A feverish search in the Dutch town of Ommeren, Gelderland Province, for a million-dollar treasure that may have been left behind by German soldiers during World War II has ended without result.
An association of historians conducted excavations at the site designated by a historian on Monday, public broadcaster NOS reported.
In August 1944, a bomb hit a bank in the Gelderland capital, Arnhem, releasing the contents of a large number of safety deposit boxes. German soldiers then filled their pockets with valuables which they, reportedly, later buried in four coffins near Ommeren.
The news came to light in January when an old sketched map was made public by the National Archives. On it were clues to the treasure, raising gold fever in the municipality. Treasure hunting was banned, but that did not stop residents from searching with metal detectors and shovels.
An association of historians obtained permission to dig on Monday at the site, which was indicated by an expert. However, no trace of the coffins was found.
In this area, the treasure hunt has now ended for good.
A search for the coffins was also carried out in 1947 by the Central Asset Detection Service. However, the exact location of the search was not archived then. Some assume that the coffins were already dug up during the occupation.
