Pirates were supposed to have lots of gold and jewels which they stole from the ships they plundered. In fact, they didn't get a lot of gold and jewellery, simply because most ships weren't carrying that sort of cargo. They were far more likely to be carrying things to trade. The cargo might include rare articles such as spices, or sugar, or more common things such as material, food, anchors, rope, and sometimes medical supplies.

This cross made of jewels was the kind of treasure that we imagine that pirates won. Mostly their loot was a lot more boring, but they could sell it and get money to spend on drink.

The pirates would steal the cargo, and then sell it at a port somewhere, and share out the money. There were very strict rules as to how much every pirate got as their share, and these were set out in the Pirate's Code.

Not many pirates saved their money so that they could retire rich. They probably thought they would be killed one day soon, so they might as well enjoy it straight away. They would usually spend most of their money on buying drink. Ports that pirates used had a lot of taverns!