Am I the only one who loves to look at lost treasures? No? Good. Now that we have that cleared up, have you ever discovered something interesting while renovating your house?
Perhaps it was something a previous owner left behind or a hidden treasure that's been there all along. Let's take a look at some unexpected discoveries people uncovered once they dug deep inside their homes.
"While tearing up their carpet, my in-laws found a giant monopoly board."
Oh, my! I guess whoever lived in this house must've been a giant Monopoly fan, haha! Otherwise, I don't know how you can explain that. Would you keep it or cover it up?
"19th-century painting I found in my grandparents’ attic (I repainted the frame).
It’s from 1873 (or so says the back of the frame). The artist’s signature says Eugenie van Ham, which is a female name. I don’t think it’s worth anything, as it’s not painted too well (his right hand looks off). But I like the quirkiness and put it up in my hallway. Some people think it’s funny, others think it’s diabolical (the devil in disguise).
Ha, ha, I like it.
"I found a working adding machine in my attic."
Wait a minute, is that some kind of old-school calculator before they had calculators? Isn't that so cool or what? I bet there is a museum that would love something like that.
"We tore up some carpeting in our house expecting concrete but instead found this '70s masterpiece."
Whoa! Check out the colors on this one. I'm not sure it goes with the current home decor style, but it's pretty cool nonetheless, right?
"Found a 120-year-old British Indian coin in the attic. 1901 was the year Victoria died and also the last year coins with her bust were minted, so this one's kinda special."
Oh, my! My friend who loves Queen Victoria would find this very interesting indeed.
"One of the things I was hoping for when purchasing a period property was to find little surprises like this. This will become a little project of mine to restore back to its former glory, we are thinking of moving it into the dining area to become a key feature in our living space."
Oh, I love that.
"Found an old Monopoly set in the walls of my 1925 house."
Oh, my! I had no idea Monopoly looked like this. Wow! I wonder how old this is? Have you ever seen a set like this? I definitely have not.
"Found original homeowner in the walls of a teardown."
Holy, moly! Would you look at that? How in the heck did somebody forget this person's ashes is beyond me. I don't think this is the kind of treasure I would be looking for, ha, ha. I wonder if somebody can identify it.
"Was helping clean out an old mansion in Minnesota and found this Civil War letter in the attic. He’s saying that the war will be over soon and he will be coming home."
I truly hope he made it home.
"Found a floor safe while renovating. Trying to open it now."
The user then posted this update:
"$400 for a locksmith later - empty."
Ah, better luck next time, ha, ha. What can you do? Sometimes you win, and sometimes you lose. That's just part of life.
"A friend just sent me this - found by his mate while renovating his house in LA - concealed behind old bathroom vanity. Invite to Walt Disney’s daughter’s wedding, dated 1954."
Oh my gosh! Get this, Diane Disney passed away in 2013, so they were married 59 years! And her husband, Ron Miller, passed away in 2019. Wow!
"Restoring my 1880 Victorian house and found this vibrant tile original to the home after partially removing a faux fireplace."
Oh my goodness, isn't that simply gorgeous? Why would anybody want to cover that up? I don't get it. Let's hope whoever discovered it restores it to its former glory.
"Refitting our new house's loft (attic) and found £500 ($608 USD) of 1981 currency wrapped in insulation!
Whilst these notes stopped being legal tender in 1996, people should still be able to pay them into a UK bank account. If they aren't accepted, then they can be exchanged at the Bank of England counter in London. However, it is also possible to sell the notes, and they are worth more than their face value."
Nice!
"Found a marriage certificate from 1895 in a flooded cabin we renovated.
It lists the witnesses on the bottom left and the name of the Minister on the right. Pretty sure the photo is of the minister. Hope it was a long happy marriage for Cornelius and Dora!"
Oh, they don't make them this nice anymore, huh? I bet mine will be quite plain when I receive it later this year. It's kind of too bad, right?
"My sister bought a house about a year ago and has been doing renovations, she just recently found this behind one of the walls."
One Reddit user chimed in with some advice:
"That's a Hi-Standard .22LR target pistol. Very classic and actually worth quite a bit. Don't get rid of it — sell it on Gunbroker."
Wow!
"Found a suitcase in the attic of my dad's old comic books. Most of them seem to be Marvel dated in the '70s."
Oh, my! Can you imagine finding something like that? I bet those comics are worth a lot now. Talking about a pretty darn good score, huh?
"Found 83 gold coins at the bottom of a coal container after renovating the house.
Funny story is that I sold the 4 tons of coal that was (sp) inside to random people that dug it out of the container under no particuliar surveillance but they didn't find it under all the coal dust at the bottom. In French law, they should have split it in half with me, if they told me about it anyway."
That's pretty incredible, no? I wonder how much they are worth.
Get this: Somebody actually found this collection of seeds and corresponding charts in their granddad's attic. Oh, wow! How incredible is that? I don't know about you, but I would love to have something like that. What an amazing find, huh?
What do you think of these awesome home reno finds? I think it's so fascinating when people stumble upon such gems from the past. I would love to unearth something as cool as that. Have you ever discovered a hidden treasure while renovating your house?
