This marble plaque from Ancient Rome, with Greek inscription, was found in a domestic garden in Whiteparish, England (image below). Nobody knows how it got there. It is now up for auction with a pre-sale estimate of £ 15,000, and auctioneers at Woolley and Wallis are looking for help to solve the mystery of the stone’s provenance. From CNN:
(The owner of the house) used it as an assembly block in her stable for almost 10 years before finally noticing a laurel wreath carved into its surface, according to a press release from auction house Woolley and Wallis, which is selling the stone.
Will Hobbs, an antiques expert at Woolley and Wallis, said that stone-like artifacts used to arrive in England in the 18th and 19th centuries, when wealthy aristocrats traveled around Europe learning about classical art and culture.
“We assume this is how it entered the UK, but what is a complete mystery is how it ended up in a domestic garden, and that is where we would like the public to help,” said Hobbs in a statement.[…]
His inscription says: “The people (and) the Boys (honor) Demetrios (son) of Metrodoros (the son) of Leukios.”
images: Woolley and Wallis