By Tim Binnall
The archivist at an Austrian cathedral was understandably surprised when he received a shipment containing a skull stolen from the site around 60 years ago. The peculiar parcel was reportedly sent to St. Stephen's Cathedral in Vienna by an apologetic German man who indicated that he took the macabre memento while visiting the building's famed catacombs as a young tourist. Having held on to the skull for the next several decades, the letter writer explained that he wished to clear his conscience before joining the owner of the stolen remains on the 'other side,' which would have made for a rather awkward meeting in the hereafter.
Reflecting on the surprising turn of events, cathedral archivist Franz Zehetner mused that "it was touching that someone would wish to make amends for an act of youthful exuberance." He also credited the tourist for the skull's "carefully preserved" state after being in the man's possession for decades. Oddly enough, the return of the remains follows a strangely similar story from a few weeks ago, wherein a remorseful German tourist returned what he believed to be cursed rocks stolen from a Spanish national park. While it is unlikely that the two sticky-fingered travelers were the same man, one cannot help but imagine that being the case, and, if so, hopefully he can rest easy now that his unusual shipments have been received.