German Awarded $1m for Antique Found on His Farm

When archaeologists uncovered a 2,000-year-old Roman horse head during a dig on a farm in Lahnau, Germany, in 2009, they immediately knew it was the find of a lifetime. Now, almost 10 years later, a court has concluded that the farmer who owned the land deserves to profit from the discovery, too.

The incredibly well preserved antiquity had been left at the bottom of a 36-foot well, covered with water and protected from air. Initially, the state had paid the farmer just $56,000 for the head, which was found on his property, Artnet reported.

But the man, whose name has not been made public, sued the government after reading news reports about the gravity and value of the discovery, which was trumpeted as one of the best preserved Roman bronzes in the world.  On July 27, the Limburg regional court concluded that the farmer was entitled to half the estimated $1.8 million value of the antiquity.The local government now owes man a total of $900,000 plus interest.

Experts suspect that the bronze was left behind after an invasion caused the town’s inhabitants to flee in a hurry. The large animal head adorned with gold leaves dates to 9 CE, weighs around 55 pounds, and measures almost 20 inches across. Its presence in the German town is a testament to the scale of Roman Empire.