Waddeson Manor: Gold box stolen in 2003 masked raid to go on show

A precious tiny gold box stolen during a heist at a country mansion almost 20 years ago is to go on show after being returned to its home.

The antique, known as a bonbonniere, has been put on display at the Rothschild Treasury in Waddesdon Manor, near Aylesbury, Buckinghamshire.

The box was taken by masked thieves in June 2003 and discovered on sale at a regional auction last year.

Waddesdon Manor said its return had been "amazing".

The 19th Century manor, built by the Rothschild banking dynasty and now owned by the National Trust, was targeted by a gang who made off with a haul of a hundred gold boxes and other artefacts.

Head of collections Pippa Shirley said the theft had been "deeply traumatic for everyone at Waddesdon - I remember it vividly".

Ms Shirley, who wouldn't disclose how much the artefact was worth, said, that after 19 years, she was surprised to have been contacted by the Art Loss Register - a private database of stolen art - and told it suspected the ornamental box had been put up for auction.

"We went into overdrive, checked all the details and actually checked it was one of ours and it was, and then it was just returned, which is just amazing," said Ms Shirley.

"It will be on permanent display as of today."

The auction house was registered with the Art Loss Register and after due diligence checks set off alarm bells, Thames Valley Police was also alerted.

Ms Shirley said most of the haul taken from the sprawling French chateau-style manor had never been recovered, but the re-appearance of the 18th Century bonbonniere - made in Paris and used to store sweets - had given them hope.

"It's just one of the wonderful things about this… it gives us hope that the others are still out there and may come back one day," she said.

Find BBC News: East of England on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter. If you have a story suggestion email [email protected]