A British diver has discovered shipwrecks sunk by the "real-life Pirates of the Caribbean" more than 300 years after they met their watery grave.
Infamous pirates Blackbeard and Calico Jack Rackham have both been linked to the newly-discovered vessels in the Bahamas.
The groundbreaking mission uncovered six sunken ships - three of which have been attributed to the “golden age of piracy”.
The era represented a turbulent time to be a seafarer, with pirates regularly plundering vessels before setting them ablaze.
Captain Henry Avery famously plundered the Fancy off the coast of the Bahamas, looting the ship for its gold and silver before torching it.
The 46-gun ship then sunk to the bottom, leaving the so-called "Pirate King" to make off with a whopping £85million haul in precious treasure.
Researchers now believe they may have uncovered the vessel that met its end during the audacious heist.
British marine archaeologist Dr Sean Kingsley and Dr Michael Pateman discovered scorched husks across the seabed near the renowned pirate hotspot off Nassau - now the capital of the Bahamas.
The groundbreaking mission uncovered six sunken ships - three of which have been attributed to the 'golden age of piracy'
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Dr Kingsley told The Sun: “As a scientist, finding a wooden hull from the Golden Age was the greatest treasure – being able to touch an actual vehicle of mayhem on whose decks the real pirates of the Caribbean walked or stole was a remarkable time-travelling moment."
Alongside the remarkable burnt husks, scientists also stumbled across a tranche of weapons hidden within the ships.
The finds included an iron cannon, 25 lead musket balls and a tool used for sharpening swords.
Dr Pateman described the newly-discovered vessels as “heavily armed, especially with swivel guns, the cannon of choice for pirates".
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Dr Kingsley has completed 350 shipwreck dives and said he 'tried to block out any threat and focus on recording the ancient wrecks'
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He added: "Slotted onto deck rails, these anti-personnel weapons raked devastating fire on enemy crews.”
The area in which the ships were found is a notorious shark hotspot - with the waters around the Bahamas brimming with apex predators, such as tiger sharks, bull sharks, and oceanic whitetips.
Dr Kingsley - who has completed over 350 shipwreck dives - said: “I tried to block out any threat and focus on recording the ancient wrecks, and pretending I was zen-like!"
He revealed that one pesky bull shark had been hanging around one of the 18th century wrecks - but his team pressed on anyway to uncover a staggering haul.
Researchers believe the ship may have originated from Britain, with the pipes adorned by England's royal crest
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“We decided to take a look and were shocked to see hull planks, rigging, glass bottles and bricks from the ship’s cooking galley still preserved.
"Dozens of clay tobacco pipes were sticking out of the sand next to splintered wooden shipping crates," he said.
Researchers believe the ship may have originated from Britain, with the pipes adorned by England's royal crest, alongside a unicorn, horse and crown.
Dr Kingsley said unfortunately the artefacts had “long decomposed into oblivion”.
But the marine archaeologists believes the incredible find may be only “the tip of the iceberg” of remarkable discoveries lurking around the corner.
He added: “I was shocked at the unexpected survival of a wooden hull - ships were the key tool of pirate terror, after all.
"There could very well be dozens more shipwrecks in and around the harbour."
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