Could Ksiaz Castle and its surroundings in Poland soon reveal the mysterious secret of a long-lost train full of Nazi treasure? The Polish government
ADVERTISEMENTCould Ksiaz Castle and its surroundings in Poland soon reveal the mysterious secret of a long-lost train full of Nazi treasure?
The Polish government says it is almost certain it has located the German train, rumoured to have disappeared near the end of World War Two.
The Deputy Culture Minister and Head of National Heritage Piotr Zuchowski told journalists in Warsaw that the train was thought to have been carrying a special cargo of military equipment but also possibly jewellery, looted works of art and archive documents.
“As far as I know nobody has accessed the train since World War II. The information about its location was given orally by a person who was among those who buried the train. That person revealed their secret on their deathbed, along with the sketch of where the train was hidden,” Zuchowski said.
Local folklore has it that as the Soviet Red Army closed in, the train entered a tunnel in southwestern Poland near the city of Walbrzych and its local castle – never to be seen again.
Trains were indeed used to take Nazi loot back to Berlin as the war drew to a close.
The authorities started looking earlier this month following a tip-off from a German and a Pole.
Photographs using ground-penetrating radar equipment have shown a train more than 100 metres long – the first official confirmation of its existence, according to Zuchowski.
But experts would only be certain once they had managed to uncover the vehicle, he added.