Posted on 05/05/2022 12:19:08 PM PDT by nickcarraway
In 2018, Laura Young, the owner of vintage good shop in Austin, Texas, spotted a carved marble bust priced at $34.99 in a local Goodwill. At 52 pounds, it was heavy, and it looked old.
An expert examination revealed that it was, in fact, ancient. It dated back to the 1st century CE—and had once belonged to the collection of King Ludwig I of Bavaria.
Four years later, the ancient Roman bust, which may depict Roman commander Drusus Germanicus, will be returned to Germany’s Bavarian Administration of State-Owned Palaces, Gardens and Lakes. In a signal of the institution’s gratitude, it will be installed under a plaque bearing Young’s name.
Before it goes back to Germany for good, the bust will spend a year on view at the San Antonio Museum of Art, which supported the identification and reunion of the bust with Bavarian authorities. During that time, Jessica Powers, interim chief curator of the art of the ancient Mediterranean world at the museum, will help identity the subject of the artwork. The bust is now on view at the Texas museum, and will remain there through May 21, 2023.
How the bust traveled from Bavaria to Austin is another mystery that will need to be unraveled.
Researchers know it was looted near the end of World War II from the Pompejanum, a mid-19th century full-scale replica of a Pompeiian villa built by King Ludwig I in Aschaffenburg, Germany. After the end of the war, the U.S. Army stationed troops in Aschaffenburg. Many of them remained there throughout the Cold War.
According to the San Antonio Museum of Art, a retuning troop may have smuggled the portrait back to America. In the decades between, someone dropped it at the backdoor of the Austin Goodwill.
“My husband and I were on a road trip when I got an email from [the auction house] Bonhams confirming the head was indeed ancient Roman, but without provenance they could be of no further assistance. Soon after that, Sotheby’s got in touch,” Young said in a statement.
Young was advised not to attempt to sell the work at auction, or through private channels, as U.S. state law does not recognize the transfer of title of stolen property.
“There were a few months of intense excitement after that, but it was bittersweet since I knew I couldn’t keep or sell” the sculpture, Young continued. “Either way, I’m glad I got to be a small part of [its] long and complicated history, and he looked great in the house while I had him.”
Young and her legal counsel contacted Bavarian authorities about the restitution of the bust. The Bavarian government agreed to cover all costs accrued in transporting the artifact to Germany, and agreed to a short-term loan arrangement with San Antonio Museum of Art.
Emily Ballew Neff, the museum’s director, said in a statement, “It’s a great story whose plot includes the World War II-era, international diplomacy, art of the ancient Mediterranean, thrift shop sleuthing, historic Bavarian royalty, and the thoughtful stewardship of those who care for and preserve the arts, whether as individuals or institutions. We are so pleased that the Bavarian Administration of State-Owned Palaces agreed to allow us to have the sculpture on view at SAMA before it returns to its rightful home. A wonderful example of international cooperation, this is another critical way in which our art museums participate in diplomacy around the globe.”
Read a FReeper comment about the Amber Room a while back offering the theory that it was aboard the Wilhelm Gustloff when it was sunk in January, 1945 while evacuating Germans and documents from the Baltic States.
Don’t recall the name of the poster.
It was you! See #21.
And a LOT more than a measly $35. I kept waiting to read the Germans were going to reward her for her actions, but silence. That is disgraceful.
Lord knows how much pirated treasure the Nazis took from all over Russian, Europe, and North Africa still lies in private collections.
Is that Trumps living room?
Highly plausible an American GI brought it home from Europe and it sat in his house for 70+ years. He passed and the heirs disposing of the estate took it to the thrift store.
Naked Gun.
Leslie Nelson and George Kennedy are cops.
She asks, “Is this some kind of bust?”
Nelson replies, “Yes very impressive, but we still need to ask you some questions.”
Ah! Yes, one of my favorites...:)
Why do the Germans get the statue? Shouldn’t it go back to Rome from which it was stolen?
F— the Germans. She should never have made it public. Could have made a pretty penny selling to a private buyer.
Rick from Pawn Stars would offer you $350 CASH.
Excellent question. But I guess there were lots of Romans in Germany at that time but this could be a case of ancient cultural appropriation.
“He passed and the heirs disposing of the estate took it to the thrift store.”
It’s a common story that the kids of WW2 veterans hated “dad’s war trophies” and had no idea of their value when they ‘got rid of’ them.
Over the course of the years I’ve attended a few estate sales in Sacramento and at absurdly low prices I’ve picked up:
1. A German Cross in Gold
2. A Victoria’s Cross
3. A signed collection of the Four Freedoms by Norman Rockwell (lithographs)
4. A old copy of Mein Kampf signed by the author
5. Twenty British sovereigns (cost me the princely sum of $10)
6. A Norden bombsight
7. A small collection of Kriegsmarine Lugers
8. A pair of gray Luftwaffe gloves (very small)
9. Assorted currency, coins, and stamps
10. A Lithuanian passport with a transit visa signed by Chiune Sugihara (I sent it to the Yad Vashem)
etc.
It stuns me sometimes the dripping contempt these kids have for their fathers and grandfathers. Which makes it easier for me to all but steal these things from them.
This is a great story.
Sad to hear about kids. I googled the luger, since I have owned a few. Is it the Brandenburg eagle over the “M” that makes it Kriegsmarine?
‘Ancient Bust’-—?
You can do Better.
But Thanks!
Jerry,
You Magnificent Bastard!
I just watched His;
‘Bee Movie’-—
.
What a Shame.
Well nobody really wants to see an ancient bust.
Note to Self-—
Estate Sales!
So what. I picked up the wallet size Mona Lisa in Paris. Guy selling it really needed the Euros. Big payday coming.
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