Japanese Treasury Seal

The quality of the concrete seal built by Japanese soldiers during their occupation of the Philippines in World War 2 is not just a simple mixture of cement, gravel, sand and water, usually applied in road construction or building roads. It is perhaps the toughest concrete cement imaginable. The presence of positive evidence shows that the strength and hardness of it is comparable to the iron steel. Based of continuing studies and research, there is a large amount of silica and quartz pyrite mixed with an undetermined amount of adhesive resin and hardener. There is also a real presence of fly ash and intrusion aid. The mixing process is poured dry method. Soil moisture serves as a slowing catalyst.

The concrete mortar is the stamp of the cache of the treasure. Its thickness varies from 0.5 to 5 meters depending on the volume of buried treasure. The larger the volume, the thicker the seal. In the major known sites, the thickness is reached the phenomenal heights of 8 feet below the surface and depth of 20-30 meters. Below, a series of rectangular chambers is constructed in such a way that is free from collapsing. This is supposedly the place where the cache is packed, stacked and aligned cylinders in each chamber.

So far, the most recent fastest way to break the seal open is to use a hot iron. However, the process becomes ineffective if the hole is watery. The presence of water cannot be ruled out given 20 to 30 meters below the soil surface. During the rainy season wherein the sites are filled with water, excavators switch to manual mode using chisels and hammers slowing the pace of accomplishment. However, some successful and very lucky recovered the treasures after several years of dedication, unimaginable hard work as evidenced by these photos: