A lengthy legal battle over the rights to treasure believed to be worth £1bn, which went down with a Spanish galleon 300 years ago off Colombia’s Caribbean coast, was thrown into further confusion yesterday despite a ruling by Colombia’s highest court to finally decide ownership.

The gold, silver and jewels on board the San José, which sank on June 8 1708 while trying to outrun British warships near the port of Cartagena, make it one of the world’s most valuable shipwrecks. The treasure has been the focus of a legal battle between the Colombian government and American salvagers.

The supreme court ruled yesterday that Colombia holds the rights to items deemed to be “national cultural patrimony”. Anything else will be halved between the US salvage company Sea Search Armada and Colombia.

The ruling, which cannot be appealed against, overturned two earlier court decisions that awarded Sea Search half of the haul. But a Colombian lawyer for Sea Search Armada still claimed victory.

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Archaelogists have warned that Britain’s historical artefacts are being looted by unscrupulous metal detector enthusiasts. They believe “nighthawking” – illegal searches at protected historical sites, the removal of items without permission from landowners or the failure to declare valuable finds – is being fuelled by the internet, which allows criminals to make thousands of pounds selling jewellery and ancient coins.

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