Friday, June 25, 2021

Mysterious Nazi Gold Train Causes a Stir - Polish Treasure

There is a legend about a Nazi train filled with treasure being hidden underground in Poland.

The tale has been pretty much discredited after many searches. It was supposed to have been covered up inside a tunnel or mine in an area called Central Sudetes. After much investigation the tale has been relegated to legend.

The Polish military - during communist occupation and since the fall of the Iron Curtain in democratic Poland- have dug for the reported treasure. After determining that the radar used revealed a geologic formation, the hunt was ended. Meanwhile, news agencies around the world reported the latest 3 year probe.

Onboard the train was supposed to be more than 300 t (330 tons) of gold, jewels, weapons, and artistic masterpieces. At the end of World II a heavily armored train was supposed to have entered a system of tunnels built by the Nazis. It went from Wroclaw to Frieburg in Schlesien and then disappeared. It was to have gone next to Waldenburg in Schlesien. 

The story is that it entered other tunnels under a castle or under the Owl Mountains. This area was said to be a top secret construction project. No one has every been able to prove the train existed, let alone took this trip and disappeared.  

From 1949 to 1987,scrutiny of the tale was tested many times with no evidence to back up the story.On August 28, 2015, the deputy culture minister announced ground radar had found evidence of a train 100 meters long and with 99% certainty. Based on two private citizens who had made the discovery, the announcement was made. Three days later a Polish official declared that the documents they were in possession of were not sufficient to shed anymore light on the existence of such a train. On September 4, 2015, the two investigators released information to the public. With all of the public hype, the governor of the region cordoned off the area and work began to uncover the site.

In May 2016, despite outside expert opinion that no train existed, Koper and Richter, the private investigators, secured permission to begin digging at the site from the owners of the property, Polish State Railways.The excavation commenced on 15 August 2016 with a team of 64 people, including engineers, geologists, chemists, archaeologists and a specialist in military demolitions. The excavation reportedly cost 116,000 euros or $131,000 and was financed by private sponsors, and with the help of volunteers - Wikipedia.

Seven days after digging had begun, it was halted because no train, tunnel, or tracks had been found. The radar images turned out to be ice formations. However, tourism was up 44% and it was estimated that the publicity the town got was worth $200,000,000, so it might be said that treasure was actually found! A city official claimed that because the annual budget for publicity was $380,000, the town was considering naming a roundabout after Koper and Richter.

From 2016 to 2017, Koper and Richter intended to dig down another 20 meters. In 2017, a series cavities that were thought to be railroad tunnels were discovered, but even deeper work would be required. This work would require far more money than they had to continue their quest for the treasure. 

In 2018, Richter left the excavation team leaving Koper to continue the search. In 2019, Koper did wind up discovering some 16th century wall paintings behind a plastered wall in an old palace in the town of Struga, Poland. These paintings were described as priceless.

For more information see https://www.dw.com/en/fabled-nazi-gold-train-is-the-hunt-over/a-44924951

and/or https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jZhr2lv1ggA



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