The mystery of the missing room made of the deep yellow-orange Persian amber in the great palace of Tsarskoye Seloe is today still unsolved. It was a room of great mystic, remodeled in 1775 by Catherine the Great of Russia. She had the royal architect Rastrelli incorporate panels of mirrors and paintings among the original carved amber panels to fool the eyes (trompe l'oeil). The entire room took on a yellow gold atmosphere that was absolutely brilliant in illusion. The original room was a gift by Frederick the First of Prussia to Peter the Great in 1715 after Peter admired the small room that Frederick had designed and installed in his Montbijou.
Amber holds many unique images, reminiscent of the bugs and insects trapped within that became the basis for the modern day movies "Jurassic Park" and "The Lost World." Its composition is fossilized resin formed from ancient prehistoric pine trees. Amber was the result of a living plant oozing its sap in jungle heat that hardened and entombed any living insect or small animal that may have come in contact with the sticky ooze.
But, let us continue the story of the missing Amber Room. The Nazis occupied St. Petersburg and its royal village, as well as the Palace of Tsarskoye Seloe for three years, using it as their headquarters during World War II. They were finally driven out in 1944, but while they were occupying the palace they were so intrigued by the Amber Room that they had it dismantled one piece at a time. It was secretly confiscated and shipped to parts unknown. It has been said that the room might have been shipped and stored in the basement of the Konigsburg Castle that was bombed flat by the Allies in 1945. But, wherever it went, to this day not a single trace of the wonderful Amber Room has been found and the mystery continues.
Currently, the Great Amber Room of Catherine the Great is slowly being recreated from old photographs, memories and descriptions. Today's Russian craftsmen are working in the same palace workshops where the original and remodeled rooms were fashioned. The carvings are being painstakingly recreated from nearby Baltic Sea Amber. No date for the completion has yet been set, but once the room is completed it will have been a real artistic and historical undertaking. Extreme care must be taken to avoid such things as temperature and moisture changes, exposure to light and other climatic conditions as the amber can fade in color or crack and craze. So, selection of matching pieces that are to be fitted in a design puzzle of 18th century origin is of utmost importance. The Russian craftsmen take extreme care in every detail to conform to the original design integrity. It is no wonder that no date has yet been set for completion.