Breakthrough in hunt for Hitler's gold with dig to begin for legendary £250m ‘Amber Room' treasure stolen by Nazis
Since 1945, governments, the Polish Army and treasure hunters have scoured the terrain searching for the train - and now they believe its location may be in northern Poland.
Advertisement
4
Legend has it that the train holds up to £20bn worth of Nazi treasure, including the contents of the Amber Room (pictured in 1917)
4
Poland's deputy culture minister said in 2015 that he was 99 percent sure of the existence of the fabled Nazi train
4
Polish authorities have officially granted permission for a new search, according to
Gdańsk's Office for the Protection of Monuments has reportedly approved drilling and archaeological surveys in Dziemiany - located in the Kościerzyna district of northern Poland.
The search aim to uncover a suspected WWII-era bunker, which could conceal the fabled train and its valuable artefacts.
Marcin Tymiński, spokesperson for the Pomeranian Voivodeship Conservator of Monuments, said there might be a hidden German deposit in Dziemiany.
Advertisement
read more world news
'Some speculate it could even be the lost Amber Room,' he added.
The Nazis established a military training ground in Dziemiany for SS units at the end of 1943, according to Jan Delingowski who is leading the treasure hunt.
Delingowski, a former merchant fleet radio officer, has spent the last decade searching for the legendary train in the region of Kashubia.
In an interview on the YouTube channel History Hiking on Sunday, he pointed to historical evidence linking the suspected treasure site to Nazi official Erich Koch, RMF24 reports,
Advertisement
Most read in The US Sun
Erich Koch was a Gauleiter of the Nazis in East Prussia from 1928 until 1945.
After WWII, Koch was tried in Poland and convicted in 1959 for war crimes - including responsibility for the deaths of around 400,000 Poles.
Mystery of Nazi shipwreck that may hold £100million of Hitler's GOLD & the legendary 'Amber Room' treasure
Koch was sentenced to death, but the sentence was never carried out - officially due to his poor health.
However, according to declassified files from Poland's Institute of National Remembrance (IPN), cited by Rzeczpospolita, the real reason was that the communist-era Polish Security Service and the Soviet KGB hoped he would reveal the location of the Nazi gold train.
Advertisement
An inmate who met Koch in the 1980s claimed the Nazi official revealed the treasure's hiding place before his death.
Citing the inmate's account, Delingowski says the convoy veered off the road 'somewhere between Czersk and Człuchów, heading toward the Oder'.
4
The hunt for the Nazi gold train has lasted decades
Credit: Getty Images - Getty
The crates are said to be stashed in a bunker disguised and hidden 'on a hill near a lake, at the site of former SS barracks'.
Advertisement
Previous explorations of the region led to the discovery of a brick tank, Wirtualna Polska reports.
Based on the testimony and Delingowski's decade-long research, authorities have granted permission to investigate the site.
The official decision reads: 'Based on findings from prior heritage surveys, there is reason to believe that a World War II-era slit bunker is located on the plot (...), which may qualify as a historical monument.
"Furthermore, historic material - including archaeological artefacts - may be present inside and around it.'
Advertisement
The legend of the Nazi gold train
THERE is an enduring urban legend that deep beneath the mountains of southwest Poland lies a Nazi gold train - also known as the Wałbrzych gold train.
According to the legend, the train was loaded with precious jewels, gold and amber from the Amber Room of the Czars.
The Amber Room, originally created for Russian Tsar Peter the Great in the 1700s, was looted by the Nazis during their invasion of the Soviet Union in 1941.
It is considered the crown jewel of the missing Nazi treasure haul, often dubbed the "Eighth Wonder of the World" after being stolen from Catherine Palace near St. Petersburg.
According to the legend, the train was hidden in a sealed tunnel or underground bunker or mine somewhere in the Central Sudetes.
Since 1945, numerous searches - including operations by the Polish Army during the Cold War - have failed to uncover any trace of the train.
Interest in the legend surged again between 2015 and 2018, when two Polish treasure hunters claimed they had discovered the train using ground-penetrating radar.
This claim led to a high-profile excavation effort involving the Polish military, government officials and private backers.
But the dig was eventually abandoned after the so-called anomaly turned out to be a natural geological formation.
And so, the legend lives on - a group of enthusiasts has even built a full-scale replica of a Nazi armoured train, hoping to turn it into a tourist attraction.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
The Journal
a day ago
- The Journal
US grand jury probe ordered into alleged ‘Russiagate' conspiracy against Trump
US ATTORNEY GENERAL Pam Bondi has ordered federal prosecutors to open grand jury proceedings into allegations of a so-called 'Russiagate' conspiracy, claims long pushed by Donald Trump that his political enemies fabricated ties between his 2016 campaign and Russia. Bondi has directed an unnamed federal prosecutor to present evidence to a grand jury, following a criminal referral made last month by Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard. The US Justice Department has not commented on the proceedings, and it remains unclear what charges, if any, might be levied against former officials. Gabbard has alleged multiple times that Obama led 'Russiagate'. Alamy Stock Photo Alamy Stock Photo Gabbard's referral was based on over 100 pages of declassified files she claims show evidence of a 'treasonous conspiracy' and a 'years-long coup' against Trump, allegedly orchestrated by officials in Barack Obama's administration. The documents include internal emails, excerpts from intelligence briefings, and meeting notes from 2016, which Gabbard claims reveal manipulation of intelligence assessments about Russian interference in the presidential election. Russia did interfere in the 2016 US presidential election – this has been confirmed by multiple US intelligence agencies, bipartisan Congressional investigations, and the Special Counsel investigation led by Robert Mueller. However, investigations found no evidence of criminal conspiracy between the Trump campaign and Russia, though there were multiple contacts. Advertisement Democrats have dismissed Gabbard's claims of a 'coup' against Trump as politically motivated. They point to a bipartisan 2020 Senate Intelligence Committee report, as well as a 2017 US intelligence assessment, which both concluded that Russia sought to damage Hillary Clinton's campaign and assist Trump, though neither found evidence that vote outcomes were affected. Among the declassified materials is a March 2016 memo, cited in a separate report by Special Counsel John Durham, alleging that Hillary Clinton approved a plan to smear Trump as a Russian asset. The files also include a disputed email exchange involving an aide to Clinton and a senior official at George Soros' Open Society Foundations, referring to a plan to 'demonise Putin and Trump.' Durham, however, did not establish that the FBI conspired in such a scheme and made no determination on the authenticity of the emails. Fox News have reported that former CIA Director John Brennan and ex-FBI Director James Comey will be under criminal investigation in relation to the Trump-Russia probe. Both have denied wrongdoing, accusing Trump of abusing the justice system for political retaliation. Trump, who has repeatedly called the Obama-era investigation a 'hoax,' reacted to Bondi's move by claiming on social media that 'the TRUTH always wins out.' Truth Social Truth Social He previously accused Obama of 'treason' without providing evidence, an allegation the former president's spokesman called 'bizarre' and 'ridiculous.' Readers like you are keeping these stories free for everyone... A mix of advertising and supporting contributions helps keep paywalls away from valuable information like this article. Over 5,000 readers like you have already stepped up and support us with a monthly payment or a once-off donation. Learn More Support The Journal
The Irish Sun
2 days ago
- The Irish Sun
Israel planning new assault on Gaza after disturbing videos of emaciated hostages kidnapped by Hamas spark global fury
One heart-wrenching clip shows a hostage digging what he believes to be his own grave STORM OF IRON Israel planning new assault on Gaza after disturbing videos of emaciated hostages kidnapped by Hamas spark global fury ISRAEL is gearing up for a new assault on Gaza after horrific hostage videos lit a firestorm across the globe. Harrowing footage shows two Israeli captives — starved, pale, and broken — suffering in Hamas tunnels. 8 Israeli hostage Evyatar David looking weak and malnourished Credit: AFP 8 The 24-year-old is seen digging what he believes is his own grave 8 Israeli soldiers are seen in a tunnel that the military says Hamas militants used to attack the Erez crossing in the northern Gaza Strip Credit: AP 8 Smoke rises following an Israeli airstrike in the northern Gaza Strip, as seen from the Israeli side of the border on July 31 Credit: EPA Evyatar David, 24, and Rom Braslavski, 21, were both abducted from the Nova music festival on the deadly October 7 attacks. Now, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said the gloves are off. In a fiery address Sunday night, the PM declared that Israel would press forward with a "decisive military victory" to free the remaining hostages. Netanyahu again vowed to crush Hamas, which he said was deliberately starving captives in scenes chillingly reminiscent of the Nazi death camps. Referencing the horror hostage videos, he said: "You see them languishing in a dungeon, but the Hamas monsters surrounding them have thick, fleshy arms. "They have everything they need to eat. They are starving them, just as the Nazis starved the Jews." The footage — released by Hamas and Palestinian Islamic Jihad last week and approved for publication by the families — shows the hostages visibly emaciated, trembling, and close to collapse. In one heart-wrenching moment, David is seen digging what he believes to be his own grave. In another, Braslavski cries as he says he has eaten only three crumbs of falafel that day. His devastated family said in a statement: "They managed to break Rom. Harrowing moment desperate Gazans overrun food trucks as Israel challenges UN to ship in more aid after pausing fighting "He has simply been forgotten there." David's family described their son as a "living skeleton, buried alive" in Hamas's tunnels. "I haven't eaten for days... I barely got drinking water," David says in the footage. International fury The horrifying scenes have prompted an international backlash. British Foreign Secretary David Lammy called the images "sickening," while German Chancellor Friedrich Merz and French President Emmanuel Macron demanded immediate release of the hostages. The Red Cross described the footage as "stark evidence" of life-threatening conditions and urged immediate access to the captives. Netanyahu met with the Red Cross delegation head on Sunday, demanding urgent medical and food access to the hostages. Behind closed doors, Israeli security officials admit they had long known about the hostages' deteriorating condition. According to Ynet, intelligence briefings warned weeks ago that captors were deliberately withholding food under direct orders —feeding the prisoners just enough to keep them alive. 8 Israel is planning a new assault on Gaza after the horrific hostage videos Credit: EPA 8 Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu vowed to press forward with a 'decisive military victory' Credit: Reuters 8 Smoke rises from Gaza following an explosion in May Credit: Reuters 8 Palestinians at an aid distribution centre near the Zikim border crossing in Gaza to access limited food on Sunday Credit: Getty But the images have had a visceral impact on the Israeli public, and on Netanyahu himself. The prime minister said: "Like you, I was horrified yesterday. I saw the gruesome videos of our beloved sons, Rom and Evyatar. "When I see this, I understand exactly what Hamas wants. It does not want a deal. It wants to break us… But we will not break. "I am filled with even greater resolve to free our hostages, eliminate Hamas and ensure Gaza is never again a threat to the State of Israel." War cabinet at a crossroads According to The Times of Israel, Netanyahu is driving a plan for expanded military action - pushing into parts of Gaza previously avoided in hopes of preserving hostages' lives. But the security cabinet is divided. IDF Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Eyal Zamir and Mossad chief David Barnea are reportedly urging caution, while far-right ministers like Itamar Ben Gvir and Bezalel Smotrich call for a full-scale reoccupation. They are starving them, just as the Nazis starved the Jews Benjamin Netanyahu Strategic Affairs Minister Ron Dermer and Netanyahu's military secretary are among those backing an expanded war effort now being framed as inevitable in the absence of any viable diplomatic track. "Hamas is not interested in a deal," a senior Israeli official told Israel Hayom, saying that the group has flatly rejected all proposals, including full hostage release and Gaza demilitarisation. "Hamas has rejected every deal," said a senior source quoted by Israel Hayom. "Their refusal is rooted in the belief that starvation of the hostages and international pressure will force Israel to surrender. That cannot be allowed to happen." As ABC News confirmed through Israeli sources, Netanyahu is now pushing a 'military solution' and coordinating with Washington amid signs the US is no longer willing to back partial hostage deals.
The Irish Sun
5 days ago
- The Irish Sun
Breakthrough in hunt for Hitler's gold with dig to begin for legendary £250m ‘Amber Room' treasure stolen by Nazis
A BREAKTHROUGH may have been made in the hunt for Hitler's legendary gold train - said to be packed with jewels, gold and the lost £250m Amber Room. Since 1945, governments, the Polish Army and treasure hunters have scoured the terrain searching for the train - and now they believe its location may be in northern Poland. Advertisement 4 Legend has it that the train holds up to £20bn worth of Nazi treasure, including the contents of the Amber Room (pictured in 1917) 4 Poland's deputy culture minister said in 2015 that he was 99 percent sure of the existence of the fabled Nazi train 4 Polish authorities have officially granted permission for a new search, according to Gdańsk's Office for the Protection of Monuments has reportedly approved drilling and archaeological surveys in Dziemiany - located in the Kościerzyna district of northern Poland. The search aim to uncover a suspected WWII-era bunker, which could conceal the fabled train and its valuable artefacts. Marcin Tymiński, spokesperson for the Pomeranian Voivodeship Conservator of Monuments, said there might be a hidden German deposit in Dziemiany. Advertisement read more world news 'Some speculate it could even be the lost Amber Room,' he added. The Nazis established a military training ground in Dziemiany for SS units at the end of 1943, according to Jan Delingowski who is leading the treasure hunt. Delingowski, a former merchant fleet radio officer, has spent the last decade searching for the legendary train in the region of Kashubia. In an interview on the YouTube channel History Hiking on Sunday, he pointed to historical evidence linking the suspected treasure site to Nazi official Erich Koch, RMF24 reports, Advertisement Most read in The US Sun Erich Koch was a Gauleiter of the Nazis in East Prussia from 1928 until 1945. After WWII, Koch was tried in Poland and convicted in 1959 for war crimes - including responsibility for the deaths of around 400,000 Poles. Mystery of Nazi shipwreck that may hold £100million of Hitler's GOLD & the legendary 'Amber Room' treasure Koch was sentenced to death, but the sentence was never carried out - officially due to his poor health. However, according to declassified files from Poland's Institute of National Remembrance (IPN), cited by Rzeczpospolita, the real reason was that the communist-era Polish Security Service and the Soviet KGB hoped he would reveal the location of the Nazi gold train. Advertisement An inmate who met Koch in the 1980s claimed the Nazi official revealed the treasure's hiding place before his death. Citing the inmate's account, Delingowski says the convoy veered off the road 'somewhere between Czersk and Człuchów, heading toward the Oder'. 4 The hunt for the Nazi gold train has lasted decades Credit: Getty Images - Getty The crates are said to be stashed in a bunker disguised and hidden 'on a hill near a lake, at the site of former SS barracks'. Advertisement Previous explorations of the region led to the discovery of a brick tank, Wirtualna Polska reports. Based on the testimony and Delingowski's decade-long research, authorities have granted permission to investigate the site. The official decision reads: 'Based on findings from prior heritage surveys, there is reason to believe that a World War II-era slit bunker is located on the plot (...), which may qualify as a historical monument. "Furthermore, historic material - including archaeological artefacts - may be present inside and around it.' Advertisement The legend of the Nazi gold train THERE is an enduring urban legend that deep beneath the mountains of southwest Poland lies a Nazi gold train - also known as the Wałbrzych gold train. According to the legend, the train was loaded with precious jewels, gold and amber from the Amber Room of the Czars. The Amber Room, originally created for Russian Tsar Peter the Great in the 1700s, was looted by the Nazis during their invasion of the Soviet Union in 1941. It is considered the crown jewel of the missing Nazi treasure haul, often dubbed the "Eighth Wonder of the World" after being stolen from Catherine Palace near St. Petersburg. According to the legend, the train was hidden in a sealed tunnel or underground bunker or mine somewhere in the Central Sudetes. Since 1945, numerous searches - including operations by the Polish Army during the Cold War - have failed to uncover any trace of the train. Interest in the legend surged again between 2015 and 2018, when two Polish treasure hunters claimed they had discovered the train using ground-penetrating radar. This claim led to a high-profile excavation effort involving the Polish military, government officials and private backers. But the dig was eventually abandoned after the so-called anomaly turned out to be a natural geological formation. And so, the legend lives on - a group of enthusiasts has even built a full-scale replica of a Nazi armoured train, hoping to turn it into a tourist attraction.
