Merkers-Kieselbach

Merkers-Kieselbach is a municipality in the Wartburgkreis district of Thuringia, Germany.

Salt mine

The Merkers area of the municipality is famous for its salt mine, in which large amounts of Nazi gold, and many stolen works of art were discovered by the United States Army in 1945. General Dwight D. Eisenhower himself went into the mine in April 1945 in order to examine the find.

References

• File 390-INFANTRY(358)-0.3 "A/A Report-358th Infantry Regiment Mar-May 45," World War II Operations Reports, Records of the Adjutant General's Office, 1917-, Record Group 407, National Archives at College Park, MD (hereinafter cited as RG, NACP).
• Col. B. Bernstein to Brig. Gen. F. J. McSherry, Report of developments in removal of Treasure from Kaiseroda at Merkers, Germany, Apr. 18, 1945 (hereinafter cited as "Bernstein Report")
• File SHAEF/G-5/1/13, Financial-Germany-Discoveries of Gold and Other Valuables, Numeric File, August 1943-July 1945, Secretariat, G-5 Division, General Staff, SHAEF
• File 105, Special Report on Discovery and Disposition of German Gold, Numeric-Subject Operations File 1943-July 1945, Historical Section, Information Branch, General Staff, G-5 Division, SHAEF, Records of Allied Operational and Occupation Headquarters, World War II, RG 331, NACP.

External links

• Swiss gold holdings and transactions during WW2
• Report of the Swiss Bergier Commission 1997-2002
• Nazi Gold: The Merkers Mine Treasure