- Friday, October 18, 2024
SS Tilawa departed from Bombay to Durban, South Africa, on November 20, 1942, and two days later sank near Seychelles after being hit by torpedoes fired by Japanese submarines
By: Shajil Kumar
NEARLY 82 years after the sinking of merchant ship SS Tilawa during the second world war, the great-grandson of a drowned passenger made physical contact with a maritime artefact of silver that was salvaged in 2017 from the wreck-site near Seychelles.
Emile Solanki, who founded tilawa1942.com and lives in Canada, is the first person to touch the original S.S. Tilawa silver on October 16. His great-grandfather drowned after Tilawa was hit by two torpedoes fired by a Japanese submarine.
The is one of the 200 faceplates, weighing around 100 ounces, which was laser cut from an original S.S. Tilawa Silver Bar.
The faceplates include the bar number, specification data, weight, purity, and a crest of the bar’s manufacturer, The Bombay Mint.
Each faceplate also includes a Certificate of Authenticity issued by Deep Ocean Search, which carried out the deep sea salvage operation.
Emile said, “This is a dream come true! I have deeply longed for this day since we first read in 2020 of Tilawa’s discovery back in 2014. It would cost millions of dollars for anyone to visit the wreck-site. I cannot believe I am physically touching a piece of Second World Indian history. This precious artifact was sitting at the bottom of the Indian Ocean for some 75 years. This is the closest I will ever get to the ship and area where my beloved great-grandfather suffered a traumatic death.”
He thanked GovMint, who assisted him in obtaining an original S.S. Tilawa silver faceplate, and to LPM, which provided him the 10-item commemorative series from the smelted silver.
India’s Titanic
Often referred to as ‘India’s Titanic’, SS Tilawa departed from Bombay to Durban, South Africa, on November 20, 1942, with 958 people on board, including 732 passengers and four gunners. The ship was also carrying 80 tons of silver bullion.
Two days later, Tilawa was torpedoed by the Japanese Imperial Navy submarine and the ship sank about 930 miles northeast of the Seychelles. HMS Birmingham and SS Carthage rescued 678 people and brought them back to Mumbai, while 280 people perished in the tragedy.
The silver bullion was manufactured by the Bombay Mint and was mostly in the form or silver bars. They were intended to mint South African and Egyptian coins. The actual count was 2,391 silver bars, each weighing approximately 1,118.6 ounces.
Salvage operation and legal wrangle
In 2017, Argentum Exploration Ltd, owned by hedge fund leader Paul Marchall, hired Deep Ocean Search to carry out the salvage operation of the Tilawa silver bars, which was lying in the sea bed at the dept of nearly 4,000 metres. Using subsea vessels and robotics, the team salvaged 2,364 silver bars, weighing 60 tons. The mystery over the remaining 27 bars continue.
After the bounty was declared to the receiver in Southampton, UK, a legal wrangle over its ownership began between South African government and Argentum Exploration.
In 2020, South Africa lost its claim of “state immunity” at the UK High Court. Since the South African government had purchased the silver from the Indian government, they would have to pay a salvage fee to Argentum for services rendered.
The case then went to the UK Court of Appeals, and South Africa lost again, with Argentum arguing that the silver was being carried on a commercial vessel, and intended for commercial use.
South Africa then approached UK Supreme Court. Its stand that Argentum did not have a prior arrangement the South African government while carrying out the salvage operations clinched the issue in its favour.
The Supreme Court overturned the earlier lower court decisions. It made clear that the South African government may claim state immunity and they do not need to pay a salvage fee
to Argentum, because the silver of 1942 was a sovereign transaction intended for a sovereign purpose.
However, since Argentum had invested millions of dollars for the salvage operation, the two parties on April 26, 2024, agreed to a settlement.
Following the settlement for an undisclosed sum, Argentum released all 2,364 silver bars to an unknown smelter. The agreement stipulated only two silver bars were to be given to the South African government, while the rest were to be smelted.
This settlement happened shortly before the UK Supreme Court ruling on May 8, 2024.
New lease of life for artefact
However, in a pleasant surprise, a US-based bullion distributor told Tilawa1942 that at least 75 original Tilawa bars, and 200 original lasered faceplates were reserved for commercial sale.
In addition, several other bullion distributors, primarily in the US, are selling commemorative bars and rounds made from the smelted Tilawa silver.
This means the smelter violated the confidential settlement agreement, resulting in Argentum issuing an official complaint against them.
In addition, out of the 60 tons of salvaged silver, a certain amount was retained for commercial commemorative endeavors.
A US-based precious metals distributor, JM Bullion, told Tilawa1942.com: “Tilawa shipwreck silver is now enjoying a second life. While the final destination of all the silver from aboard the Tilawa is unknown, some 800,000 ounces of Tilawa silver has been refined into new silver bars and rounds for modern investors and collectors to own. These products offer a blend of tragic history and modern bullion in a single item.”
These mementos are now openly advertised and sold by distributors in the United States and in Hong Kong.
Meanwhile, Tilawa1942 has organised two commemorative events in Mumbai and London. The third will be held in Durban, on November 23 to mark the 82nd year of the tragedy.
