Goodwill find? Try WWII-looted museum treasure.

May 5, 2022 9:43 AM

Thrifter locates first-century Roman bust looted from a German museum/villa. Absolutely wild story that includes Pompeii, one Drusus "Dennis" Germanicus, King Ludwig I, lawyers, and ultimately a new home.
posted by humbug (17 comments total)

She gave it back to a museum. She nicknamed him after Dennis Reynolds. She's amazing. I love her.
posted by Abehammerb Lincoln at 9:50 AM on May 5, 2022 [14 favorites]

Amazing story!! This is why we thrift!
posted by I_Love_Bananas at 10:26 AM on May 5, 2022 [4 favorites]

Haha. Crazy!
posted by Glinn at 11:04 AM on May 5, 2022 [1 favorite]

Dad looks great!
posted by clavdivs at 11:23 AM on May 5, 2022 [12 favorites]

The Gang Trafficks In Antiquities
posted by NoxAeternum at 11:31 AM on May 5, 2022 [11 favorites]

She's a better person than I am, I suspect. I have no idea what the "street value" of such a thing might be, but probably enough for me to have a semi-comfortable retirement, or at least pay off my debt, and that would be looming over this whole affair in my world. Nice story and nice resolution.
posted by maxwelton at 11:47 AM on May 5, 2022 [2 favorites]

I would have been tempted to make a silicon mold of that. Full size. Then make a reproduction in plaster or some similar material...Or how about a clear poly resin cast of it!
posted by Czjewel at 1:16 PM on May 5, 2022 [1 favorite]

Loved this photo caption: "Laura Young (left) with Dennis."
posted by plastic_animals at 1:20 PM on May 5, 2022 [4 favorites]

She’s both conscientious and cheerful throughout, which is such a pleasant combination. It’s even better when I manage it. It’s great when everyone in the room is managing it, unlike being cool or spontaneous which have maximal manageable concentrations.
posted by clew at 6:01 PM on May 5, 2022 [2 favorites]

She's a better person than I am, I suspect. I have no idea what the "street value" of such a thing might be, but probably enough for me to have a semi-comfortable retirement, or at least pay off my debt,

I don't know, it's old but they say in the article that there's actually a lot of these kinds of statues lying around... just not typically at Goodwill LOL.
posted by subdee at 6:24 PM on May 5, 2022 [2 favorites]

Reminiscent of this old story. I remember seeing that episode and immediately assuming that the gilded dingus was war booty, a conclusion that appeared not to have occurred to the excited appraiser. What ever became of it, do we know? Sadly, there are instances of these sorts of things being garbaged when relatives, ignorant of value or nervous of the law, or both, take the easy way out.

I have no idea what the "street value" of such a thing might be

Depends on the day and the auction. This head of Augustus fetched 160,000 pounds. Sotheby's got 93,750 pounds for this Socrates, of similar age and size. Later Grand Tour souvenirs can be had for less.

They say it's Drusus Germanicus, presumably meaning Nero Claudius Drusus Germanicus. If so (here are other alleged busts of the man, make your own judgements), he deserves a bit more explanation than just being "a Roman general". Brother of Tiberius, father of Claudius, grandfather of Caligula, for starters.

(USA Today suggests a son of Pompey the Great, which seems more likely. But, you know- Roman portraiture notoriously difficult to pin down.)

Fun self test the next time you go into a serious museum- select a piece at random and ask yourself, be honest, if you saw it for the first time at a flea market for, say, 35 dollars, would you have the bargain instinct to snap it up? Or would you be these guys?
posted by BWA at 7:43 AM on May 6, 2022 [4 favorites]

I have a friend who cruised past a garage sale somewhere in the southwestern US about 20 years ago and spotted, out of the corner of his eye, what he thought could be a fairly ancient piece of American Indian pottery (sorry; can't remember which nation). He hopped out of his car to investigate and, lo and behold, it was obviously a significant find. The garage sale proprietor had no idea how his family had acquired the bowl and was happy to sell it to my friend. For $20.

My friend knew he could neither sell nor keep the piece but didn't care; he just wanted to facilitate its delivery to ??? where it could be properly cared for, studied and enjoyed, preferably by people for whom it would be most meaningful. Long story short, repatriating the bowl took 2-3 years. Identifying its origin, establishing its provenance, and securing its long term care involved a host of players with competing objectives and strong opinions about what the correct disposition of the bowl would be. Some were scathing about [the tribe's] ability to care for the bowl a la the Elgin Marbles. Others intimated that my friend's story didn't hold water and implied that he had obtained it through some sort of nefarious means; his professional work puts him in the path of antiquities now and then. It created an expensive insurance nightmare for my friend as well. Ultimately the bowl was returned to its nation of origin, which pleased him.

Despite all the intervening unpleasantness, my friend felt he'd helped restore order to the universe, and he cherishes the gifts given to him in appreciation by the bowl's stewards.
posted by carmicha at 8:17 AM on May 6, 2022 [7 favorites]

he deserves a bit more explanation than just being "a Roman general"

Yeah, this was rough for a dude who had speaking lines in I, Claudius!
posted by praemunire at 9:11 AM on May 6, 2022 [3 favorites]

Nero was a great grandchild. His granddaughter, Agrippina the Younger, step son to Augustus. His first son was Germanicus.
posted by clavdivs at 6:10 PM on May 6, 2022 [1 favorite]

How would you even sell it though? You’d have to do it on the black market, I think, since its provenance seems clear. I think it would take years to find a buyer unless you happen to know someone with connections to a black market for fine art. And, you’re going to get a lot less there than you would in a Sotheby’s auction. I would definitely sell it if I could, it’s just some dumb roman bust, and it has little special meaning for the Germans any more than it does to anyone else. The museums of Europe are lousy with these things; you could throw a hammer in the Uffizi and smash three just like it and the world would hardly be poorer for it. We’re not talking a native american ritual mask here. Convert that hunk of marble to a pile of cash. But how?
posted by dis_integration at 10:33 PM on May 6, 2022 [2 favorites]

I just want to say that I've been to that Goodwill in Far West.
posted by of strange foe at 5:39 PM on May 7, 2022 [2 favorites]

We’re not talking a native american ritual mask here.
There are more Masks the busts of Drusus. Have you considered the bust or death mask in Roman culture?
posted by clavdivs at 7:48 PM on May 7, 2022 [1 favorite]