0:00:02 > 0:00:05I'm in a secure room deep underground,
0:00:05 > 0:00:10surrounded by the most valuable shipwreck treasure in history.
0:00:12 > 0:00:16There are 551 of these plastic containers in here,
0:00:16 > 0:00:20each of them are full of silver and gold coins.
0:00:21 > 0:00:24These aren't just any old silver coins,
0:00:24 > 0:00:26these are pieces of eight,
0:00:26 > 0:00:28which is a currency that everybody's heard of.
0:00:28 > 0:00:33Look at that! And this would have been worth eight reales,
0:00:33 > 0:00:35hence the name "pieces of eight".
0:00:37 > 0:00:40Today all these gold and silver coins are worth
0:00:40 > 0:00:44more than 500 million.
0:00:46 > 0:00:50'Amazing tales of buried treasure don't just exist in story books
0:00:50 > 0:00:53'or our imagination.'
0:00:53 > 0:00:55Our planet is full of treasure,
0:00:55 > 0:00:58from precious metals like these to dazzling jewels.
0:00:59 > 0:01:02'All you need to know is where to look.'
0:01:02 > 0:01:05Come with us on the world's biggest treasure hunt.
0:01:07 > 0:01:09'Scratch the surface of our planet
0:01:09 > 0:01:12'and you'll discover a world of natural wonders.'
0:01:12 > 0:01:14Oh, my word!
0:01:14 > 0:01:17'Our ingenuity has transformed them into priceless riches.'
0:01:17 > 0:01:19This is the one I still can't believe,
0:01:19 > 0:01:21I can't believe how enormous that is.
0:01:22 > 0:01:25'We'll reveal where shipwreck hauls
0:01:25 > 0:01:27'are lying on the bottom of the ocean...'
0:01:27 > 0:01:29Just as shiny as the day it sank.
0:01:29 > 0:01:32'Investigate how we've created dazzling masterpieces
0:01:32 > 0:01:35'from the raw materials of our planet...'
0:01:35 > 0:01:39- It's going to be 800,000 to a million dollars.- Ooh!
0:01:42 > 0:01:46'And uncover extraordinary man-made wonders.'
0:01:46 > 0:01:49This whole place just seems to glow.
0:01:51 > 0:01:56'We're going around the globe to reveal the incredible stories
0:01:56 > 0:01:58'behind the planet's greatest treasures.'
0:02:13 > 0:02:15'Perhaps the most intriguing treasures
0:02:15 > 0:02:17'are those that have been lost.'
0:02:19 > 0:02:24'Storms, wars and misadventure have left millions, maybe billions,
0:02:24 > 0:02:27'of pounds' worth lying at the bottom of the ocean.'
0:02:29 > 0:02:31'So, where do you go to find it?'
0:02:31 > 0:02:32There we go.
0:02:33 > 0:02:36Shipwrecks can be found everywhere, of course,
0:02:36 > 0:02:38but I've come to the Florida Keys
0:02:38 > 0:02:40for a very special reason.
0:02:42 > 0:02:44One of interesting things about this area, of course, is that
0:02:44 > 0:02:48there's a lot of hurricanes and consequently, the whole sea bed
0:02:48 > 0:02:52is littered with shipwrecks, which is bad news if you're the captain
0:02:52 > 0:02:56of one of those ships, but very good news if you're a treasure hunter.
0:03:04 > 0:03:06I'm going diving for treasure
0:03:06 > 0:03:09on one of the richest wrecks ever discovered.
0:03:11 > 0:03:16You have to cast your minds back, if you will, to 1622,
0:03:16 > 0:03:18the Spanish galleon, the Atocha,
0:03:18 > 0:03:22was sailing from South America back to Spain via Cuba,
0:03:22 > 0:03:25completely loaded with treasure,
0:03:25 > 0:03:28and about 90 miles off the Cuban coast, right where we are now,
0:03:28 > 0:03:31she got hit by a hurricane and was sunk.
0:03:34 > 0:03:39What's left of the Atocha was rediscovered in 1985.
0:03:39 > 0:03:41The galleon has been destroyed by the ocean
0:03:41 > 0:03:46but around 400 million dollars' worth of booty has been discovered,
0:03:46 > 0:03:48strewn for miles across the sea floor.
0:03:50 > 0:03:53So that's the salvage boat that we're going to be diving from
0:03:53 > 0:03:57and it's just crazy to think that right under where we are now
0:03:57 > 0:04:01could be treasure, more treasure, emeralds, gold, silver.
0:04:05 > 0:04:09'The Fisher family are professional salvage hunters.
0:04:09 > 0:04:14'They spent 16 years looking for the Atocha before they struck gold.'
0:04:16 > 0:04:19'Kim Fisher and I are about to search for more.'
0:04:22 > 0:04:25You've been diving here for a while, are we going to find something today
0:04:25 > 0:04:29or is this just a bit of a wild-goose chase?
0:04:29 > 0:04:32No, we're in a really good spot here, it's virgin territory,
0:04:32 > 0:04:35it hasn't been worked before, and we've just started
0:04:35 > 0:04:38working this area and we've been finding stuff every haul.
0:04:38 > 0:04:40Is it actually hard to spot treasure?
0:04:40 > 0:04:44Yes. The artefacts get all encrusted
0:04:44 > 0:04:46and they kind of blend in, they look just like a rock.
0:04:46 > 0:04:50- Right.- So you have to have a trained eye to see it
0:04:50 > 0:04:52or use this metal detector.
0:04:52 > 0:04:54You've got to look out for the current,
0:04:54 > 0:04:57there's a really strong current here, so, you know,
0:04:57 > 0:05:00just follow the dive line down right to the bottom.
0:05:06 > 0:05:09Oh, God. The current is so strong.
0:05:12 > 0:05:16'And that's another reason working a wreck like this is so tough.
0:05:16 > 0:05:20'The combination of the current and storms means there's nothing
0:05:20 > 0:05:22'recognisable as a boat on the bedrock.'
0:05:26 > 0:05:28OK, let's see what we can find.
0:05:29 > 0:05:34'The trail of artefacts is spread out over nine miles and Kim's team are
0:05:34 > 0:05:39'still finding things nearly 30 years after the first discovery of gold.'
0:05:44 > 0:05:47I keep seeing things that might be something, and then you have
0:05:47 > 0:05:52a little closer look and it's just a bit of shell or a piece of rock.
0:05:56 > 0:05:58This looks like a piece of timber or something from a ship.
0:06:02 > 0:06:05'I'm having no luck relying on my eyes,
0:06:05 > 0:06:08'so it's time to try using the underwater metal detector.'
0:06:08 > 0:06:10BEEPING
0:06:14 > 0:06:16OK, I think I have something.
0:06:18 > 0:06:20I'm getting lots of beeping noises here.
0:06:20 > 0:06:22Oh, look!
0:06:25 > 0:06:29Wow, look at that, that is a real musket ball
0:06:29 > 0:06:32and I'm the first person to touch this for 400 years.
0:06:32 > 0:06:34This is a real piece of treasure.
0:06:35 > 0:06:39Oh, until you pick something up like this, it is such a thrill,
0:06:39 > 0:06:40you get such a buzz.
0:06:41 > 0:06:43There's another musket ball, look.
0:06:45 > 0:06:47Holy cow, look at that, that's huge.
0:06:47 > 0:06:50Oh, God, there's loads of them.
0:06:50 > 0:06:52Here's another one here.
0:06:58 > 0:07:00'The presence of all this ammunition suggests
0:07:00 > 0:07:03'we're hunting in the right area.
0:07:03 > 0:07:08'The Spanish galleon was armed to the teeth to protect her precious cargo.'
0:07:08 > 0:07:11The sea bed throughout the world is just rich with treasures
0:07:11 > 0:07:15and it's estimated that there's three million shipwrecks
0:07:15 > 0:07:19and their cargo lying on the sea bottom,
0:07:19 > 0:07:21but it's more than just that, it's the history itself.
0:07:21 > 0:07:25We learn so much about what life was like on the actual ships.
0:07:25 > 0:07:30And it's so exciting to think that any stone I might turn over,
0:07:30 > 0:07:32or any shell I might pick up, underneath it could be gold
0:07:32 > 0:07:36or silver. You've just got to keep looking.
0:07:36 > 0:07:38And that's what treasure is all about,
0:07:38 > 0:07:40it's all about the idea of discovery.
0:07:42 > 0:07:45'Frustratingly, I'm out of air before we find anything else
0:07:45 > 0:07:47'and have to head back to the surface.'
0:07:52 > 0:07:54- All right.- That was amazing.
0:07:56 > 0:07:58That was unbelievable.
0:07:59 > 0:08:01Have a look at this.
0:08:01 > 0:08:03They're into their musket balls.
0:08:03 > 0:08:07That's treasure. That counts as treasure. Sadly, no gold.
0:08:07 > 0:08:11Even so, the fact that this was made by somebody
0:08:11 > 0:08:13and was on board that ship...
0:08:13 > 0:08:15that in itself is exciting.
0:08:16 > 0:08:19That's what's wonderful about shipwrecks -
0:08:19 > 0:08:22they're a snap shot of a single moment in history.
0:08:22 > 0:08:27In 1662, the Atocha sailed from Havana to Spain
0:08:27 > 0:08:30with wealth taken from across the New World.
0:08:40 > 0:08:44So far, they've recovered over 5,000 emeralds,
0:08:44 > 0:08:49so many that a section of the wreck has been nicknamed Emerald City.
0:08:52 > 0:08:58As well as endless gold ingots, gold bars and gold chains.
0:08:58 > 0:09:02OK, hold out your hand, I'm going to give you gold fever.
0:09:02 > 0:09:05When we find the gold, it comes up just as shiny as the day it sank.
0:09:05 > 0:09:11- It doesn't tarnish, it doesn't rust, it just shines for ever.- Solid gold.
0:09:11 > 0:09:14Yes, that's a money chain and each link weighs the same.
0:09:14 > 0:09:16When you went shopping, you'd just twist a link off
0:09:16 > 0:09:17and use it for money.
0:09:17 > 0:09:20So you're swimming along, you see a little bit of this poking out...
0:09:20 > 0:09:23- Yes.- That's got to get the adrenaline going.- Oh, yeah, it does.
0:09:23 > 0:09:27- Can I touch some of this gold? - Yes, please.
0:09:27 > 0:09:30Oh, my God, that's... that's ridiculously heavy,
0:09:30 > 0:09:32that's a couple of kilos.
0:09:32 > 0:09:34Yeah, very deceptive.
0:09:34 > 0:09:38That's a 360,000 gold disc right there
0:09:38 > 0:09:40but the best thing is these emeralds.
0:09:40 > 0:09:42They're beautiful when the light comes through.
0:09:42 > 0:09:44They are incredible, aren't they?
0:09:44 > 0:09:49They're about 27,000 a carat. This big one here is 27 carats,
0:09:49 > 0:09:51so that's about three-quarters of a million.
0:09:51 > 0:09:54And these were just lying on the bottom of the ocean?
0:09:54 > 0:09:56Well, yeah, they were buried in the sand
0:09:56 > 0:09:59and I saw a clump of emeralds just going up the pipe like that
0:09:59 > 0:10:03and I shut it down and the emeralds came falling down,
0:10:03 > 0:10:07and I spent the rest of my dive just swimming around picking up emeralds.
0:10:07 > 0:10:10I've got to ask, I mean...is there more of this stuff down there?
0:10:10 > 0:10:14Yeah, we know for sure. We have one letter where a fellow
0:10:14 > 0:10:18shipped his brother 70 pounds in one box.
0:10:18 > 0:10:22Now, so far we've found two stashes of emeralds
0:10:22 > 0:10:25and neither of them come close to 70 pounds.
0:10:25 > 0:10:29Somewhere out there there's one box with 70 pounds
0:10:29 > 0:10:32and that box could be worth, you know, a billion dollars.
0:10:32 > 0:10:36I mean, it could be worth more than everything we've found already,
0:10:36 > 0:10:37just in that one little box.
0:10:42 > 0:10:46In 1984, the US Supreme Court decided that in this case
0:10:46 > 0:10:50it's finders keepers - the Fishers get to keep it all.
0:10:53 > 0:10:56And we're prepared to pay more than the going rate
0:10:56 > 0:10:58for the Atocha's haul.
0:10:58 > 0:11:01Our insatiable desire for the rarest treasures,
0:11:01 > 0:11:05coupled with our love of tales of the high seas and shipwrecks,
0:11:05 > 0:11:10means its value has been inflated by its extraordinary history.
0:11:21 > 0:11:23Thousands of miles away,
0:11:23 > 0:11:28I'm on the trail of a lost treasure whose story is even more intriguing.
0:11:29 > 0:11:35And it begins here in a Russian outpost with a humble forest.
0:11:38 > 0:11:4135 to 50 million years ago,
0:11:41 > 0:11:44ancient evergreen forests oozed resin from their bark
0:11:44 > 0:11:49as a defence mechanism, sealing and sterilising any damage.
0:11:50 > 0:11:55Normally, this resin gets broken down by the erosive effects of wind
0:11:55 > 0:11:57and rain, but not always.
0:11:57 > 0:12:00If it gets covered by a layer of earth, it's protected
0:12:00 > 0:12:05from the weather. Add to it the weight of many layers of sediment,
0:12:05 > 0:12:08and the pressure over the centuries
0:12:08 > 0:12:11turns it from THIS into amber.
0:12:15 > 0:12:17One of nature's most beautiful gems,
0:12:17 > 0:12:2290% of the world's amber is extracted here in the Baltic.
0:12:25 > 0:12:29In winter storms, the sea tears it off the sea bed
0:12:29 > 0:12:32and sends it bobbing to the surface,
0:12:32 > 0:12:35and then occasionally, it'll get thrown out on to the beach.
0:12:35 > 0:12:38And because of this incredible distinctive hue,
0:12:38 > 0:12:41it's known as Baltic gold.
0:12:41 > 0:12:45And it's the starting point for one of the strangest stories
0:12:45 > 0:12:47in the history of treasure.
0:12:57 > 0:13:00This is St Catherine's Palace.
0:13:04 > 0:13:07Completed in 1756 for Empress Elizabeth,
0:13:07 > 0:13:10this grand building is THE place to come
0:13:10 > 0:13:13if you want to experience the ultimate in opulent treasure.
0:13:19 > 0:13:23This is what we've come here to see. THIS...
0:13:23 > 0:13:25is the Amber Room.
0:13:25 > 0:13:27Oh, my word!
0:13:27 > 0:13:30SHE LAUGHS
0:13:30 > 0:13:31Wow!
0:13:31 > 0:13:35This is decadent.
0:13:46 > 0:13:49Imagine throwing a party in here.
0:13:49 > 0:13:52You'd be terrified of the red wine.
0:13:54 > 0:13:57A masterpiece of baroque design,
0:13:57 > 0:14:01this is the most bejewelled room ever created.
0:14:02 > 0:14:04They've made art out of it - the detail!
0:14:04 > 0:14:06Oh, my word, look at the detail.
0:14:15 > 0:14:20This room was used by the Russian tsars to entertain foreign guests
0:14:20 > 0:14:25and dignitaries. Every surface of every wall is covered in individual
0:14:25 > 0:14:30amber pieces, all ornately put together, so it's a real statement
0:14:30 > 0:14:35of wealth and beauty. It was known as the Eighth Wonder of the World.
0:14:43 > 0:14:47The reason this room is a lost treasure, despite appearances,
0:14:47 > 0:14:51is that what we're looking at HERE is not the original,
0:14:51 > 0:14:53it's a modern replica.
0:14:53 > 0:14:56And that's where the story gets very Indiana Jones.
0:15:02 > 0:15:05The original was finished in the 1750s
0:15:05 > 0:15:10and was made up of 100,000 pieces of intricately carved amber.
0:15:12 > 0:15:15But nearly 200 years later, tragedy struck.
0:15:17 > 0:15:22Just imagine - it's 1941 and the Nazis are invading Russia.
0:15:22 > 0:15:25They're advancing fast, so all the treasures in the palace
0:15:25 > 0:15:27need to be removed at great speed.
0:15:27 > 0:15:31But the trouble was, these amber panels were incredibly fragile,
0:15:31 > 0:15:35so the decision was made to hide them instead. They were papered over
0:15:35 > 0:15:40and covered in gauze and cotton wool and finally they were boarded up.
0:15:48 > 0:15:52But the gamble failed and the Nazis found it.
0:15:52 > 0:15:57It took them just 36 hours to dismantle the entire room.
0:15:57 > 0:16:01They crated it up and took it to Konigsberg Castle in Prussia.
0:16:01 > 0:16:06Nobody knows for sure what happened to it - soon after, it disappeared.
0:16:09 > 0:16:12In 1979, the Russians started to recreate
0:16:12 > 0:16:14the Amber Room from scratch.
0:16:14 > 0:16:19This labour of love cost over 11 million
0:16:19 > 0:16:21and required six tonnes of amber.
0:16:25 > 0:16:26And when you need that much,
0:16:26 > 0:16:29you can't rely on it washing up on a beach.
0:16:43 > 0:16:49We're driving down on a bumpy, very muddy, wet track
0:16:49 > 0:16:52and it's really rare that anybody's allowed down here,
0:16:52 > 0:16:55so it's an incredible honour to be able to do this.
0:17:01 > 0:17:04This is the world's largest open-cast amber mine.
0:17:06 > 0:17:07Wow.
0:17:09 > 0:17:14This place is really big, much bigger than I had envisaged.
0:17:14 > 0:17:16Just looking at the cabin of that digger over there,
0:17:16 > 0:17:20that's about the size of a standard three-bedroom house.
0:17:30 > 0:17:35The amber is in a layer of grey clay known as blue earth, or glauconite.
0:17:35 > 0:17:38Here it sits at 50m below ground level,
0:17:38 > 0:17:42so that takes a very particular type of mining to extract it,
0:17:42 > 0:17:45using these water cannons.
0:17:56 > 0:17:59Once the blue-grey layer is piled up by the extractor,
0:17:59 > 0:18:04the miners blast the clay with high-pressure, saltwater jets.
0:18:08 > 0:18:11The amber is washed out into the open
0:18:11 > 0:18:14and the bigger the piece, the more valuable it is.
0:18:15 > 0:18:17Wow!
0:18:20 > 0:18:23Look at this! What a whopper.
0:18:30 > 0:18:35This mine produced over a million pounds' worth of amber last year.
0:18:35 > 0:18:41To turn this into a jewellery box of a room is still a Herculean task
0:18:41 > 0:18:44and it took Russian craftsmen 24 years.
0:18:45 > 0:18:49To recreate the Amber Room, they didn't have a huge amount to go on,
0:18:49 > 0:18:51just a few old photos like this,
0:18:51 > 0:18:55which were black and white and pretty grainy.
0:18:55 > 0:18:59Not much of a blueprint, really, to recreate a masterpiece.
0:19:02 > 0:19:06But the big question is - what happened to the original?
0:19:06 > 0:19:10The intrigue has massively increased its value.
0:19:10 > 0:19:12It's been speculated that if it were found,
0:19:12 > 0:19:16it might be worth £300 million.
0:19:19 > 0:19:22But it hasn't been seen since the Second World War,
0:19:22 > 0:19:24when the Nazis took the looted room
0:19:24 > 0:19:28over 500 miles to the town of Konigsberg.
0:19:34 > 0:19:36This may not look like much
0:19:36 > 0:19:40but it's the ruins of the castle where the Amber Room was last seen.
0:19:41 > 0:19:44People are still looking for it.
0:19:44 > 0:19:47There were some archaeologists searching down in these
0:19:47 > 0:19:52flooded tunnels recently and they found...absolutely nothing.
0:19:54 > 0:19:58Perhaps it's hidden in another part of the tunnel network.
0:20:01 > 0:20:04Was it destroyed in the fire that followed the battle of Konigsberg,
0:20:04 > 0:20:07or could it be that it was stolen again
0:20:07 > 0:20:09right under the nose of the Nazis?
0:20:09 > 0:20:14One thing is certain, by 1944, when the Germans retreated,
0:20:14 > 0:20:16the Amber Room had disappeared
0:20:16 > 0:20:22and became the Holy Grail for treasure hunters across Europe.
0:20:33 > 0:20:36Of course, not all treasures are lost.
0:20:36 > 0:20:40Some are hidden, so valuable they spend most of their time
0:20:40 > 0:20:43locked away from public view.
0:20:45 > 0:20:49Such is their rarity that their coming onto the market
0:20:49 > 0:20:51creates a sensation.
0:20:52 > 0:20:57This is the largest flawless diamond ever to be brought to auction.
0:20:58 > 0:21:01So, there's nothing... nothing like this on the planet?
0:21:01 > 0:21:03- No.- This is the premium diamond.
0:21:03 > 0:21:06No. I mean, it is a spectacular diamond, as we can see,
0:21:06 > 0:21:11and to get that sort of size, that purity, that colour today,
0:21:11 > 0:21:12it's quite amazing.
0:21:12 > 0:21:15In terms of the world treasure, where does it rate?
0:21:15 > 0:21:19In terms of these flawless diamonds, other than your Crown Jewels,
0:21:19 > 0:21:23they would rank as the top ten easily, easily.
0:21:23 > 0:21:31At 118 carats, this one white diamond sold for over £30 million.
0:21:31 > 0:21:34What is it about diamonds historically?
0:21:34 > 0:21:36Why are we so fascinated by diamonds particularly?
0:21:36 > 0:21:39I think, first of all, I think diamonds are such a rare treasure
0:21:39 > 0:21:40from the earth.
0:21:40 > 0:21:43But it really takes man's artistry,
0:21:43 > 0:21:47the masterstrokes of polishing that up to being what it is.
0:21:47 > 0:21:50It's really, for me, man and nature together,
0:21:50 > 0:21:54creating a beautiful gem that is really, really of great mystery.
0:21:58 > 0:22:00How DO you reveal the potential value
0:22:00 > 0:22:03of the most sought-after rock on earth?
0:22:04 > 0:22:07I've come to Belgium to find out
0:22:07 > 0:22:09how the magic happens.
0:22:09 > 0:22:13Antwerp's diamond district is one of the biggest in the world,
0:22:13 > 0:22:16with more than 1,500 diamond companies
0:22:16 > 0:22:18and four diamond exchanges
0:22:18 > 0:22:21all within an area of less than a square mile.
0:22:21 > 0:22:26Everyone here is trying to create the biggest, best-looking diamond.
0:22:33 > 0:22:36It's a notoriously secretive operation
0:22:36 > 0:22:39but I've been allowed to step inside the world of the people
0:22:39 > 0:22:43who turn a raw treasure into a man-made one.
0:22:43 > 0:22:46It's here that they turn this rough diamond,
0:22:46 > 0:22:49this rather dreary-looking piece of rock,
0:22:49 > 0:22:52into this dazzling diamond,
0:22:52 > 0:22:57worth in excess of £300,000, by cutting it.
0:22:57 > 0:23:00And they can't afford to get that bit wrong.
0:23:03 > 0:23:08Meet Yan. Every day thousands of pounds' worth of diamond
0:23:08 > 0:23:10are sculpted by these hands.
0:23:10 > 0:23:13His life revolves around precision,
0:23:13 > 0:23:16skill and nerves of steel.
0:23:18 > 0:23:19- Yan, how are you doing?- Hey!
0:23:19 > 0:23:21You're working on a really big diamond there.
0:23:21 > 0:23:24Yeah, it's a very big diamond here, it's 37 carats.
0:23:24 > 0:23:27- ELLIE GASPS - So, what are you doing on this one then?
0:23:27 > 0:23:30- You see? Have a look.- Yeah, I'll have a look there, yeah.- OK.
0:23:30 > 0:23:33You have to see the small facets on top of it.
0:23:35 > 0:23:37'Each facet is cut by hand.
0:23:37 > 0:23:40'The wheel turns at 3,000rpm
0:23:40 > 0:23:43'and is coated with olive oil and diamond dust.'
0:23:44 > 0:23:47So, you put it on here so that it sort of grinds it down a bit
0:23:47 > 0:23:49and then you look at it in between?
0:23:49 > 0:23:53- You look and see the small facets lighting up now.- Yeah.
0:23:53 > 0:23:54So, this one's worth how much?
0:23:54 > 0:23:58- It's going to be 800,000 to a million dollars.- Ooh!
0:23:58 > 0:24:00So, that's a lot of pressure that you carry.
0:24:00 > 0:24:02Let's say something does go wrong, I mean, what can go wrong?
0:24:02 > 0:24:06Maybe we push too hard or we don't concentrate,
0:24:06 > 0:24:09it can explode inside the stone.
0:24:09 > 0:24:11And how do you feel if that happens?
0:24:11 > 0:24:13Oh, terrible, terrible. You get tears in your eyes,
0:24:13 > 0:24:18you're feeling bad, it's...yeah, then we go take a walk outside
0:24:18 > 0:24:22and calm down and then OK, the next day we go back to it.
0:24:23 > 0:24:27That doesn't happen very often, but even before the first cut is made
0:24:27 > 0:24:31there are some very tough decisions to be taken.
0:24:31 > 0:24:35And for very large diamonds, these choices can take months.
0:24:35 > 0:24:38The rough diamond is placed here in the scanner,
0:24:38 > 0:24:40and there are any number of possibilities
0:24:40 > 0:24:42for which diamonds can be cut out of it,
0:24:42 > 0:24:45and that's what this incredible piece of kit can tell them.
0:24:47 > 0:24:50The machine maps all the different options onto the stone
0:24:50 > 0:24:53like a 3D jigsaw puzzle.
0:24:53 > 0:24:57This reveals the finished diamonds that could be made from the rough.
0:24:58 > 0:25:01So, with our rough diamond, they've identified five diamonds
0:25:01 > 0:25:02that they can take out from it,
0:25:02 > 0:25:05all marked in different colours here on the screen,
0:25:05 > 0:25:10and the red dots represent flaws that they need to avoid.
0:25:10 > 0:25:14It was here they cut the largest rough diamond this century.
0:25:14 > 0:25:18This is a replica of the Lesotho Promise.
0:25:18 > 0:25:21It was bought for 12.4 million
0:25:21 > 0:25:24and Yves was part of the team that did the deal.
0:25:24 > 0:25:26What did you turn this diamond into?
0:25:26 > 0:25:30It's 26 diamonds, D flawless diamonds.
0:25:30 > 0:25:33That's incredible. It's so hard to imagine that all of these
0:25:33 > 0:25:36- came from what looks like a small piece of rock.- Yep.
0:25:36 > 0:25:39And still bear in mind that the total weight of these diamonds
0:25:39 > 0:25:44is about a third of the total weight of this diamond.
0:25:44 > 0:25:46So this is 225 carats finished
0:25:46 > 0:25:49and this is 600 carats in the rough.
0:25:49 > 0:25:51So much goes to waste.
0:25:51 > 0:25:53Just to dust.
0:25:55 > 0:25:59And how much could the finished stones sell for?
0:25:59 > 0:26:02Well, that remains a secret they won't reveal.
0:26:14 > 0:26:17Treasure can come to obsess us.
0:26:17 > 0:26:20The thrill of the hunt becomes all-consuming
0:26:20 > 0:26:24and there's no better place to experience that than here.
0:26:24 > 0:26:29I'm in America where a man named Forrest Fenn has deliberately hidden
0:26:29 > 0:26:31a multi-million dollar treasure chest
0:26:31 > 0:26:33somewhere in the Rocky Mountains.
0:26:39 > 0:26:42The treasure's meant to be worth anything from a million
0:26:42 > 0:26:46to three million dollars and it contains diamonds, emeralds
0:26:46 > 0:26:48and rubies. But if I want to find it,
0:26:48 > 0:26:51I'm going to have to decipher nine clues
0:26:51 > 0:26:53that are hidden within a poem.
0:26:57 > 0:27:01I'll be searching in an area that's home to some pretty feisty wildlife,
0:27:01 > 0:27:03so I need to be prepared.
0:27:03 > 0:27:06You'll want to have a backpack, some bear spray.
0:27:06 > 0:27:08See, now this is... OK, let's just pause with the bear spray.
0:27:08 > 0:27:11You have a sign outside that says "bear spray". I mean, insect spray,
0:27:11 > 0:27:14mosquito spray I'm familiar with, but bear spray?
0:27:14 > 0:27:17- I've got it right over here if you'd like to look at it?- Great.
0:27:17 > 0:27:19This is the most common size.
0:27:19 > 0:27:22And as you can see, it works on all bear species.
0:27:22 > 0:27:25This is my favourite bit. Works on all bears.
0:27:25 > 0:27:27Works on all bears. Black. Grizz is what we have
0:27:27 > 0:27:29around here in Yellowstone.
0:27:29 > 0:27:32I love this. We've got sun, mosquito and bear.
0:27:32 > 0:27:34- Right. Right.- We've got it all.
0:27:41 > 0:27:45'To improve my chances of finding Forrest Fenn's hidden treasure,
0:27:45 > 0:27:47'I'm teaming up with Dal Neitzel.'
0:27:47 > 0:27:49There you go.
0:27:49 > 0:27:53'He's crossed America 40 times in the past three years
0:27:53 > 0:27:54'to hunt for it.'
0:27:54 > 0:27:56So, how long did it take you to get here today?
0:27:56 > 0:27:59I'm about 900 miles from here, so it takes me a day and a half...
0:27:59 > 0:28:03- to drive.- Yeah. So, that's more than just a passing interest.
0:28:03 > 0:28:05How much time are you spending on this?
0:28:05 > 0:28:08Every bloody minute that I'm not working.
0:28:08 > 0:28:11I mean, is it the adventure? Is it the puzzle solving?
0:28:11 > 0:28:15Is it the sense of anticipation, expectation?
0:28:15 > 0:28:18Who doesn't love a good treasure story? This is wonderful stuff
0:28:18 > 0:28:21and to get involved in it yourself...
0:28:21 > 0:28:24'There is no treasure map for this secret stash,
0:28:24 > 0:28:29'instead the clues are hidden in a poem written by Forrest Fenn.'
0:28:29 > 0:28:32"Begin it where warm waters halt And take it in the canyon down,
0:28:32 > 0:28:34"Not far, but too far to walk."
0:28:34 > 0:28:37So, what is it about this area for you that is ticking this box?
0:28:37 > 0:28:39"Begin it where warm waters halt."
0:28:39 > 0:28:42Forrest spent all of his childhood summers
0:28:42 > 0:28:44in Yellowstone National Park. He was brought up here.
0:28:44 > 0:28:49His favourite bathing place was on the Firehole River,
0:28:49 > 0:28:53a river that runs so warm because of the hot springs and geysers
0:28:53 > 0:28:54that are around it.
0:28:54 > 0:28:57- So we should start at the beginning. - Let's go.- Let's go.
0:29:03 > 0:29:08Each clue is a riddle that must be solved to work out where to go next.
0:29:08 > 0:29:11I think right here we're at "no place for the meek"
0:29:11 > 0:29:14because this is grizzly bear territory.
0:29:14 > 0:29:16I've got my spray so, er, we'll be OK, hopefully.
0:29:16 > 0:29:19You have a 40% chance with the spray of stopping a grizzly bear,
0:29:19 > 0:29:22I've got a 60% chance over here, so...
0:29:22 > 0:29:25OK. You win. I like those odds.
0:29:30 > 0:29:34There is only one man that knows for sure where the treasure is
0:29:34 > 0:29:37and that's the man who hid it, Forrest Fenn.
0:29:38 > 0:29:42I was nine-years-old when I found this with my father in Texas,
0:29:42 > 0:29:47started me on a long adventure of discovery - my very first arrowhead.
0:29:47 > 0:29:50It had been laying on the ground there for 600 years,
0:29:50 > 0:29:52waiting for me to come along and pick it up.
0:29:52 > 0:29:56The thrill of seeing it, wondering about its history,
0:29:56 > 0:29:57it's the thrill of the chase.
0:30:04 > 0:30:09As Forrest's obsession with treasure grew, he became a collector.
0:30:10 > 0:30:13In 2010, having been told he had cancer,
0:30:13 > 0:30:16he decided to hide a treasure chest.
0:30:16 > 0:30:20Well, you're looking for a beautiful little cast-bronze box,
0:30:20 > 0:30:23ten inches by ten inches and five inches deep,
0:30:23 > 0:30:25that weights 42 lbs...
0:30:26 > 0:30:30..and is full of 265 big gold coins,
0:30:30 > 0:30:33hundreds and hundreds of gold nuggets,
0:30:33 > 0:30:37and emeralds, and diamonds, and rubies, and sapphires.
0:30:37 > 0:30:39When you open that chest and look at it,
0:30:39 > 0:30:42your heart's going to stop, it's going to be so beautiful.
0:30:44 > 0:30:48Four years on, and there are now thousands of people hunting for it.
0:30:48 > 0:30:51So far, no-one's been able to solve the clues
0:30:51 > 0:30:56and find the chest, but I'm hoping today Dal can help me do it.
0:30:56 > 0:31:00- We're looking for the blaze right now.- For the blaze. "If you've been wise and found the blaze".
0:31:00 > 0:31:03So, what does he mean by "blaze"? Blaze, blazing a trail?
0:31:03 > 0:31:05- Blazing a trail.- We're on a trail. This is a trail.
0:31:05 > 0:31:08Conjures up images of fire, of something burnt perhaps.
0:31:08 > 0:31:11Horses that have white spots on their forehead,
0:31:11 > 0:31:13they call them Blaze, they name them Blaze.
0:31:13 > 0:31:15So, I think a white spot, a white mark,
0:31:15 > 0:31:17like a waterfall, for instance.
0:31:17 > 0:31:19Blaze, blaze, blaze, blaze.
0:31:19 > 0:31:21DAL LAUGHS
0:31:22 > 0:31:25'After wrestling with the clues for several hours,
0:31:25 > 0:31:27'it suddenly feels like we're onto something.'
0:31:27 > 0:31:31- Could this be a blaze?- I don't see why not. That works for me.
0:31:31 > 0:31:33"The end is ever drawing nigh;
0:31:33 > 0:31:35"There'll be no paddle up your creek." Here we are.
0:31:35 > 0:31:38- Here's a creek. You certainly couldn't paddle up it. - No, I couldn't.
0:31:38 > 0:31:40Be careful.
0:31:44 > 0:31:45- Hey, Dallas!- Yeah?
0:31:45 > 0:31:47Look at this, man.
0:31:47 > 0:31:49This is good.
0:31:49 > 0:31:50There's caves in here.
0:31:50 > 0:31:53I think we need to look in there.
0:31:53 > 0:31:56Interesting, there's a whole bunch of stones.
0:31:56 > 0:31:59What about in here? Look at how deep this one is.
0:31:59 > 0:32:01I can't see it behind the water.
0:32:01 > 0:32:03There is a big opening in there.
0:32:03 > 0:32:06- If I can get this one out...- There you go, prise it up, that's it.
0:32:09 > 0:32:12Hang on, let me pull it out. I've got it.
0:32:13 > 0:32:15Can you reach down and see if you can put your hand in there
0:32:15 > 0:32:17and see if you can feel anything?
0:32:17 > 0:32:18I can feel there's a bag.
0:32:19 > 0:32:21Empty.
0:32:21 > 0:32:22It's not here.
0:32:24 > 0:32:26This is the problem. You're right, it's addictive.
0:32:26 > 0:32:29Every time you don't find it, you've got to...
0:32:29 > 0:32:32- You've got to keep looking. - You've got to go a little further.
0:32:36 > 0:32:39There have been a few people within 500ft, I think.
0:32:39 > 0:32:42There have been people within a couple of hundred feet.
0:32:42 > 0:32:45They figure the first two clues, but they don't get the third
0:32:45 > 0:32:48and the fourth and they go right past the treasure chest.
0:32:50 > 0:32:53But you don't know. That's the whole thing. You make the trek,
0:32:53 > 0:32:56you get to the spot and you say,
0:32:56 > 0:32:59"OK, it's not here. Where else could it be?"
0:33:00 > 0:33:05This is my 40th time. I know 40 places where it isn't.
0:33:10 > 0:33:13But you don't have to go to remote or hard-to-reach places
0:33:13 > 0:33:15to get your hands on treasure.
0:33:15 > 0:33:19Some of the greatest finds are much closer to home.
0:33:21 > 0:33:24For centuries, a huge hoard lay undisturbed
0:33:24 > 0:33:26under one of London's busiest streets.
0:33:28 > 0:33:31In 1912, a group of workmen were taking down a building
0:33:31 > 0:33:35just below my feet, down there at number 32 Cheapside.
0:33:35 > 0:33:39They were using pickaxes to open up the cellar floor,
0:33:39 > 0:33:44when suddenly, one of them came across something truly spectacular.
0:33:48 > 0:33:50Buried in the cellar floor was a stunning hoard
0:33:50 > 0:33:53of all kinds of treasure,
0:33:53 > 0:33:55from jewels to uncut stones,
0:33:55 > 0:33:58elaborate chains and pendants.
0:33:58 > 0:34:02Nearly 500 objects, but nothing to say who owned it all.
0:34:06 > 0:34:09I mean, look at this amazing watch embedded inside
0:34:09 > 0:34:11an incredible emerald.
0:34:11 > 0:34:15And this salamander brooch is made with emeralds
0:34:15 > 0:34:18and diamonds, and even the little toes have been cut out.
0:34:18 > 0:34:20So, who would have buried it in the ground
0:34:20 > 0:34:22and why would they have done it?
0:34:22 > 0:34:24It is a genuine mystery,
0:34:24 > 0:34:28and to solve it we need to learn more about the treasure itself.
0:34:31 > 0:34:34The hoard has jewels from across the globe.
0:34:34 > 0:34:36Emeralds from Colombia,
0:34:36 > 0:34:38topaz from Brazil,
0:34:38 > 0:34:40rubies and diamonds from India,
0:34:40 > 0:34:44opals from Europe and even pearls from Scotland.
0:34:48 > 0:34:49So they started to think the hoard
0:34:49 > 0:34:52belonged to someone who traded in gems.
0:34:52 > 0:34:56The next question was - when did they bury it?
0:34:58 > 0:35:02Hazel Forsyth has been trying to piece the truth together.
0:35:02 > 0:35:06This piece here really helps the dating. What we're looking at,
0:35:06 > 0:35:10really, is a very sophisticated watch, a sort of iPad of its day.
0:35:10 > 0:35:14From the evidence we have, I think this watch was probably cut
0:35:14 > 0:35:19and made in around 1610, 1620.
0:35:19 > 0:35:22And is this the newest piece in the hoard, 1610?
0:35:22 > 0:35:25The newest piece is really this,
0:35:25 > 0:35:30a seal of Lord Stafford, who was created Viscount Stafford in 1640.
0:35:30 > 0:35:351640. So, the hoard will have been buried some time after that,
0:35:35 > 0:35:38- if that's the newest piece? - Absolutely.- After 1640.
0:35:39 > 0:35:42So the clues point to the owner of the hoard being someone
0:35:42 > 0:35:46who traded in gems and buried it after 1640.
0:35:48 > 0:35:51But if it was stashed by a jeweller,
0:35:51 > 0:35:53why didn't they come back and reclaim it?
0:35:53 > 0:35:57Could it be that they died in the Great Fire of London,
0:35:57 > 0:36:02or possibly a dose of the plague, or even something more sinister?
0:36:05 > 0:36:10When the Museum of London tested the gems, they uncovered a secret.
0:36:10 > 0:36:15Some of them, like this gem, weren't quite what they seemed.
0:36:16 > 0:36:19Three were fake.
0:36:19 > 0:36:21This would have looked just like a ruby,
0:36:21 > 0:36:25but unlike the genuine article, the colour has faded.
0:36:26 > 0:36:31In the 17th century, how would you go about creating a fake ruby?
0:36:31 > 0:36:35I've come to University College London to find out.
0:36:41 > 0:36:44Andrea Sella is a professor of chemistry.
0:36:44 > 0:36:47Together, we're going to try and make our own fake jewels.
0:36:52 > 0:36:56So, Andrea, I've got the goods right here. Quartz crystal.
0:36:56 > 0:36:59So these are just pieces of quartz. They're actually very, very nice,
0:36:59 > 0:37:01very, very clear.
0:37:01 > 0:37:04- So, what we'll do is we'll take this...- Yeah.
0:37:04 > 0:37:07..and put it into the flame.
0:37:07 > 0:37:08And try and heat it up.
0:37:08 > 0:37:12So this is worth 50p, but the equivalent size ruby
0:37:12 > 0:37:17- is worth 70,000, so it's a good business model.- Absolutely.
0:37:17 > 0:37:21'So, that's why someone would be tempted to fake a ruby,
0:37:21 > 0:37:23'but how would they have done it?'
0:37:23 > 0:37:26We're getting this nice and hot and what we're going to do now is
0:37:26 > 0:37:29we're actually going to drop it very quickly into a beaker
0:37:29 > 0:37:32of water and dye. It's going to cool the quartz down
0:37:32 > 0:37:34and as it does so, it's going to crack.
0:37:36 > 0:37:39- Whoa!- OK. So we've clearly got it very hot this time.
0:37:40 > 0:37:44'That's water-soluble fabric dye. There's nothing special about it,
0:37:44 > 0:37:48'it's just a bit more concentrated than you'd use to dye your clothes.'
0:37:48 > 0:37:51So let's just see if we can fish this guy out.
0:37:51 > 0:37:53Wow. That's definitely changed colour.
0:37:53 > 0:37:56You can see that there's loads and loads of little cracks in there.
0:37:56 > 0:38:00The pink colour is associated with particular cracks.
0:38:00 > 0:38:02Ah, yes. Running through them.
0:38:02 > 0:38:06We've simply sucked the dye into little imperfections.
0:38:06 > 0:38:10We'd need to repeat this process over and over again
0:38:10 > 0:38:14for the stone to take on the famous ruby-red hue.
0:38:14 > 0:38:16Really, this is a total cheat.
0:38:16 > 0:38:19It might have worked in the 17th century,
0:38:19 > 0:38:20but in the 20th century,
0:38:20 > 0:38:23microscopes will immediately reveal that cracking.
0:38:23 > 0:38:25We wouldn't get away with it today, would we?
0:38:25 > 0:38:31Voila! One fake ruby and perhaps another reason why our jeweller
0:38:31 > 0:38:34didn't return to his hidden hoard.
0:38:34 > 0:38:38Could it be that he went after the person who sold him the fakes?
0:38:38 > 0:38:43Or maybe he came face to face with a less than satisfied customer.
0:38:48 > 0:38:51That might be what happened,
0:38:51 > 0:38:55but, thankfully, the rest of the Cheapside hoard is very real.
0:38:55 > 0:38:59Of the 480 pieces, only three gems were fakes,
0:38:59 > 0:39:02the rest is worth millions.
0:39:02 > 0:39:08The Cheapside hoard is my ultimate childhood fantasy treasure trove.
0:39:08 > 0:39:11Every single item is slightly different from the last
0:39:11 > 0:39:14and every single item sparkles.
0:39:23 > 0:39:26Of course, treasure is being created all the time.
0:39:28 > 0:39:33And it's not just sparkly stuff like diamonds or gold.
0:39:36 > 0:39:41So could a car, for instance, ever qualify as treasure?
0:39:41 > 0:39:44Well, there is one piece of automotive history
0:39:44 > 0:39:45that is worth a look.
0:39:49 > 0:39:54This is a 1936 Bugatti type 57 SC Atlantic,
0:39:54 > 0:39:57and this is considered by many people to be the world's
0:39:57 > 0:40:01first supercar. There were only three production models built.
0:40:01 > 0:40:05One was hit by a train, one is owned by Ralph Lauren, the fashion
0:40:05 > 0:40:08designer, and then there's this one, the one I'm sitting in.
0:40:08 > 0:40:12Now, I'm not a particular car enthusiast,
0:40:12 > 0:40:18but this goes way beyond just being a car. It is absolutely exquisite.
0:40:18 > 0:40:20It is beautiful - it really is a work of art.
0:40:25 > 0:40:30When it sold in May 2010, it was believed to be the most
0:40:30 > 0:40:34expensive car in the world. It was a private sale so we can't know
0:40:34 > 0:40:37for sure, but word is she went
0:40:37 > 0:40:40for between 30 million and 40 million.
0:40:49 > 0:40:53But that is small fry when it comes to the value of our
0:40:53 > 0:40:56next treasure. It's an epic achievement of human ingenuity
0:40:56 > 0:41:03and, unlike our previous wonders, this one had been totally forgotten.
0:41:05 > 0:41:08To uncover this truly unexpected treasure,
0:41:08 > 0:41:10I've come halfway across the world.
0:41:15 > 0:41:19China, where change is god and the new is almost worshipped.
0:41:23 > 0:41:25But it's a land of contradictions,
0:41:25 > 0:41:28where ancient traditions are held in equal esteem
0:41:28 > 0:41:32and one of our most incredible treasures is one of the oldest.
0:41:36 > 0:41:39This is Xian, so Beijing
0:41:39 > 0:41:42is about 700 miles that direction,
0:41:42 > 0:41:45and prior to 1974, this whole area would
0:41:45 > 0:41:48have been completely rural - so that city you can see down there
0:41:48 > 0:41:53just wouldn't have existed - and then everything changed when they made
0:41:53 > 0:41:57arguably the greatest archaeological discovery of the 20th century.
0:41:59 > 0:42:02And it was found entirely by accident.
0:42:04 > 0:42:08One day, some local farmers were digging a well looking for water
0:42:08 > 0:42:12when they found something completely unexpected
0:42:12 > 0:42:16and something which, at the time, terrified them. They actually
0:42:16 > 0:42:21unearthed the life-sized heads of ancient terracotta warriors.
0:42:25 > 0:42:30These few heads were just the tip of the iceberg. In the 40 years
0:42:30 > 0:42:33since they first came to light, the site has grown and grown.
0:42:50 > 0:42:53Excavations revealed entire warriors in their tens,
0:42:53 > 0:42:56then hundreds, then thousands.
0:42:57 > 0:43:00There's nothing comparable in scale anywhere in the world.
0:43:02 > 0:43:06Now, what an amazing sight that is, it's extraordinary.
0:43:06 > 0:43:08Such a huge, huge space -
0:43:08 > 0:43:12the whole place is the size of St Pancras railway station -
0:43:12 > 0:43:13and as far as the eye can see,
0:43:13 > 0:43:18you have these rows and rows of terracotta soldiers.
0:43:19 > 0:43:23Over 1,000 ceramic warriors in battle formation have been
0:43:23 > 0:43:27uncovered so far but it's believed there's more than 8,000 of them.
0:43:30 > 0:43:35These soldiers all marching towards you, it's quite foreboding, actually.
0:43:37 > 0:43:42These warriors of the ancient world are over 2,000 years old
0:43:42 > 0:43:45but it's more than their antiquity that makes them a treasure.
0:43:48 > 0:43:50Now, this is as close as you're allowed to get
0:43:50 > 0:43:53to the terracotta warriors when you're actually here,
0:43:53 > 0:43:56so we're very, very lucky today. We've actually got a little bit
0:43:56 > 0:43:58of privileged access.
0:43:58 > 0:44:01Come with me, because we're going to be allowed to wander amongst
0:44:01 > 0:44:03the figurines themselves.
0:44:25 > 0:44:27They are amazing, aren't they?
0:44:27 > 0:44:29When you're close up like this,
0:44:29 > 0:44:32and actually standing in front of them, and actually face to face
0:44:32 > 0:44:34with their expressions, it's quite creepy, quite eerie.
0:44:38 > 0:44:42Gosh, just these wonderful faces
0:44:42 > 0:44:44and they're all completely different -
0:44:44 > 0:44:46every face is completely different.
0:44:48 > 0:44:51Each one is a handcrafted masterpiece.
0:44:52 > 0:44:54The detail is amazing.
0:44:54 > 0:44:57In the hair you can see all these tiny little lines where they've put
0:44:57 > 0:45:02in the hair detail and round the ear and round the moustache here. God!
0:45:02 > 0:45:06You can actually feel their fingerprints at work.
0:45:06 > 0:45:09You can feel the worker's hand just looking at it.
0:45:14 > 0:45:17The warriors were found close to the tomb of the first
0:45:17 > 0:45:22emperor of China, Qin Shi Huang, the man that unified the country
0:45:22 > 0:45:25and started the Great Wall.
0:45:25 > 0:45:27There's something really intimidating, actually,
0:45:27 > 0:45:32about standing face to face with these terracotta soldiers.
0:45:32 > 0:45:35Because, of course, they're almost exactly the same height as I am
0:45:35 > 0:45:38so the people who built these would have been a little bit shorter.
0:45:38 > 0:45:39So if you go down a couple of inches
0:45:39 > 0:45:44and suddenly you have this great figure towering above you.
0:45:44 > 0:45:48You understand why they were built - they were built to protect
0:45:48 > 0:45:50the emperor in the afterlife
0:45:50 > 0:45:53and they're doing a pretty good job, I reckon.
0:45:56 > 0:45:59The emperor ruled for over 30 years,
0:45:59 > 0:46:02but even if his workforce started on day one,
0:46:02 > 0:46:07imagine the manpower required to build this army in that time.
0:46:10 > 0:46:14Lead archaeologist Jianwei Zhong has been trying to uncover
0:46:14 > 0:46:15the warriors' secrets.
0:46:15 > 0:46:19They're obviously hugely important culturally for China
0:46:19 > 0:46:22but do they have any monetary value, I wonder? If I knocked one over
0:46:22 > 0:46:25by mistake, would you... how much would the bill be?
0:46:25 > 0:46:27TRANSLATION:
0:46:43 > 0:46:47So if you were interested, they are not for sale.
0:46:47 > 0:46:50But we can learn more about who created them.
0:46:50 > 0:46:53It's amazing to think that these are over 2,000 years old.
0:46:53 > 0:46:58We can read the names of the people, the people who made them.
0:47:00 > 0:47:01Oh, look at that.
0:47:03 > 0:47:05They're so clear as well, the marks.
0:47:16 > 0:47:20The archaeologists have identified 87 different managers' signatures
0:47:20 > 0:47:26so far, and each one could be the top man in the team of up to ten people.
0:47:26 > 0:47:31So to make the 8,000 warriors would have taken an enormous workforce.
0:47:32 > 0:47:36But impressive as it is, the terracotta army may not be
0:47:36 > 0:47:38the greatest treasure of Emperor Huang.
0:47:43 > 0:47:47For me, the most exciting part of his burial site is the one place
0:47:47 > 0:47:49that's never been excavated.
0:47:53 > 0:47:56This giant soil pyramid is covering the tomb
0:47:56 > 0:47:58of the first emperor himself.
0:47:58 > 0:48:00Scientists have been using technology
0:48:00 > 0:48:05like ground-penetrating radar to have a closer look.
0:48:05 > 0:48:09I've got some artist's impressions here and you can see some of
0:48:09 > 0:48:14the structure almost resembles that of the Egyptian pyramids. You can
0:48:14 > 0:48:17see the actual tomb at the bottom and the structure towering above.
0:48:20 > 0:48:25Chinese history books speak of rooms full of rarities
0:48:25 > 0:48:26and precious stones.
0:48:26 > 0:48:29It's believed this could be a giant treasure chest
0:48:29 > 0:48:32just waiting to be opened.
0:48:32 > 0:48:36The Terracotta Army was forgotten about for centuries
0:48:36 > 0:48:39and there are still thousands of priceless figures here
0:48:39 > 0:48:43waiting to be uncovered. But what I can't help thinking is that
0:48:43 > 0:48:47that army was designed to protect the emperor and his wealth
0:48:47 > 0:48:51in the afterlife, that are currently residing in that hill behind me.
0:48:53 > 0:48:56For the moment, there are no plans to enter the final resting place
0:48:56 > 0:48:58of the first emperor.
0:48:58 > 0:49:02But I can't wait for the day we discover the secrets within.
0:49:08 > 0:49:11We've seen some amazing creations.
0:49:13 > 0:49:14From shipwrecked treasure...
0:49:14 > 0:49:19When we find the gold it comes up just as shiny as the day it sank.
0:49:19 > 0:49:22..to riches stolen by the Nazis.
0:49:22 > 0:49:24Wow!
0:49:24 > 0:49:28Even jewels buried under a busy London street.
0:49:30 > 0:49:34But to reveal perhaps the most famous treasure on earth
0:49:34 > 0:49:35I've come to North Africa.
0:49:40 > 0:49:43I'm here in Egypt to witness the power of treasure
0:49:43 > 0:49:45to transform a person into a legend.
0:49:55 > 0:49:58This is the Valley of the Kings.
0:49:58 > 0:50:01For 500 years from the 16th century BC,
0:50:01 > 0:50:03tombs were built here for the pharaohs
0:50:03 > 0:50:06and powerful nobles of ancient Egypt.
0:50:10 > 0:50:12Just to the south is El-Asasif,
0:50:12 > 0:50:14where tombs are still being excavated.
0:50:19 > 0:50:23Hundreds of tombs have been excavated already
0:50:23 > 0:50:28in this whole area and they're searching for new ones all the time.
0:50:28 > 0:50:33This is an active dig, the tomb of a pharaoh's right-hand man.
0:50:39 > 0:50:40Dr Martin Valentin
0:50:40 > 0:50:44and his team have been working on this site since 2008.
0:50:52 > 0:50:53What a fabulous place.
0:50:54 > 0:50:59Wow. So, Dr Martin, what have you found here?
0:50:59 > 0:51:03We have parts of coffins, mummies, and pottery, a lot of pottery,
0:51:03 > 0:51:07and bundles of linen for the mummies.
0:51:07 > 0:51:10And do you think any of the tombs were robbed in the past
0:51:10 > 0:51:12or did you find them intact?
0:51:12 > 0:51:17Er, the most part of were robbed, were robbed really.
0:51:17 > 0:51:19And we have this, this example.
0:51:24 > 0:51:29So far, they've found human bones, bandages, religious objects
0:51:29 > 0:51:32and a limestone relief that tells us that Amenhotep was here.
0:51:32 > 0:51:36But it's likely that it would have originally contained jewellery,
0:51:36 > 0:51:39furniture and other valuables.
0:51:42 > 0:51:44Everything of value has gone
0:51:44 > 0:51:47and that's because this tomb, like almost all of the others
0:51:47 > 0:51:52excavated in this area, has already been opened and robbed.
0:51:53 > 0:51:55Over the centuries, the lure of treasure
0:51:55 > 0:51:58has proven to be too great a temptation.
0:52:08 > 0:52:13There is only one tomb that has ever been uncovered intact and it's
0:52:13 > 0:52:18revealed the most extraordinary treasure cache ever discovered.
0:52:22 > 0:52:25Egyptologist Howard Carter had been looking for the tomb
0:52:25 > 0:52:30of a pharaoh for seven years - of a little known boy king.
0:52:35 > 0:52:38And he found the entrance under some ancient workers' huts
0:52:38 > 0:52:41at the base of the tomb of Ramesses VI.
0:52:45 > 0:52:49In November 1922, Carter discovered a step that had been cut
0:52:49 > 0:52:52into the rock on the valley floor.
0:52:52 > 0:52:55It was the beginning of this stairway right underneath my feet
0:52:55 > 0:53:00and it led here, to a blocked-up doorway.
0:53:00 > 0:53:02On it were the seals of royalty
0:53:02 > 0:53:06and, incredibly, it seemed as though the tomb was intact.
0:53:13 > 0:53:18The chamber had lain almost undisturbed for over 3,000 years.
0:53:18 > 0:53:21And what lay within astounded the world.
0:53:26 > 0:53:29It was the resting place of Tutankhamen.
0:53:29 > 0:53:32For the first time ever they'd found a tomb
0:53:32 > 0:53:35that was complete with all its contents.
0:53:35 > 0:53:38It was a time capsule offering an incredible insight
0:53:38 > 0:53:41into the opulence of the pharaohs.
0:53:51 > 0:53:53The whole place just seems to glow.
0:53:53 > 0:53:55There's gold all the way round the walls
0:53:55 > 0:53:59and an extraordinary amount of gold in that coffin.
0:54:04 > 0:54:08Tutankhamen inherited the throne when he was just eight or nine
0:54:08 > 0:54:09and died in his late teens.
0:54:12 > 0:54:16Tutankhamen could have remained a little known king, were it
0:54:16 > 0:54:21not for his treasures. The sheer scale of the riches that were
0:54:21 > 0:54:23buried with him transformed him into
0:54:23 > 0:54:26the most famous pharaoh in history.
0:54:31 > 0:54:36Tutankhamen is still resting here, unwrapped from his mummification
0:54:36 > 0:54:40bandages and preserved in a temperature-controlled glass box.
0:54:45 > 0:54:49It took a decade to excavate his tomb and remove the contents.
0:54:52 > 0:54:57To see the boy king's gold I have to travel over 400 miles to Cairo.
0:54:58 > 0:55:03The gold of Tutankhamen is now kept here at the Egyptian Museum.
0:55:14 > 0:55:16The ancient Egyptians were drawn to gold
0:55:16 > 0:55:18because it was the same colour as the sun,
0:55:18 > 0:55:23and because it didn't tarnish they thought it to be indestructible.
0:55:27 > 0:55:31They even believed that the flesh of the gods themselves would be gold.
0:55:37 > 0:55:40When Tutankhamen's body was laid to rest in his tomb,
0:55:40 > 0:55:43he was wearing this ornate headdress.
0:55:43 > 0:55:48It was placed on top of his head inside his famous death mask.
0:55:56 > 0:55:59Tutankhamen was buried in three coffins,
0:55:59 > 0:56:02one inside the other like a Russian doll.
0:56:05 > 0:56:08But for me, there is only one treasure
0:56:08 > 0:56:11that can lay claim to being the most iconic image
0:56:11 > 0:56:16on earth and it's this, the death mask of Tutankhamen.
0:56:28 > 0:56:31Placed over the head and shoulders of the mummy,
0:56:31 > 0:56:35the face is thought to be a likeness of the young king.
0:56:39 > 0:56:44The mask is made from pure gold and weighs 11 kilos
0:56:44 > 0:56:50and to buy the raw materials today would cost you about £300,000,
0:56:50 > 0:56:51but that really misses the point
0:56:51 > 0:56:54because you can't simply work out the price of this treasure -
0:56:54 > 0:56:59or any treasure - by adding up the sum of its parts.
0:56:59 > 0:57:01Its true value is priceless.
0:57:11 > 0:57:15At the back of the mask are ten lines of hieroglyphics.
0:57:15 > 0:57:18The inscription is a spell from the Book Of The Dead and is
0:57:18 > 0:57:22for the protection of the pharaoh on his journey into the afterlife.
0:57:25 > 0:57:30To me it is simply the most incredible wonder
0:57:30 > 0:57:33we've ever created from the raw materials on our planet.
0:57:44 > 0:57:48We have travelled the globe in search of buried treasure
0:57:48 > 0:57:50and priceless riches lost and found.
0:57:53 > 0:57:56We've journeyed deep beneath the surface to wrestle
0:57:56 > 0:57:58gold from the earth...
0:57:58 > 0:58:00Wow.
0:58:00 > 0:58:04..found ever more ingenuous ways to get hold of diamonds...
0:58:04 > 0:58:05Oh, my word.
0:58:07 > 0:58:11..and used the power of nature to create pearls.
0:58:11 > 0:58:13That is amazing. Oh, look at that.
0:58:13 > 0:58:16Oh, my word.
0:58:16 > 0:58:19But however much treasure we find, there is something
0:58:19 > 0:58:23in our nature that makes us search for more.
0:58:23 > 0:58:26They are amazing, aren't they?
0:58:26 > 0:58:30We all know that it's out there if we just know where to look.