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NewswireTODAY - /newswire/ -
Vienna, United States, 2007/08/16 - The crucifix, made of copper and enamel, was crafted in Limoges, France and was part of a Polish art collection brought to Austria during WWII's Nazi invasion.
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An 800-year-old, gold-plated crucifix that went missing after being seized by the Nazis has been found in Austria.
"The lady had a soft spot for old crockery and was rummaging for plates when she found the crucifix," said Holzberger. "She asked the deceased's family, and they said she could have it."
Last month the woman showed the crucifix to a friend who realized it might be something special and took it to a museum.
In the run-up to World War Two, the owners of the crucifix had hid it and other treasures by walling them inside the basement of a house in Warsaw.
They were discovered by the Nazis in 1941, brought to the Polish National Museum and later transferred to a castle in the Austrian village of Bruck an der Grossglocknerstrasse, near Zell am See, police said.
The crucifix might be worth up to $540,000 (400,000 euros) at auction. Poland's culture ministry has contacted the London-based Commission for Looted Art in Europe, which represents the heirs of former art collectors, Holzberger said.
More about Limoges, France: The Bishopric of Limoges is a diocese comprising the départments of Haute-Vienne and Creuse in France. After the Concordat of 1801, the See of Limoges lost twenty-four parishes from the district of Nontron which were annexed to the Diocese of Périgueux, and forty-four from the district of Confolens, transferred to the Diocese of Angoulême; but until 1822 it included the entire ancient Diocese of Tulle, when the latter was reorganized. Source Catholic Encyclopedia of 1913 via wikipedia
Source Reuters relayed by Yahoo!® News
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