465 Soviet gold bars sank in 1942. 40 years later, divers found them

In 1942, British light cruiser HMS Edinburgh sank in the Barents Sea after being badly damaged by German torpedoes, taking 58 crew members and 465 Soviet gold bars with it. The bullion, weighing about 4.6 tonnes, was being carried as part of wartime payment for supplies and equipment. The wreck settled about 800 feet below the surface, where the gold remained for almost four decades. In 1981, British salvage diver Keith Jessop led an ambitious expedition to locate the ship and recover its cargo. After weeks of dangerous saturation diving in freezing Arctic waters, divers finally reached the bomb room and recovered hundreds of gold bars from the wreck.How 465 Soviet gold bars ended up on a British warshipThe gold was being transported as part of wartime financial arrangements between the Soviet Union and its Allies. HMS Edinburgh left Murmansk on April 28, 1942, carrying 465 gold bars connected to Soviet purchases of wartime supplies, including equipment from the United States. The bullion was worth around £1.5 million at the time and was covered by a 1942 War Risks Insurance agreement. The journey soon turned into a disaster when German forces detected the convoy. The submarine U-4...