The Artifact Possibly Connected To Marie Antoinette On The Curse Of Oak Island

At first glance, History's "The Curse of Oak Island" is a treasure-hunting series that promises all of the excitement of a real-life "Indiana Jones" or "National Treasure" movie, following the Lagina brothers as they try to uncover the mysterious treasure rumored to be on the island since the 1700s. Yet, more often than not, each episode plays out with a measure of disappointment baked into its premise, as after nine seasons on air, the series is still nowhere close to discovering the mythical treasure horde the brothers are after.

That said, it's not as though the team hasn't uncovered anything of note while excavating on the island. Over the years, Rick and Marty Lagina have dug up plenty of artifacts which they believe confirm the existence of treasure on Oak Island. These include ancient gold buttons, iron spikes from the 1700s, and even a medieval-style cross which the brothers think references the Knights Templar. 

However, perhaps the most important find in the series' history is the discovery of genuine medieval treasure in the form of a jeweled brooch, which some believe is connected to the legend of Marie Antoinette's lost jewels.

In "The Curse of Oak Island" Season 5, Episode 16 — aptly titled "Seeing Red" — the brothers uncover a metal brooch with an empty socket in its center. After some more digging, they unearth a red gem enclosed in a metal ring — the missing jewel from the brooch (via YouTube). Two episodes later, the team has the jewel analyzed by a gemologist who determines that it is a rhodolite garnet, cut to fit the brooch around 400 or 500 years ago.

The team explains how the garnet brooch could be connected to a theory about the island's treasure and the missing jewelry of Marie Antoinette. The legend goes that Antoinette, while fleeing Paris, dispatched one of her servants to smuggle her jewels out of the city (via History). When Antoinette was captured at Varennes during her escape, the story alleges that they found no jewels or gold on her person, meaning she was successful in smuggling the jewels to safety (via Lumen Learning). Though to this day, nobody knows where they ended up. One supposed hiding place for these jewels is Oak Island, and the discovery of the 400-year-old garnet brooch certainly lends a bit of support to this theory.

In any case, this discovery marks yet another "The Curse of Oak Island" moment in which Rick and Marty Lagina feel like they make a noteworthy discovery, reigniting their hope that there really is something hidden on the island after all.