The huge Spanish noa de chine, Nuestra Senora de la Concepcion, sailed from Manila, Philippines on August 28, 1698, bound for Acapulco, Mexico, a port on the other side of the Pacific Ocean. Her cargo hold was bursting with wooden chests filled with bars of 24-carat gold, precious jewels, and hundreds of crates containing thousands of pieces of priceless Chinese porcelain. It was the largest treasure ever carried on a sailing vessel, and was accompanied by more than 700 men, women and children. She was never seen or heard from again. Almost 400 years later, the personal sailing journal of a...