The treasure consisted of 8833 pieces of gold, silver, electron (an alloy of gold and silver with a small amount of copper and iron) and copper. The treasure, wrapped in a shawl, was carried from the site by Schliemann's wife - the Turkish authorities were not informed of the discovery. The treasure was smuggled to Greece and then to Berlin, where it was placed in a museum.
After the start of the Second World War, the most valuable items in the collection were placed in an anti-aircraft bunker near the Berlin Zoo. In 1945, three treasure chests were given to a Russian officer by the Berlin museum director Wilhelm Unverzagt. When the Soviets returned 4,000 antiquities to the Germans in 1958, the Priam treasure was not among them. As the Russians claimed they had never possessed such a thing, the Treasure of Priam was considered lost.
