The dawn had barely begun to emerge in a flurry of bright colors over the horizon when Orak woke up to a strange sound. It was Felix and Verum tiptoeing out of the room, holding at least ten bags each.
Orak said, “What are you mischief-makers up to today?”
Verum said, “We are going thrift shopping. That is, we are going to thrift stores, garage sales, and flea markets to buy secondhand items.”
Orak countered, “But why?”
“Haven’t you heard of the news?” Felix chimed in, “In 2018, a woman from the United States (US) bought a bust at a thrift store and it turned out to be an actual 2,000-year-old bust from Rome! A bust is a sculpture of a person’s head, shoulders, and chest.
Verum and I want to try our hand at discovering something so wonderful!”
“Hold on. Verum, you need to tell me this story before you leave,” said Orak, “I’ll open a portal for you in return.”
“In 2018, Laura Young, an independent antique and vintage dealer, came across a beautifully carved bust at Goodwill, a second-hand shop, in Austin, Texas. She bought it for $35 and took it home,” narrated Verum,
“But when she looked closely at the bust, it looked an awful lot like Roman marble busts. So, she asked around and it so turned out that that’s exactly what Young’s superb find was!
It was possibly a sculpture of Sextus Pompey. Pompey was a Roman military leader who fought against Julius Caesar, a famous ruler of the Roman Empire.”
“Whoa,” whispered Orak, “How did it end up in the US?”
“It used to belong to Pompejanum, a copy of a Roman Villa in Aschaffenburg in Germany,” answered Verum, “But American soldiers were stationed in this town after World War II. It is likely that a soldier picked up the bust and took it home to the US.
Because it was looted after World War II, Young couldn’t sell the bust as an antique. So, she has loaned it to the San Antonio Museum of Art before it is returned to Bavaria, the German province in which Aschaffenburg is located.
After three years of negotiations, the bust is on display at this museum. It will be returned to Pompejanum in 2023.”
“That’s a cool story,” said Orak, “How about we first go to the museum to see the bust?”
“Yeah! Sounds like a plan,” said Verum and Felix.