The mysterious and unfinished story of one of the most valuable treasures in Europe, which was stolen and appeared without suspects.
Around the world they can be found in museums and castles with extreme security hundreds of treasures with immense valuenot only monetary but also cultural and historical. With the wars and conflicts that society went through, several of these were lost or stolen and they never came back into the hands of its original owners.
That is the case of the “Amber Room“, considered the Eighth Wonder of the Modern World for its impressive beauty, its details engraved in such a precious material and its gold ornaments. It was designed for Prussian and Russian royalty, was lost in the war with Nazi Germany and was eventually replicated in a palace. Saint Petersburg.
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What was the Amber Room?
The story of the Amber Room begins in 1701when Frederick I of Prussia He ordered the construction of a luxurious hall in the royal palace in Berlin. This space stood out for its walls and furniture covered in ambera material that at that time was twelve times more valuable than gold. Its production, which lasted eight years, used about one hundred thousand pieces of this stone to cover an area of 36 square meters.
the tsar Peter I the Great was fascinated by this masterpiece during a visit to Berlin, where he sought to reinforce a military alliance with Prussia against Sweden. In 1717, Frederick William I of Prussia sealed the agreement gifting the room to the tsar. The Camera was carefully disassembled, packed and transported to Saint Petersburgthe new capital founded by Peter in the Baltic. For its transportation, 18 horse-drawn sleighs were used that took it first by sea and then by land. Finally, he settled in Catherine Palacein Tsarskoye Selo, the summer residence of the tsars.
In its new home, the room was expanded with additional panels covering an additional 48 square meters and adorned with mosaics. After its last remodeling, in 1770, the space reached 96 square metersdecorated with six tons of amber panels, gold leafgems, 24 mirrors and a precious wood floor. It also contained around seventy objects made of amber. Over the next two centuries, this iconic hall established itself as one of the main jewels of the tsarist empire, withstanding not only seven restorations, but also the Revolution of 1917.
What happened to the Amber Room
During the Second World WarSaint Petersburg was attacked by the Nazis for 900 dayswhich led to brutal devastation of the city and its inhabitants. The royal palaces were no exception, and it was at that time that the Hall was seen for the last time. Due to its large size and the enormous amount of details, the Soviets They could not evacuate this treasure in time, so they left her behind and lost sight of her for years.
Although some researchers claim that the Amber Room was destroyed in the bombings or after the final assault on the city by Soviet troops in the counterattack against the Nazis, in the 2000s more advanced equipment was used for the search and works of art were found. art and jewelry in a hidden part of the castle basementbut nothing from the Room.
In 1979the former USSR began rebuild the room guided by two remaining original elements: a single box of relics from the room and 86 black and white photographs of space taken just before World War II. The reconstruction took 23 years, but today the imitation of the Amber Room is exhibited in the Catherine Palace in the State Museum of Tsarskoye Selo in St. Petersburg, considered World Heritage.
Source: Ambito
I am an author and journalist who has worked in the entertainment industry for over a decade. I currently work as a news editor at a major news website, and my focus is on covering the latest trends in entertainment. I also write occasional pieces for other outlets, and have authored two books about the entertainment industry.
