5/21/25 Report - Hunt for World War II Treasures Continues in the U.S. : Reward Offered. Great Baddow Hoard. San Franciso Treasure Chest.

 

Written by the TreasureGuide for the exclusive use of the Treasure Beaches Report.

$10,000 Reward for Finding This Item.

Two WWII treasures stolen from Quedlinburg, Germany, by Joe T. Meador, a U.S. Army officer from Whitewright, Texas.  Meador took priceless medieval artifacts from Quedlinburg Abbey, hidden in a mine shaft in the Harz Mountains to protect them from Allied air raids. Most of these treasures were returned to Germany in the early 1990s, but two specific pieces remain missing:

Here are the two missing items stolen by Meador.

1. Reliquary in the Form of a Crucifix (12th Century): This artifact, measuring approximately 2.76 x 2.17 inches (7 x 5.5 cm), is a small but significant piece from the Quedlinburg treasury, known for its artistic and liturgical importance.
2. Triangular Rock Crystal Reliquary (10th Century): This reliquary, measuring about 3.62 x 2.87 inches (9.2 x 7.3 cm), is another missing piece from the same collection, valued for its historical and cultural significance.

The reliquary crucifix is shown above.  There is a reward of $10,000 offered for the item. 

There is a deck of playing cards telling about other missing World War II treasures.

See WWII Most Wanted Art™ Playing Cards | Join The Hunt | Monuments Men and Women

Priceless artifacts were stolen from their hiding place in Germany by an American Army officer. Owned by Quedlinburg Abbey, the relics had been stored in a nearby mine shaft in a cave in the Harz mountains to protect them from Allied air raids... Lt. Joe T. Meador shipped items to his parents in Whitewright, Texas. The majority were found and returned to Germany in the early 1990s.

Almost all German churches keep their precious artifacts in a Schatzkammer, or treasure chamber. However, the Quedlinburg treasury exceeded other German churches in artistic, historic, and liturgical importance. Many of the objects date to the tenth century, the same time as the formation of the German Kingdom. In the medieval period, the monarch would bestow gifts to the Abbey when he would stay there, and since the first two abbesses of Quedlinburg were a royal widow and the sister of an emperor, the objects given were some of the finest throughout Germany.

The cache included a wooden reliquary; a jewelled ivory-and-gold comb; several rock-crystal flasks; a gold, silver, and ivory casket; and a small heart-shaped box. Two manuscripts were among the loot, most notably the Samuhel Gospels from the ninth century. Beautifully illustrated and illuminated in gold, it was incredibly preserved and had important art-historical value as an early example of Western painting. The other manuscript, the Evangelistar, dated from the sixteenth century and was encrusted with jewels. Having examined the objects, an expert stated that they “rank[ed] among the … most significant medieval church treasures in Germany.” While the monetary value is somewhere around $200 million, they are also priceless in cultural value.

The treasure survived medieval ownership struggles, the Reformation, the looting of Napoleon’s army, and the Nazi regime, until the day they were taken by Lt. Meador. While his unit, the 87th Armored Field Artillery Battalion, was briefly stationed in the town of Quedlinburg at the end of the war and charged with guarding the cave, Meador found the mine shaft that the treasure had been hidden in for safekeeping and would mail the objects one by one back to his parents in Texas, accompanied by letters. In one he wrote, "There are two that I want to know about for sure," he continued, "One is a box that contains a book, the cover of the book has a statue of Christ on it. By all means, if it gets home take extra good care of it. I have an idea that the cover is pure gold and the jewels on the cover are emeralds, jade and pearls. Don't ask me where I got it! But it could possibly be very very valuable.",,,

Here is another link for more about those treasures.

https://www.monumentsmenandwomenfnd.org/wwii-most-wanted

Here is a link where you can purchase the playing cards and join the hunt..

WWII MOST WANTED ART™ Deck of Playing Cards with Cash Reward | Press Release

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A mysterious treasure chest that was buried in San Francisco by an anonymous group, containing gold and artifacts, has reportedly been found.

On Tuesday, the group posted on the San Francisco subreddit that they buried the chest somewhere in the city. 

"You're looking for a 22 pound chest worth over $10,000. It's brimming with gleaming ingots, currency, and San Francisco artifacts. About half the value is in gold," the organizers said.  

The post, which quickly became viral, linked to their website featuring a poem containing several clues:...

Here is the link for more about that.

$10,000 treasure chest buried in San Francisco reportedly found

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British authorities recently revealed a one-of-a-kind Iron Age coin hoard, according to a statement released by Chelmsford City Life.  Known as the Great Baddow Hoard, it was discovered by metal detectorists in Great Baddow, Essex, in 2020, and is soon set to go on display for the first time at the Museum of Chelmsford. The treasure contains 933 gold coins dating to between 60 and 20 b.c., making it the largest Iron Age gold coin hoard ever found in Britain. The coins date to a time when British tribes were striking their own currency using regional dies instead of importing Celtic coins...

Here are a couple links for that story.

News - Britain's Largest Iron Age Gold Coin Hoard Revealed - Archaeology Magazine

Britain’s largest recorded Iron Age gold coin hoard secured for Museum of Chelmsford | City Life

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The Treasure Coast surf will be small for the next week.  

Hurricane season begins soon.

Good hunting,

TreasureGuide@comcast.net