Russian Amber Room Finally Found? It's 2020, So Probably Not.

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https://arstechnica.com/science/2020/10/the-wreck-of-the-wwii-steamship-karlsruhe-may-hold-lost-russian-treasure/

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A World War II shipwreck recently located off the coast of Poland may hold the dismantled pieces of the Amber Room, a Russian treasure looted by the Nazis and lost since 1945.

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The wreck of the German steamship Karlsruhe lies 88 meters (290 feet) below the surface of the Baltic Sea and a few dozen kilometers north of the resort town of Ustka, Poland. It’s in excellent shape after 75 years on the bottom, according to the team of 10 divers from Baltictech who located the wreck in June and announced the find in early October.

“It is practically intact,” Baltictech diver Tomasz Stachura told the press in a statement.

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Baltictech divers began their search for the Karlsruhe in 2019, using surviving documents from both sides of the war to guide their search. The odd assortment of cargo the divers found in the wreck underscores the mixed nature of the German evacuation. “In its holds, we discovered military vehicles, porcelain, and many crates with contents still unknown,” said Stachura.

And those crates are especially tantalizing. There’s a slim chance they could hold whatever is left of the Amber Room, one of the greatest treasures the Nazis looted during World War II.

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In 1701, German sculptors and amber craftsmen built a 55-square-meter (590-square-foot) room, paneled from floor to ceiling in amber of multiple hues, with each panel backed with gold leaf or a mirror. Although the room was installed in the Berlin City Palace, home of the Prussian king, King Frederick William I gave the room as a gift to Tsar Peter I of Russia in 1716. Peter I installed it in the Catherine Palace, which he had given as a gift to his second wife, Catherine I (not to be confused with Catherine the Great, who ruled several decades later).

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“We don’t want to get too excited, but if the Germans were to take [the Amber Room] across the Baltic Sea, then Karlsruhe steamer was their last chance,” Baltictech wrote in a recent Facebook post announcing the find.

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However, that’s really all the evidence there is to suggest the Karlsruhe’s 75-year-old sealed crates contain the priceless panels of the Amber Room: the panels haven’t turned up anywhere else yet, and the steamship would have been their last ride out of Königsberg. It’s not a lot to get excited about. Those crates really could contain anything: vintage household goods, weapons, documents rendered unreadable by waterlogging, more porcelain, or even a different set of looted art treasures entirely.

 

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Picture from recovery operations

[Hate 20,106]

I love stuff like this.  Whatever they find down there I imagine it will be pretty cool to find out. 

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12 minutes ago, Hate said:

I love stuff like this.  Whatever they find down there I imagine it will be pretty cool to find out. 

I'm afraid it's going to be vodka or something like a shitload of small arms ammo, but yeah, I love this kind of stuff.  

Props to them for making the connection to the Amber Room, even if it turns out to be nothing, because that stuff makes for a good distraction.

[Deej 76,750]

I'm a fan of Amber Room's PornHub channel.

[Pato del Muerto 52,484]

Maybe the train car of nazi gold is down there too 

[gsoda3 3,245]

That's awesome they found the ship. There are lots of theories of what happened to the panels, from the panels still being in the city to the panels being shipped out by rail or horse drawn cart, but this was the most likely scenario. They just never found the ship til now.

[Hate 20,106]

12 minutes ago, Deej said:

I'm a fan of Amber Room's PornHub channel.

I thought it was Ample Room?

[woohorn 1,131]

It's a german military light cruiser. How much cargo space could it have?

[Deej 76,750]

2 minutes ago, Hate said:

I thought it was Ample Room?

That's South Austin's mom.

[Deej 76,750]

2 minutes ago, woohorn said:

It's a german military light cruiser. How much cargo space could it have?

They had tunnels they didn't know about. 

 

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20 minutes ago, Pato del Muerto said:

Maybe the train car of nazi gold is down there too 

That's in Brazil.

[Texas_Rocks 346]

Maybe the train car of nazi gold is down there too 

AbSOlutely this!

[FORTY NINE TO ZERO 2,652]

2 hours ago, Pato del Muerto said:

Maybe the train car of nazi gold is down there too 

Nah, just confederate.
 

[clapclapclap 9,000]

AMBER ALERT

[MadBurgerMaker 404]

4 hours ago, woohorn said:

It's a german military light cruiser. How much cargo space could it have?

I thought the same thing, but turns out it's a different Karlsruhe.  https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/SS_Karlsruhe_(1905)

They found/eyeballed the WW2 cruiser with the same name recently too. Smoked by an RN sub in 41.  It was one of the ones with the weird offset rear turrets.  One of the WW1 Karlsruhes that was sunk/sank is in Scapa Flow IIRC, the other I don't know if they've found. 

E: Oh the one that isn't in Scapa Flow randomly blew up somewhere in the Atlantic.  

Edited October 8, 2020 by MadBurgerMaker

[NotActuallyALonghorn 4,974]

I never realized steamers were still in use that late. According to wiki they began to decline in use after WWII where many of them were lost and marine diesels finally became efficient enough to give them the knock out punch.

[Nivek 16,916]

Shit, the Germans were still using horses to move equipment in WW2, while the allies used trucks.  

[deadshank 24,652]

Let Dirk Pitt sort out this story

[Guest Lobo]

19 minutes ago, Nivek said:

Shit, the Germans were still using horses to move equipment in WW2, while the allies used trucks.  

I read this in PFC David Webster's shouting voice. 

[Onboard 2.0 9,083]

50 minutes ago, NotActuallyALonghorn said:

I never realized steamers were still in use that late. According to wiki they began to decline in use after WWII where many of them were lost and marine diesels finally became efficient enough to give them the knock out punch.

There were still steam engine locomotives all over the country into the 50's I believe.  Google O.Winston Link train photos 

[Onboard 2.0 9,083]

11 minutes ago, deadshank said:

Let Dirk Pitt sort out this story

I grab one of those on every vacation I take on a plane.  Great, Bondesque villain, escapist stories.  Don't fuck with NUMA.

Edited October 8, 2020 by Onboard 2.0

[WhatTheBuck 28,772]

51 minutes ago, Nivek said:

Shit, the Germans were still using horses to move equipment in WW2, while the allies used trucks.  

What were they thinking?

[crash_davis 23,096]

Fucking Nazis. All those millions killed just so they can act like fucking low life thieves. 

[B00M 6,413]

1 hour ago, Nivek said:

Shit, the Germans were still using horses to move equipment in WW2, while the allies used trucks.  

Western allies, true, but the Russians were allies too and used millions of horses.

[Fudge Nuggets 19,184]

Saw thread title and thought:

 

Thread is disappointing.

[deadshank 24,652]

44 minutes ago, Onboard 2.0 said:

I grab one of those on every vacation I take on a plane.  Great, Bondesque villain, escapist stories.  Don't fuck with NUMA.

Likewise.   

[Guest Lobo]

10 minutes ago, crash_davis said:

Fucking Nazis. All those millions killed just so they can act like fucking low life thieves. 

Correction, they are exceptional thieves.  /hansgruber 

[Bevo 13,559]

Just now, Fudge Nuggets said:

Saw thread title and thought:

 

Thread is disappointing.

542361

3, 4, 5 are interchangeable and 1, 2 are interchangeable.

[Post Oak 20,204]

I just heard about this on the Gone Podcast.

If you like unsolved mysteries and lost artifact stuff it's worth a listen

[FORTY NINE TO ZERO 2,652]

5 hours ago, NotActuallyALonghorn said:

I never realized steamers were still in use that late. According to wiki they began to decline in use after WWII where many of them were lost and marine diesels finally became efficient enough to give them the knock out punch.

Hell, Tall sail ships were still being used to move cargo till the 1930s!  Look at the Elissa in Galveston.  Used sails until 1942 when it was converted. 
 

ps I sailed on it last year. One of the top ten experiences of my life.   Simply incredible   Highly recommend it once they start back up. 

[Bobby_Batronic 1,994]

5 hours ago, NotActuallyALonghorn said:

I never realized steamers were still in use that late. According to wiki they began to decline in use after WWII where many of them were lost and marine diesels finally became efficient enough to give them the knock out punch.

We still use steamers today. Not even talking about the nukes who are going electric btw.  Those Marine amphibious assault ships run on steam. About 1200 psi stuff vs the 600 psi power plants used by in WWII.

[Onboard 2.0 9,083]

14 minutes ago, Xian said:

Hell, Tall sail ships were still being used to move cargo till the 1930s!  Look at the Elissa in Galveston.  Used sails until 1942 when it was converted. 
 

ps I sailed on it last year. One of the top ten experiences of my life.   Simply incredible   Highly recommend it once they start back up. 

Hell yes, any time you can be under sail is a good day.

[gsoda3 3,245]

@Xian that's awesome, do you have any more pictures?

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1 hour ago, gsoda3 said:

@Xian that's awesome, do you have any more pictures?

Yep.   It was crazy fun. I couldn’t believe how fast she sailed. It felt like I was in master and commander. 
 

2019 was the first year they received coast guard approval for group sailing. I was going to go again this year but covid put a stop to the trip. 
 

Already have my name down to call me for the 2021 spring sail (they sold out super quick last time around). 

[gsoda3 3,245]

that's awesome.  how much are the tours and how do you get notified of the next sign ups opening?  i went to their site but didn't see anything.  google had nada either. 

[Deej 76,750]

[BabaYaga 15,286]

4 minutes ago, Deej said:

Goddamit, beat me to it!

[Pato del Muerto 52,484]

Was there any frigging in the rigging?

[FORTY NINE TO ZERO 2,652]

1 hour ago, gsoda3 said:

that's awesome.  how much are the tours and how do you get notified of the next sign ups opening?  i went to their site but didn't see anything.  google had nada either. 

I think it was around 375 bucks per person in 2019. It was a 6 hour sail and included lunch. We followed the coast to around McFaddin beach then rounded back. 
The price was scheduled to be a bit more in 2020, but can’t remember the exact amount off hand. 
 

im on their mailing list and follow them on Facebook.  Galveston is a pretty small town so I know some people who work there and they let me know when dates are released  

 I’d give them a call and talk to someone at the office, I’m sure they can get you signed up to be notified. 
 

I’ll try to remember to post on here when they release the dates. 
 

Edited October 8, 2020 by Xian

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So...would they rent it out to a message forum?  Because I bet a bunch of us would be up for this.

[FORTY NINE TO ZERO 2,652]

2 minutes ago, atomheartbevo said:

So...would they rent it out to a message forum?  Because I bet a bunch of us would be up for this.

Ha. Cash is king. Especially now.  The site has been pretty much shut down this year due to covid and all the storms. 
Pretty sure anything can be arranged for the right price. 

Edited October 8, 2020 by Xian

[Pato del Muerto 52,484]

So we’re gonna do some privateering?  Will cutlasses be provided or must I bring my own?

[atomheartbevo 89,619]

6 minutes ago, Pato del Muerto said:

So we’re gonna do some privateering?  Will cutlasses be provided or must I bring my own?

We can do this.  We can fucking do this.

They even release their schedules.

 

 

[BabaYaga 15,286]

[NotActuallyALonghorn 4,974]

16 minutes ago, Pato del Muerto said:

So we’re gonna do some privateering?  Will cutlasses be provided or must I bring my own?

Ima go with a nice handy boarding axe.

Edited October 8, 2020 by NotActuallyALonghorn