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AUGUST 5, 1997
  
 
 
- Amber Room still haunts
- most of the stolen art ends up being sold at Japanese auctions??
- Mysterious Museum






 

 

 
 

Amber Room still haunts
Russia's jeweled chamber was stolen during World War II. Two pieces may have recently surfaced.




By Richard C. Paddock
LOS ANGELES TIMES


PUSHKIN, Russia -- It is one of the most enduring mysteries of World War II: Where is the Amber Room that once graced the summer palace of the Russian czars?
For more than 50 years, treasure hunters have searched Europe for the priceless amber mosaics carted off by German soldiers during the war. Russians have long mourned the loss of the jeweled chamber and have worked for 18 years to re-create what they regard as the Eighth Wonder of the World.
Then, last month, two works believed to be part of it surfaced. Both pieces -- a stone mosaic and a lacquered wooden chest of drawers -- were discovered in Germany in the hands of private owners.
Russian art experts, certain the treasures are genuine, hope they will soon be returned to Russia. Even more, they hope the find will lead to the discovery of the unique Amber Room given to Peter the Great in 1716 by the king of Prussia.
``In the whole of world history, there has never been anything like this room,'' restoration chief Alexander Krylov said. ``The entire room was a gigantic piece of jewelry.''
Some Russians believe it is not a coincidence that the stone mosaic and chest have turned up just as Russia debates whether it should return to Germany works of art seized by Soviet soldiers at the end of the war. Russian President Boris N. Yeltsin, recognizing Germany as an important source of foreign aid, wants a free hand to negotiate the return of some of Russia's $65 billion collection of ``trophy art.''


Small compensation

But many Russians oppose giving any art back to Germany, viewing the treasures as small compensation for the devastation of World War II. The Russian parliament has passed a bill declaring all contested art Russian property and forbidding its return. Yeltsin vetoed it, and both houses of parliament voted to override his veto -- a first for Russian democracy -- but he said he would challenge the override in court.
It took six tons of amber to create the 129 mosaic panels that make up the chamber. The panels were installed at the czar's summer palace in Tsarskoe Selo (now Pushkin), 15 miles south of St. Petersburg.
Incorporated into the design were four 18th-century Florentine mosaics made of marble and onyx. Mirrors and gilded carved wood enhanced the amber's effect in the high-ceilinged, 1,000-square-foot room.
At the start of World War II, Hitler ordered the ``return'' of the Amber Room to Germany. As his army advanced, the Soviets packed the panels to ship them to safety, but the Germans captured the amber and sent it to Koenigsberg, where it was installed in a German castle in 1942.
At war's end, the Soviets advanced on Koenigsberg and the only escape route for the Germans was by sea. The panels were taken to the basement of the castle and packed for shipment. It was the last reported sighting of the Amber Room.


Met with disbelief

Over the years, countless seekers have searched caves, mines, lakes, wartime ruins and Nazi strongholds but found no clue. When the discoveries of the mosaic and chest were reported last month, they were greeted with disbelief. Ivan P. Sautov, director of the palace museum, helped verify their authenticity.
The marble and onyx mosaic, Sautov said, is one of the four that hung in the room for 200 years. Experts believe it was stolen separately. German photos show it was missing when the the room was reconstructed in Koenigsberg.
The mosaic was discovered in the possession of a Potsdam, Germany, lawyer by detectives hunting for other stolen art. The lawyer was seeking to sell the mosaic for $2.5 million on behalf of a client who inherited it from his father, a German soldier who had sent the trophy back from the Russian front.
Shortly after the discovery, a German art restorer reported that, in the 1970s, he repaired a lacquered Russian chest that matched the description of one displayed in the Amber Room. Sautov is certain it is one of a pair of chests made for the room in the 1760s. Before the Nazi invasion, he said, it was moved to the palace basement and, like the stone mosaic, was probably stolen separately by a German soldier.
While the two pieces offer no hint of the whereabouts of the Amber Room, they have given Russians hope for the first time in many years that it is still intact.
Said Sautov: ``Maybe these discoveries are a thread to finding all of the Amber Room.''
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most of the stolen art ends up being sold at Japanese auctions??
 Date: Sat, 02 Aug 1997 18:05:10 -0400
From: Dalton Calford <cdalton@pcnc.net>
To: securma@xs4all.nl
Subject: (no subject)
 
I have just read your article and find it very interesting. I think it
is great that the ALR is monitoring auction houses to recover stolen
art. What is the situation in Japan. I understand that Japan is not a
part of the United Nations convention on stolen art and have some law
that promote the movement of stolen art into the country. Is it the
case that most of the stolen art ends up being sold at Japanese
auctions, where title is legally transferred to the buyer? Has the ALR
had any success in recovering art from Japan? Can you direct me to
some sources where I can find specific information on the auction
process in Japan and the legal issues that surround the sale of stolen
art in Japan. Are there any famous sales of stolen art that have taken
place in Japan? Is International pressure having any success to tighten
up the art laws in Japan? Your references on this topic will be
helpful.
 
Art Student
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From: redwards@supernews.com (Redwards)
Subject: Mysterious Museum
 Date sent: Mon, 04 Aug 1997 09:14:35 GMT
To: securma@xs4all.nl
 
Rumors have been circulating around London and New York dealers that a
wealthy Australian man of Scottish heritage is busy buying 500 million American
dollars worth of mostly old masters and impressionists and some contemporary
art for a museum that he wants to start. Depending on who you speak to, that
museum is being built either in the City of Ocala in the State of Florida in
the USA or in Sydney, Australia, or in Scotland. The suspicious thing is
that nobody local in these places has heard of any museum being built. The
City-Hall in Ocala said that several people had asked about this, and they
don't know anything about it, and the building-people in Sydney said that they
know nothing about a museum and that an American investigator from
Washington had asked them about this three weeks ago.
 
I must know if somebody is putting us on or if this is for real. Is this a
joke on the dealers or is this hush-hush because of something illegal?
 
My question to all you museum people: Has anybody heard of a major museum
in the works now that will be stocked with 500 million American dollars worth
of art?
 
I would be grateful for any information!
 
Bob Edwards
Robert Edwards Fine Art
REdwards@supernews.com
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