Was pirate Black Sam Bellamy found? DNA test could tell
YARMOUTH, Mass. (AP) - Researchers are working to use DNA to identify whether a human bone recovered from a Cape Cod shipwreck belongs to the infamous pirate Samuel "Black Sam" Bellamy.
The Whydah (WIH'-duh) Pirate Museum in Yarmouth, Massachusetts, publicly displayed the bone Monday. It was found near what's believed to be Bellamy's pistol.
The objects were pulled from the Whydah Gally (GAH'-lee) shipwreck several years ago.
The museum has enlisted forensic scientists to extract DNA and compare it with DNA from a living Bellamy descendant. Testing will take about a month.
The Whydah sank in 1717. The wreck was discovered in 1984. Most of its treasure is thought to remain on the ocean floor.
Forbes has listed Bellamy as the highest-earning pirate ever, plundering about $120 million worth of treasure in a little over a year.