Certainly, one person’s trash could be another person’s treasure. Here is an incredible story about the life of one antique. Interior designer Heidi Pribell saw a mantelpiece in the basement of a client’s house in 1999. She convinced the home owner not to throw away the mantelpiece, and in 2011 she purchased it from the client. This year, she sold the item to the Museum of Fine Arts in Boston for an undisclosed sum.
The mantelpiece itself also had a story to tell. It was crafted in Italy in 1805 and stayed in the same building on Joy and Beacon Street near Boston Common through three owners. It was commissioned by diplomat and art importer Thomas Appleton. As Pribell said, “He was a true visionary. He was so sure of his tastes.”