American Heroes Channel’s (AHC) announced today the premiere of NAZI TREASURE HUNTERS, a new series detailing the greatest heist in history. Taking on the biggest treasure hunt in the world today, NAZI TREASURE HUNTERS follows Founder and President of the Monuments Men Foundation for the Preservation of Art Robert Edsel, historian James Holland, and investigative journalist Conor Woodman as they travel the world exploring historic sites in search of famed artwork and treasures stolen during the Nazi era. In each episode, the team will delve into these cold cases and explore how the art was stolen and where it might be now. The eight-episode season of NAZI TREASURE HUNTERS premieres Tuesday, May 1 at 10/9c on AHC.
“It is my hope that Nazi Treasure Hunters will become America’s Most Wanted for culture and lead to the discovery – and return to the rightful owners – of some of the hundreds of thousands of priceless objects missing since the end of World War II,” said Robert Edsel, also author of the New York Times #1 bestselling book-turned-movie “The Monuments Men.”
In the premiere episode of NAZI TREASURE HUNTERS, the team investigates Hermann Goering, the number two official in the Nazi party and one of history’s most notorious crooks. Goering started a multi-country looting operation and many of his stolen treasures are still missing. The team travels to Germany, Holland, the United States, Spain and Switzerland to understand the most ambitious looter of the Nazi regime and recover his stolen treasures.
If viewers have any information on the missing Nazi treasures, they can call the Nazi Treasure toll-free tip line at 1-866-994-4278 (1-866-wwiiart), or writing the Monuments Men Foundation at wwiiart@monumentsmenfoundation.org
Additional episodes of NAZI TREASURE HUNTERS are as follows:
“The Mystery of Rommel’s Gold”
Premieres Tuesday, May 8 at 10/9c
In 1943, the Nazis stole a huge cache of gold, currency and other valuables from the Jewish community of Tunisia and then the treasure disappeared. The team travels to North Africa, Corsica, Germany, and South America to separate fact from fiction and follow the trail of the missing loot.
“Hitler’s Obsession”
Premieres Tuesday, May 15 at 10/9c
Hitler had a dream to amass the world’s greatest art collection; it was a dream that became Europe’s nightmare. In this episode, the team investigates how Hitler oversaw the theft of thousands of art treasures from across Europe. Traveling to Austria, Germany and the United States of America, the team hunts down a 15th Century tapestry that once hung on the wall of Hitler’s dining room.
“Nazi Gold”
Premieres Tuesday, May 22 at 10/9c
In April 1945, American soldiers blasted a hole in the wall of an underground mine in Germany. Inside: neatly stacked canvas bags full of looted gold worth an incredible $9 billion today, but amazingly just a fraction of the gold stolen by the Nazis during the war. In this episode, the team investigates why gold was so vital to the Nazis, the brutal methods they used to get it, and where some still missing gold may be hidden today.
“Missing Masterpiece”
Premieres Tuesday, May 29 at 10/9c
Adolf Hitler invaded Poland to find Lebensraum or “living space” for the German people. Instead, he laid waste to towns and cities, murdered millions and stole mountains of treasure. In this episode the team investigates the Nazi looting of Poland and specifically the still missing Portrait of a Young Man by Renaissance artist Raphael.
“Blood Treasure”
Premieres Tuesday, June 5 at 10/9c
The war between Nazi Germany and the Soviet Union claimed tens of millions of lives. It also produced two of the greatest stolen treasure mysteries of all time. In 1941, Nazi armies captured the palace of the Russian Tsarina Catherine the Great and stole the contents of her legendary Amber Room, a treasure worth an estimated $150 million and still missing today. Four years later, Soviet armies took their revenge by capturing Berlin and looting thousands of art treasures, which disappeared behind the Iron Curtain, and where some could remain hidden in Putin’s Russia today.
“City of Loot”
Premieres Tuesday, June 12 at 10/9c
In June 1940 the Nazis captured Paris, one of the wealthiest cities in the world and the epicenter of European art and culture. This episode explores the story of how the Nazis systematically looted the entire city over four years of occupation. The team focuses its investigation on the Einsatzstab Reichsleiter Rosenberg (E.R.R.), a special task force headed by Nazi “philosopher” Alfred Rosenberg. The ERR set up at the Louvre and the Jeu de Paume where priceless works of art stolen from all over France were sorted and collected for Goering and Hitler.
“Stealing Italy”
Premieres Tuesday, June 19 at 10/9c
In July 1943, Italian Dictator Benito Mussolini lost power and the Nazis take control of most of Italy. This episode explores the frenzied looting of that country by the Nazis in the last year of the war and reveals a secret OSS/CIA mission that helped save some of the greatest treasures of western civilization.