Washington: He is thought to be the richest pirate who ever lived - amassing a hoard of treasure worth hundreds of millions in today's money, before he was lost at sea along with his ship.

Captain "Black Sam" Bellamy and his crew were aboard the Whydah Gally when it encountered one of the most violent storms ever recorded off New England in 1717, and sank, killing most on board and leaving its treasure on the ocean floor.

An archaeologist at the Whydah Pirate Museum holds what is believed to be a leg bone which will be tested to see if the remains discovered are those of Whydah Captain Samuel Bellamy, or "Black Sam" Bellamy. Credit:AP

The wreck, along with the legendary treasure, was discovered off the coast of Cape Cod, Massachusetts in 1984. In the years since, archaeologists have continued to search the site and now believe they may have found the captain himself.

The remains were displayed for the first time in Massachusetts yesterday and DNA extracted from the corpse will be compared with that of an English descendant.