the bee’s knees

10 animal towns around the world

Traveling to foreign cities and towns is a great way to interact with different people and their cultures, but have you ever thought about visiting an animal town? Scattered around the world, some of these places are the result of natural reserves set up to protect endangered species, while others are simply a product of life’s circumstances. Let’s take a look at 10 "animal towns" around the world!

Also known as Neko no Shima, or Cat Island, this Japanese town has become a popular tourist destination for cat lovers worldwide. A former fishing town, cats were introduced to Aoshima as a means of controlling rodents, but they quickly outnumbered the human population. It is estimated that there are around 36 cats for every human on Aoshima.

Every winter, this town in the Canadian province of Manitoba receives an influx of furry visitors when hundreds of polar bears make their way to Hudson Bay to hunt for seals. Residents do their best to avoid them, but a few curious bears still go snooping around, and some even end up in "polar bear jail" before being released back into the wild.

Assateague is a barrier island located along the Maryland-Virginia border on the Atlantic coast. It is famous for its population of feral horses, most likely descendants of formerly domesticated animals. Maryland and Virginia residents disagree on whether the animals should be called horses or ponies, a discussion that has not been settled because the animals have horse-like characteristics but pony-size stature, most likely due to environmental conditions.

Each November, this Australian island near the coast of Indonesia becomes the setting for a natural wonder, the annual red crab migration. The island’s red crab population—estimated at around 100 million crabs—travels to the sea to lay their eggs. To allow the horde of crustaceans to safely reach the shore, authorities close off roads around the island.

This beach on the inhabited island of Big Major Cay is not only a tropical paradise but also home to an unexpected animal community. No one knows exactly where the pigs came from, but the swimming pigs have become a popular tourist attraction, and they are often fed by the visitors of neighboring islands.

This one is not really a town, but it is home to a colony of friendly sea lions. Located at a shopping and entertainment complex on a San Francisco pier, the animals began moving in during the 1980s from a more distant colony. After an earthquake in 1989 caused residents to remove their boats while the pier was being refurbished, the sea lions made their home there and have shared the space with humans ever since.

Located in Japan’s Inland Sea, Okunoshima is home to a huge population of free-roaming rabbits. These animals are descendants of domestic rabbits, so they are quite tame and will often approach humans. In order to protect the rabbits, animals like cats and dogs are banned from the island.

A protected reserve since the 1970s, this South American peninsula is home to the largest colony of Magellanic penguins in the world. Despite threats such as oil spills affecting the animals, the population numbers have steadily risen in the past several decades, and nowadays it’s estimated that the colony houses nearly a million birds.

Off the coast of Norway, this island has a small human population—just a little more than 100 people—but they are greatly outnumbered by seabirds, which number between about 500,000 and 700,000. The island is considered a protected reserve and hosts many bird species, the most notable being the Atlantic puffin.

Once a royal city, Polonnaruwa is now an archaeological site near a modern town of the same name. The ruins have been declared a UNESCO World Heritage Site, but they also have an additional tourist attraction: a colony of toque macaques, residents of the ruins for centuries.