TreasureWriter

The Amber Room, which is also referred to as the Amber Chamber or in German as the Bernsteinzimmer was a complete room decorated with panels of amber and gold leaf. Originally constructed between 1701 and 1709 in Prussia, it was designed by German baroque sculptor Andreas Schlüter and built by the Danish amber craftsman Gottfried Wolfram. It began in the Charlottenburg Palace but in 1716 was given as a gift to Tsar Peter the Great of Russia as a token of their alliance.

Once in Russian custody, the Amber Room was expanded to more the 55 square meters and contained over 6 tons of amber. This chamber became a massive historical treasure of fine craftsmanship and unique beauty. Unfortunately, during World War II, Nazi Germany looted the Amber Room in about 36 hours under the guidance of two experts and transported it to Königsberg Castle. It is documented that a Nazi by the name of Erich Koch was tasked with removing treasures from Königsberg in January 1945 but nobody knows where or what happened to the Bernsteinzimmer.

Various theories exist as to the current location. Some say it was packed up and loaded aboard the Wilhelm Gustloff which was sunk by a soviet submarine. Still other claim it may have been sent to Weimar, a planned propaganda center.

Other sources say the Königsberg Castle had a massive fire in 1944 in which the Amber Room was packed up and relocated to the cellar and destroyed. Dr. Alfred Rohde, director of art collections in Königsberg, had a conversation with a Berlin history teacher named Mrs. Amm who reports the conversation as such:

“I studied in Königsberg from 1939 untill 1945 and was friends with Lotti, the daughter of Dr. Rohde. Often, I was a guest for lunch. Dr. Rohde told stories about the Amber Room in the castle of Königsberger and since I was interested in art, he promised to show it to me one day, which is what he did. Then the attacks of August 1944 occured and Königsberg was in ruins. After the second night of bombing I went to downtown to look for relatives and friends. Around lunchtime I arrived at the castle and met Dr. Rohde. He looked totally confused and his face was white. We greeted each other and my first question was: “What happened to the Amber Room?” His answer: “Everything destroyed”. He took me into unknown cellars of the castle where I saw something like honey with burned wooden pieces in between. Later on, we never ever spoke about the Amber Room again.”

On the other hand, a group who call themselves the Amber Room Organization claim other evidence disproving the destruction of the Amber Room. You can read those theories more in depth here.

Many people claim to have discovered this lost treasure and according to the Wikipedia article, the last known report was in 2008:

The latest discovery, as reported in February 2008[5], is of a 20-metre pit in Deutschneudorf, a small town near the German-Czech border. The site reportedly matches intelligence from survivors who helped loot the fabled room, and initial probe reports are said to indicate the presence of a large quantity of gold or silver. Hans-Peter Haustein, mayor of the town, said “We’re confident it’s part of the Amber Room”.

Who knows, it may still be out there for you to discover!