Incredible reading material found on Blackbeard's pirate wreck

Marine archaeologists recovering artifacts from the wreck site of infamous pirate Blackbeard, have found paper fragments used as gun wadding from one of 24 cannons recovered from Blackbeard's ship, QUEEN ANN'S REVENGE. The wadding was used as a sealent behind a cannon ball, to contain exploding black powder gasses. The challenge was not only to conserve the fragile paper fragments, but also to determine where this fragment came from. Months of determined research revealed that the fragment was from a page of the of 1712 first edition book,"A Voyage to the South Sea, and Around the World, during the Years 1708,1709,1710, 1711", by Captain Edward Cooke. This book is a"voyage narrative", describing Captain Woodes Roger's privateering expedition on his two privateers, DUKE and DUTCHESS, during the War of the Spanish Succession, 1701 to 1714. A European war involving France and Spain against England, Holland, the Holy Roman Empire and Prussia. This book also a narrative of the rescue of Alexander Selkirk, which inspired Daniel Defoe's famous 1719 novel "Robinson Crusoe". On a voyage from Africa, with a crew to sick to resist, the pirtate ship, "QUEEN ANN'S REVENGE was the former French slave ship, LE CONCORD captured by Blackbeard in 1717, and scuttled the following year. Blackbeard and his crew were surrounded by the Royal Navy and killed on November, 1718.

Article written by James Rogers for Fox News

Happy modeling   Crackers