Laura Young, an antiques dealer in Austin, Texas, had a good eye for bargains. In 2018, she found a 24-kilogram marble bust hidden under a table at a Goodwill store, with a price tag of just 34.99 dollars. She bought it, placed it in the passenger seat, and took it home without suspecting what she had on her hands.
After consulting auction houses and experts, the truth left her stunned. It was an authentic Roman sculpture, with nearly 2,000 years of history. It had belonged to the collection of King Ludwig I of Bavaria and was displayed at Germany’s Pompejanum, until the building was destroyed during World War II and the piece disappeared without a trace.
No one knows for certain how it ended up under a table in Texas, although experts believe that an American soldier brought it with him when he returned from the war. Since Bavaria never legally relinquished ownership, Young could neither keep the bust nor sell it. After years of negotiations, the piece was temporarily displayed at the San Antonio Museum of Art before returning to Germany in 2023. Although it never received an official appraisal, experts agree that it is a piece of incalculable historical value.
