The Amber Room discovered? Time will Tell

The Amber room which falls for me into the category of the Seven Wonders of the world has always fascinated me. It has even been dubbed by some as the "eighth wonder" of the world. Mysterious and alluring as it is what is it that is so fascinating about it? Besides being a whole room made completely of the precious stone Amber, it is a gem of Russian history.

To the left is a picture of the original Amber Room before WWII

It had been said that when all the candles were lit the room glowed gold. Which would not surprise me since amber is light reflective. It had to have been a sight to behold, rendering one speechless.

1716 it was given by Prussian king Friedrich Wilhelm I to his then ally, Tsar Peter the Great of Russia. In Russia it was expanded and after several renovations, it covered more than 55 square meters and contained over six tons of amber.

Later the room was looted by Nazi Germany during WWII even after it was covered with wall paper to conceal its location. The Nazi's still found it and German soldiers disassembled the Amber Room within 36 hours under the supervision of two experts supposedly to be sent to Königsberg in East Prussia. The pieces were put into crates and from there is where the mystery begins.

Some believe the crates were seen at a railway station in Königsberg and it is possible they might have been loaded onto a boat that was sunk by a Soviet submarine. Another possible avenue might be it was taken to Weimar, the location of a "planned propaganda center". At one point later in the war Königsberg was heavily bombed and the the remains of the castle were destroyed by The Red Army in the 1960's.

The castle to the left is Königsberg before WWI.

Never to be found again the mysterious disappearance of The Amber Rooms pieces has intrigued many over the years. In 1997 one Italian stone mosaic that was part of a set of four which had decorated the Amber Room did turn up in western Germany, in the possession of the family of a soldier who had helped pack up the Amber Room

Amber which consists of fossilized tree resin, has always been prized for its natural beauty. Yes just like in Jurassic park it does contain some natural elements like animal and plant material. The uniqueness of Amber also come with a down side. If it is not properly cared for it will turn to dust. Even with modern day Amber jewelry you can not spray perfume or hairspray even possibly near it or it will develop a whitish film on it that may be permante. It is so sensitive it can not rub together like in beads, steam cleaners and ultrasonic cleaners will shatter the gem, it can not come into contact with any strong solutions, soaps, detergents, commercial jewelry cleaning solutions. Even kitchen substances such as lard, salad oil, butter and excessive heat of ovens and burners. Do not place amber art objects near heating ducts or in direct sunshine. Displays in lighted showcases should be properly ventilated. Avoid exposure to sudden changes of temperature, such as hot tubs, very cold water, and reaching into ovens, followed by a cold sink.

A recreated Amber room exist today at Catherine Palace in Saint Petersburg, Russia. Someday I would love to see it for myself. I have been following the story of the Amber Room for some time becasue it perodically has showed up in the news. People stating that they think they might have found it but all have came back with empty hands. No Amber, no nothing. Until now a man who might be the closest to come to finding it.

"Priceless Amber Room of the Tsars, looted and hidden by the Nazis, is found by Russia treasure hunter"

"The Amber Room of the Tsars - one of the greatest missing treasures of WW2 that was looted by the Nazis during their invasion of the Soviet Union - may have been found.
A Russian treasure hunter is currently excavating in the enclave of Kaliningrad where he has discovered a World War II era bunker that the local German high command used in the battle for the city in 1945.
If Sergei Trifonov is correct then he has solved one of the greatest riddles left over from the war - and will make himself into a multi-millionaire."

"He anticipates that he will break into the bunker by the end of the month to find the treasure."

The real issue I see is if this man really does get into the bunker and finds the original crates that the Amber panels were loaded into then what about the actual Amber. With no one around to maintain its up keep then the Amber would it not have turned to dust? Time being the enemy here would there really be anything to find or just a pile of dust and some empty crates?


Thank you to the lovely Michelle Moran for posting this wonderful news link on the search for the amber room. It just happens to be another one of my historical obsessions.