DIVERS off the West Cork coast have recovered the bell from one of the ships in the failed 1796 invasion.
The bell was found in the wreckage of La Surveillante in 110 ft of water about a mile off Glengarriff. The Bantry Armada Trust has described it as "possibly the most priceless find in the history of Irish maritime archeology".
When the French invasion fleet led by Gen Lazarre Hoche and Wolfe Tone arrived in Bantry Bay, in atrocious weather, the La Surveillante was shipping water. It was decided to scuttle it.
Ms Eileen O'Shea, the chairwoman of the trust, says the discovery by divers from the Tuskar Rock Diving Company will lead to a more intense survey of the wreck.
The bell is to be restored by the Archeological Diving Team of the National Monuments Office and the Office of Public Works, before being returned to Bantry.