For centuries, Oak Island has beckoned many hopeful treasure hunters to its location for the siren song promise of buried riches. This was no different for Rick Lagina, who, as an 11-year-old, learned of the island after reading an article in Reader’s Digest. The impactful incident started a life-long obsession for Rick that has evolved into a popular TV series where he, his brother Marty, and their crew hunt for the island’s legendary Money Pit. But what does the Money Pit contain?
So far, we’re nine seasons into History’s “The Curse Of Oak Island,” and although the Lagina brothers have located some unique archeological finds, the mysterious Money Pit still eludes them. No one knows what the pit contains, which has caused multiple theories to spawn as a result. The list of what could be in the Money Pit covers anything from Shakespeare’s lost manuscripts to Aztec Gold. Seriously, it’s like the “Super Mario Bros.” power-up block of possibilities. Yet there is one wild theory that could potentially best explain the origins of the Money Pit and what it truly contains.
One theory suggests William Phips initially buried the treasure
According to a YouTube video from author Hammerson Peters, the mystery of the Money Pit may have to do with a man named William Phips. Peters explains that the 17th Century English explorer made a massive discovery of treasure from a Spanish shipwreck and had planned to use it to help fund an invasion against England’s King James II. However, after King James II was overthrown, Phips and his crew also made a stop at Oak Island and decided to create the Money Pit to hide some of the treasure. Unfortunately, one of the deep caverns they were dropping the treasure into came apart, and it all flooded. Later, after Phips reported back to England what happened on Oak Island, the country set up traps to prevent anyone else from getting into the pit.
As Peters points out in the video, some particular items found on the TV series, such as the alleged actual parts of the Money Pit and human bones, give the theory strong enough legs to run. However, when it comes to the idea of booby traps, the theory unravels a bit, as some fans of “The Curse Of Oak Island” think it’s not traps that have kept the supposed pit hidden but rather a combination of time and geology. Besides, while the William Phips theory is possible, it’s still a contender to numerous other ideas about the Money Pit that include secret Shakespeare-coded maps and even the pit just being only a decoy (via History). Time will tell if the Laginas are ever really able to prove the William Phips theory true.