Rick Lagina has told of his fears that buried treasure could be damaged as he and the rest of the team on The Curse of Oak Island drill down into what they believe is the original Money Pit.
A new sneak peek for the next episode shows a huge caisson being lowered into place above the borehole the team recently dug dubbed H-8, which they believe lies in the exact location of the historic shaft.
Rick says in an interview with producers ahead of the drilling taking place : “There’s significant trepidation on my part that we damage something that is irreplaceable.”
Brother Marty jokes: “He doesn’t want the last plaque in the museum to say ‘Rick and Marty solved the mystery…and destroyed the treasure.”
The preview also sees Marty ask the drilling team from Irving Equipment: “Time to make history?” At one point he also points at the huge teeth at the bottom of the caisson, saying: “Those teeth are going to get to the bottom of this.”
Footage also shows Dan Blankenship pressing the lever which starts the operation to bore down into the ground with the caisson. We exclusively revealed earlier today how the title of the episode — which will not air until January 2 — is “Dan’s Breakthrough”.
The team believe the original Money Pit lies in the location of the H-8 borehole after a string of significant discoveries were found in the spoils — including bones, fragments of decorated pottery, and even what appear to be parts of a historic book.
We know from the sneak peek at the end of last week’s episode that the next one also sees metal-detecting expert Gary Drayton uncover a piece of artillery which it’s believed came from a cannon.
Meanwhile, six pages of a historic ship’s log are also uncovered which talk about a “deep pit” being dug and “treasure securely buried”.
The next episode comes after the latest one saw one of the most significant findings the team have ever had being revealed — that a bone discovered in what they believe is the original Money Pit is from a person with Middle Eastern origins.
A second fragment they also discovered was found to be from someone with European ancestry. The rest of the remains of both people are still believed to be buried underground on Oak Island.
The revelations came after the bones underwent advanced DNA sequencing at St Mary’s University in Halifax, with Dr Timothy Frasier, an associate professor in the Department of Biology, revealing the results.
On the last episode we also saw a theory being discussed about whether Sir Francis Drake could be buried on the island.
Meanwhile, a stone wall with a flat top was discovered which the team believe could have been part of a ship’s staging area, possibly a walkway or a ramp that led down to the ocean and which could have been used to load and unload goods from a ship moored off the island.
You can read our full recap for the last episode here, and watch the sneak peek for the next one below!
The Curse of Oak Island returns Tuesday, January 2, at 9/8c on History.