Excavators will start their search in the grounds of an 18th century palace in Poland after location details were revealed in secret documents belonging to an SS officer.
Treasure hunters searching for 48 crates of gold hidden by the Nazis are to begin digging at a palace in Poland.
The excavation will start next week in the grounds of an 18th century stately home in the Polish village of Minkowskie, where there is high excitement that they will unearth up to 10 tonnes of gold, worth around half a billion pounds.
Roman Furmaniak, head of the Silesian Bridge Foundation leading the hunt for the treasure, says: “Several people took part in hiding the deposits in Minkowskie. One of them was an officer called von Stein. He used to stay in the palace because he had a lover there."
A letter from von Stein to his lover refers to the “remaining 48 heavy Reichsbank’s chests and all the family chests I hereby entrust to you”.
“Only you know where they are located” he adds, making her the guardian of the treasure.
Furthermore, a diary entry for 12 March 1945 reveals: “A trough has been dug in the orangery, which is a safe ‘home’ for the delivered chests and containers.”
The gold and valuables are believed to have been stolen by the Nazis towards the end of the Second World War on the orders of SS leader Heinrich Himmler.