A team of divers has recovered nearly $20 million worth of gold from the icy waters off Argentina's southeastern coast, a source close to the recovery operation said.

The cargo of gold and silver sank in January on board a ship named the Polar Mist, which disappeared off Argentina's Patagonian coast in bad weather.

A marine recovery outfit raised the haul from the depths of the south Atlantic and transported it to an Argentine customs facility, where it was weighed in front of a federal judge, the source said.

The ill-fated vessel sank on January 18 at a depth of 80 meters, around 40 kilometers of the coast of Santa Cruz, prompting a search for its 9.4-tonnes of gold and silver.

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