If you were disappointed to hear that the infamous treasure of Forrest Fenn was finally discovered this past weekend, don't put away your treasure hunting gear just yet. We have another story of lost gold, stolen art, and missing loot that makes Fenn's $1 million prize seem like child's play. But if you want to find this trove of priceless items, you're going to need to book a flight to Europe in order to join the search.
According to reports, a diary belonging to a German officer during World War II may have clues to where high-ranking Nazi officials may have hidden vast sums of gold, along with missing works of art and other artifacts, seized during the fighting. The journal allegedly belonged to an unknown S.S. commander by the name of "Michaelis," who recorded the plans of Henirich Himmler. It was Himmler-according to the diary-who ordered the treasure be hidden, even as Allied forces were beginning to close in.
For more than 70 years, the diary was kept in a Masonic edge near the town of Quedlinburg in Germany. But last year, it was turned over to the Silesian Bridge Foundation in Poland as part of an apology for the atrocities of WWII. When the contents of the journal were reviewed, it was revealed that the missing riches that the Nazi's claimed during the war were hidden at 11 different sites, including a 16-century castle at Roztoka, Poland. Supposedly, the diary even had a map to these sites, that include a number of wells. It is believed that at least some of the gold was dumped into those wells, where it could still be resting to this day.
It is well known that German soldiers confiscated a vast amount of gold and art during their blitz across Europe. But after the war was over, much of the missing loot was never recovered. What became of it remains a mystery. For decades it was rumored to be in a vault in Switzerland, which famously stayed neutral throughout World War II. But this story indicates that it may actually still be hidden and awaiting discovery.
So just how much wealth are we talking about here? Rumors suggest that the Nazi's buried 30 tons of gold. Using today's pricing as a guide, that would mean this trove would be worth somewhere in the neighborhood of $1.5 billion. That number is even being a little conservative, although it is a good ballpark number. Naturally, this has caught the attention of a number of people who have aspirations of searching these 11 locations. This has also prompted one Polish couple to construct a fence around their manor house, which is on the list of possible locations. The fear is that treasure hunters are already planning to invade these places as soon as possible, with an eye of claiming at least some of the treasure for themselves.
This is definitely an interesting story to say the least. History buffs have long known that Germany had hidden much of the wealth that it had stolen during the war, but where it was remained a mystery. If nothing else, it seems these leads should be followed up on, as it could reveal some interesting historical items. Hopefully we'll hear more about this story down the line.
