A museum in Hawaii is preparing to open a treasure-trove of artifacts from the shipwreck of a royal yacht sunk off the coast of Kauai 191 years ago . Richard Rogers , a Hawaii shipwreck chaser , worked with scientists from the Smithsonian Institution to dredge up the findings from the ship owned by King Kamehameha II , aka Liholiho , the second king of Hawaii . 'We found gold , silver , Hawaiian poi pounders , gemstones , a boat whistle , knives , forks , mica , things from all over the world , high- and low-end European stuff . Every bit of it is royal treasure , ' Rogers said . Finally returned home : Artifacts that belonged to the second king of Hawaii but that sunk on a ship in 1824 are now being returned to Kauai and will go on display at the local museum . Seen here is a cupid furniture mount that belonged to King Kamehameha II , aka Liholiho . Shipwreck : The sunken yacht , which became known as 'Pride of Hawaii ' , was 83-feet-long and considered the first luxury ocean-going yacht in the United States when it sunk just off Kauai in April 1824 . Sunken : This image provided by the Smithsonian Institution 's National Museum of American History shows a diagram of the wreckage of the stern of the ship belonging to King Kamehameha II . Retrieved : Among the artifacts found by divers between 1995 and 2001 were this vegetal ivory finger ring . Rogers volunteered his time aboard his research vessel , the Pilialoha , over a five year period in four-week intervals from 1995 to 2001 to pull up the treasures . 'It 's all pickled and nice and ready to be displayed , ' Rogers said . 'There are over a thousand artifacts . We did our homework and this find is invaluable because it all belonged to the king . It is a fabulous window into the 1820s . ' Rogers said the king 's belongings were buried in 10 feet of water and 10 feet of sand . His favorite discovery was a trumpet shell . ' I found it under a bunch of sand and carried it onto the deck . This was in 1999 . I blew it and it made the most beautiful sound going out over Hanalei Bay , ' Rogers recalled . ' I thought about how it had n't been blown in over 170 years . ' Kamehameha II purchased the yacht from George Crowninshield II , who named it 'Cleopatra 's Barge ' in 1816 . According to historian and Kauai Museum volunteer Zenon Wong , it cost $ 50,000 to build the 192 ton yacht . Rogers said it was the first luxury ocean-going yacht built in the United States . Collection : A sampling of Hawaiian artifacts found in the wreckage . At the center is the royal pu , or conch horn . Around it are ulu maika game stones , pounders , canoe breakers , and a stone rubber . Wong said reports were conflicting about the condition of the crew of the 83-foot long ship , which had been renamed Ha ? aheo o Hawai ? i ( 'Pride of Hawaii ' ) . Some documents indicate everyone on board was drunk April 6 , 1824 , when the ship went aground on a shallow reef . Other historical accounts report everyone was intoxicated except the captain . The cause of the wreck is unfounded but speculation shows it may have been the combination of an unexpected wind gale and a snapped anchor cable . There are no reports that anyone died aboard the ship , which was crewed entirely by Hawaiians . The principal value of the artifacts is historical , said Paul F. Johnston , Ph.D. , Curator of Maritime History at the National Museum of American History Smithsonian Institution . They represent the only known objects from the short but intense reign of Kamehameha II , the man who abolished the Hawaiian kapu ( taboo ) socio-cultural system and allowed Christian missionaries into the kingdom . Precious : Pictured here is a gunpowder flask found in the wreckage of a ship belonging to King Kamehameha II . 'He only reigned from 1819 -1824 , but Old Hawaii changed forever and irrevocably from the changes he put into place during that short period . He was an important member of our nation 's only authentic royalty , ' Johnston said . The State of Hawaii owns the artifacts and loaned them to the Smithsonian for conservation and study . T. he findings were in the custody of the Smithsonian from the time of their recovery , with the exception of some artifacts going to the Underwater Conservation Lab at Texas A & M University . Those objects were returned to the Smithsonian after cataloging , conservation and stabilization . Several years ago a sampling of the artifacts were displayed at the Smithsonian . Damaged : Pictured here are fragments from Dutch case gin bottles that were on the ship . Four crates of recovered artifacts weighing nearly 1,200 pounds were delivered to The Kauai Museum in March . Two to three additional crates are scheduled for delivery and will complete the collection . Kauai Museum Director Jane Gray said she expects to open the crates soon and unveil the contents to the public after everything has been carefully unpacked .
Ship owned by King Kamehameha II , the second king of Hawaii , sank off the coast of Kauai in April 1824 . The ship was carrying a cargo of gold and silver coins from China to Honolulu when it ran aground on an uncharted reef near Kauai.