Even from a young age, it is common for young Malaysian children to be told stories of gutsy adventurers braving danger in search of lost treasure.

To the matured mind of an adult, the idea of lost treasure seems highly fantastical without any basis in history.

After all, if the stories were true, every failing businessman would be digging holes in their backyards hoping to strike it rich.

However, in reality, there are indeed several historical artefacts that have long been lost and are perhaps, waiting to be found one day.

Some of these artefacts are national treasures, with governments willing to handsomely pay anyone who recovers them.

Do you think you’re the next Indiana Jones? If you are, time to pursue these five historical treasures that remain missing to this day:

1. The Imperial Seal of China

Carved out of a famous piece of jade, the seal was created for Qin Shi Huangdi, the first Emperor of China who had united the land under the Qin Dynasty (221-201BC).

Written on the bottom of the seal are the phrases, “Being granted the Mandate of Heaven, we hope the citizens live long and the country remains prosperous forever.”

Even after the Qin fell and was replaced by the Han, the Imperial Seal continued to be passed on from emperor to emperor.

The Imperial Seal would, in fact, still be in use during the Tang Dynasty (618-907AD), over a thousand years after its creation.

However, as the Tang collapsed, the seal went missing, completely lost by the time the Ming Dynasty was established in 1368.

Some believe that the last Tang emperor destroyed it when he set himself ablaze while others believe the Mongol Yuan Dynasty hid the seal when Ming victory was imminent.

In any case, the Imperial Seal remains a particularly important piece of Chinese history, in terms of both cultural and monetary value.

2. The Ark of the Covenant

Possibly the most important of artefacts in Jewish history, the Ark of the Covenant was a chest that was said to hold the tablets engraved with the Ten Commandments, given to Moses by God.

According to the Torah, the Ark was kept in the most sacred chamber in King Solomon’s Temple in Jerusalem.

However, the Temple met its end in 587BC when the Babylonian army of Nebuchadnezzar II sacked the city and enslaved the inhabitants.

By the time the Israelites returned to the ruined city, the Ark was gone, possibly hidden or dismantled by the Babylonians.

It has been the objective of many treasure hunters since, with the Ark being featured in the 1981 film, “Raiders of the Lost Ark”.

On an interesting note, an Ethiopian church claims to be housing the Ark, supposedly brought there by the child of Solomon and the legendary Queen of Sheba.

3. The Amber Room

Called the Eighth Wonder of the World for its beauty, the Amber Room was a gift presented to the Russian czar, Peter the Great, in 1716.

The Amber Room was a chamber decorated with precious amber and gold, with modern estimates suggesting that the room is worth hundreds of millions of dollars today.

Unfortunately, during World War II, the Nazis occupied the palace where the Amber Room was, and promptly looted it.

There were plans to set it up in Germany instead, but when the war turned against the Nazis, the Amber Room was hidden and has not been seen since.

While parts and pieces of the room have been found, and a recreation of it made, the original is still missing with treasure hunters still on the lookout for more information.

4. The Honjo Masamune

A famous sword made by the master Japanese swordsmith, Goro Masamune, it was said to be of extremely good quality, capable of cleaving through armour easily.

During the fourth battle of Kawanakajima in 1561, a renowned samurai named Honjo Shigenaga was attacked with this sword, spliting his helmet into two.

Fortunately, he survived the fight and claimed the sword as his prized possession, only to sell it to the ruling Toyotomi clan, which was about to be defeated by the new Shogun, Tokugawa Ieyasu.

For centuries afterwards, the sword became the symbol of the Tokugawa’s power, being passed from one Shogun to the next.

After Japan’s defeat in World War II, the occupying Americans ordered that all swords be turned over to them and destroyed.

It is during this time when the sword disappeared from history, possibly melted down, though some suggest the sword could have been brought home as a war trophy by an oblivious American soldier.

5. The Flor do Mar

One of the best ships of the Portuguese navy then, it served under the command of Alfonso de Albuquerque during several military expeditions.

The commander is a man that even Malaysians would know, given that he was the man responsible for the Portuguese conquest of Malacca in 1511.

After the fall of Melaka, the palace of Sultan Mahmud Shah was thoroughly ransacked by the victors, with the spoils of war loaded onto the ship.

Besides the Malaccan treasure, many believe the ship was carrying a tribute from the King of Siam meant for his Portuguese counterpart.

After it left Melaka, however, the ship was caught in a storm off the coast of Sumatra and was shipwrecked, with 400 lives lost together with the treasure.

While some sources suggest that most of the treasure was recovered by the survivors, it has not stopped modern-day treasure hunters from looking for the shipwreck to this day.