CARACAS - One of the world’s most sought-after, fought over and valuable shipwrecks has been discovered off the coast of Colombia, President Juan Manuel Santos confirmed Saturday.

At a press conference in the colonial port city of Cartagena, he said Colombian researchers, working with a “dream team” of international investigators, had found the Spanish galleon San José on Nov. 27.

The ship, which sank June 8, 1708, after a running battle with the British navy, is thought to be worth anywhere from $4 billion to $17 billion, according to court records, and it was laden with gold, silver and millions of Spanish pesos at the time.

On Saturday, Santos didn’t mention the monetary value of the find, or the legal squabble that surrounds it. Read more.