Buying an old cabinet, a man discovered a 'huge' treasure inside
As he loaded the cabinet into his car to drive home, Emil Knodell heard a strange noise coming from it. He decided to open it and couldn't believe what he saw.
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So when he heard that someone was selling antiques from a deceased owner near his house, Emil didn't hesitate to go there.
Upon arrival, one item immediately caught his eye: an 18th-century cabinet, 125 years old, with a marble top that he thought would go well with his family's dining room.
Thinking the item was too cheap at $100, Mr. Emil agreed to buy it immediately and brought the cabinet home.
But when they loaded it into the car, Mr. Emil and Jeff Allen, employees of Premiere Estate Sales Network, heard strange rattling noises coming from inside.
When they opened it, they discovered the chest had a secret compartment and it contained a veritable treasure. "There were rings, diamonds, gold and all sorts of things. It blew my mind. We were both stunned for a few seconds," said Allen.
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Mr. Emil was stunned by the real treasure in the secret compartment at the bottom of the cupboard. |
"I bought the cabinet, not those things. If I kept them, I would never feel comfortable. There would always be a cloud over everything. It was a very unpleasant feeling.
I was in the Navy and I always tried to do the right thing," Emil said.
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A former Navy SEAL, Emil wanted to do the right thing and returned all of these valuable items to their rightful owners. |
The deceased owner's son said it was a cabinet he had played with since childhood, but had no idea about its secret compartment.
Meanwhile, when the story was shared, everyone praised Mr. Emil's honesty. Finding a treasure like his is rare, but returning it to its owner like him is perhaps even rarer.