Thought to be a cheap souvenir: the house of a family from Belgium for 50 years was decorated with carved stones from Pompeii

Raphael de Temmerman, 80, and his son Geert, 55, said that in 1975, during a trip to Italy, they bought a souvenir in Pompeii. It was some carved stones depicting a scene. The souvenir adorned the hallway of the house in Herzele, where the family lived.

This was reported by UPI.

The fact that the souvenir was a real artifact was learned by the family only recently. Geert de Temmerman was preparing to move out and decided to have the object appraised. Experts from the Gallo-Roman Museum in Tongeren, who visited the family's home, confirmed the authenticity of Pompeii artifact, stolen in 1975.

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"It's a little wild to think that tourists are looking at a replica, while the original has been hanging here all this time," said Geert de Temmerman.

Tongeren's deputy mayor for culture An Christiaens claimed the officials want to return the artifact to Italy. Geert de Temmerman remarked that he is ready to fulfill the requirements of the authorities, but hopes for monetary compensation.

Pompeii was destroyed by the eruption of Mount Vesuvius in 79 AD. Today the city is an archaeological site protected by UNESCO.

As a reminder, in Wisconsin fishermen discovered a ship that sank in the 19th century.

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