Free Republic

An Apartment in Paris, Abandoned Since 1939 by jponic See original Daily Mail article here (May 2013) to read story

A rare bronze sculpture by Camille Claudel, lost for over a century before its discovery in an abandoned Paris apartment, sold at auction in France for €3.7 million ($3.8 million)—more than double its pre-sale estimate. Titled La Jeunesse et L’Age Mûr, or L’Age Mûr (The Age of Maturity), the expressive group of bronze sculptures depicts a man and two women, one aged and guiding him ahead, and the other young and kneeling, as if begging him to return. Claudel created several versions of the scene, which has been interpreted as an allegory for life’s inevitable losses, as well as a...

A prominent Egyptologist has boldly claimed to have solved one archaeology’s greatest mysteries: the location of Queen Nefertiti’s mummified remains. Zahi Hawass, the previous Minister of State for Antiquities Affairs in Egypt, is part of the Egypt-led team that undertook a high-profile excavation in Luxor’s Valley of the Kings that allegedly uncovered amulets once owned by King Tut. The team announced last December that they had also unearthed several unnamed mummies, one of which Hawass believes is the famed ruler. “We already have DNA from the 18th dynasty mummies, from Akhenaten to Amenhotep II or III, and there are two...

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...