Escaping German soldiers are said to have hidden loot worth several million francs near a Dutch village. The area near the village of Ommeren in the central Netherlands is currently being overrun by amateur fortune seekers. This is after the National Archives released a map that had been kept secret for 78 years.
Gold fever has broken out in the area. Groups of people with search equipment can be seen everywhere, reports Reuters news agency: “Armed with metal detectors and shovels, the groups roam the fields in the rural area.” They hold in their hands the mysterious treasure map, which apparently points to a hiding place containing millions of dollars worth of gold, silver, jewelry, diamonds and watches.
The map, which was published in The Hague on Tuesday, shows a red cross above a spot near the village. The archive calls the document “a real treasure map”. Details point to a shelter at the foot of an embankment on the edge of a field – three trees away from what appears to be a tombstone.
‘Soldiers put the loot in their coats’
Archivist Annet Waalkens told Omroep Gelderland that the treasure was buried in August 1944 after an explosion in a bank in nearby Arnhem. A group of German soldiers attacked the bank after the explosion. “German soldiers put the loot in their coats,” says Waalkens. They then apparently buried the treasures in four ammunition boxes. The boxes are said to have been buried on site, about 30 kilometers from today’s German border.
The treasuries are “worth several millions”, says Waalkens. The government has tried several times to recover the boxes since the end of the war. In 1947, a German soldier was deployed to search. He had claimed to have witnessed the burial of the treasure. He also hand-drawn the map that has now been published. But the treasure was never found.
The treasure may have been buried first and then dug up again, says historian Joost Rosendaal. In 1944 fierce fighting raged in the area, advancing British were repulsed. “I wouldn’t be surprised,” Rosendaal told Omroep Gelderland, “if the treasure is gone.”
bombs instead of gold
The authorities advise against treasure hunting and warn hobby prospectors: if the treasure really exists and is found, it belongs to the state. Not only would the responsible municipality need a permit for the use of metal detectors. The Dutch Monuments Act also prohibits archaeological excavations by amateurs. In addition, any artifacts found must be reported to the authorities.
Metal detectors could very well be set up in the area. Due to the fierce fighting in 1944, there may be unexploded bombs, mines or grenades in the ground. (kes)