About This Artifact
A wrought iron hook recovered during the investigation of a brick-and-slate vault structure in the northern section of the triangle-shaped swamp during Season 12. Rick Lagina found the hook after the feature had been partially drained, in a cellar-like structure that Tom Nolan said he had never encountered anything like on the island. Tom suggested the hook had been used to lower or remove items from the vault.
In the lab, Emma Culligan's CT scan and compositional analysis dated the hook to the early to mid-1800s based on its manganese content. Other artifacts recovered from the same vault included a wrought iron handle that Laird Niven identified as a crank based on its square shape, used to move something, and a large piece of iron pipe. Emma dated the pipe and crank to the late 1700s, earlier than the hook, leading the team to conclude the vault had been constructed before the discovery of the Money Pit in 1795 and remained in use afterward.
The brick-and-slate vault was located near the cobblestone pathway and within the area once owned by Anthony Graves, who purchased most of Oak Island in 1857 and was later said to have made purchases on the mainland using Spanish silver coins. The combination of 18th-century construction hardware and 19th-century additions suggested the vault had served multiple users across different periods of the island's history.
Historical Context
Gary Drayton
Where It Was Found
Found at Lot 26 — Oak Island, Nova Scotia, Canada.
