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Fragments of a skull believed to have been Beethoven's are back in Vienna, Austria. But they apparently spent the last 30 years in a locked drawer in California.Paul Kaufmann's remarkable journey begins in 1999 following the death of his mother.She lived in a town south of France.After traveling there and going through her belongings.He would find a key that would not only open up a safety deposit box but reveal a second box full of mysteries.“A black tin container actually, with a lid and scratched on the surface was the name Beethoven,” Kaufmann said.Inside, wrapped in tissue, were fragments of a skull thought to belong to one of the greatest composers the world has ever known.“Surprise and wonderment. What is this all about?” Kaufmann thought to himself.For the next 30 years, Kaufmann tried to answer that question.He traveled back to the States with the skull in his suitcase and began researching, finding help from the top scholars in San Francisco and San Jose.“And we later learned that the investigator just, you know, was very excited about it,” Kaufmann said.Researchers would find a connection to Kaufmann’s great, great uncle, Dr. Franz Romeo Seligmann, a Viennese physician, medical historian and anthropologist. Dr. Seligmann received the bone fragments in 1863 after Beethoven’s body was exhumed for research to learn what made the composer go deaf in one ear.But technology was limited at the time and research went cold.“And it was then handed down, all these 170 years to me, as the only survivor in the family,” Kaufmann said.Just in the past week, Kaufmann traveled to the Medical University of Vienna to return the fragments as a donation.They're now known as the Seligmann fragments.But nearly 6,000 miles away in a home in Carmichael, California, Kaufmann’s gift is much more than a donation but a family destiny fulfilled.“I mean, I can look up now in the sky and, you know, see my mother and all my relatives being so happy they're back to Vienna where they belong,” Kaufmann said.Watch the video above for more on this story.
Fragments of a skull believed to have been Beethoven's are back in Vienna, Austria.
But they apparently spent the last 30 years in a locked drawer in California.
Paul Kaufmann's remarkable journey begins in 1999 following the death of his mother.
She lived in a town south of France.
After traveling there and going through her belongings.
He would find a key that would not only open up a safety deposit box but reveal a second box full of mysteries.
“A black tin container actually, with a lid and scratched on the surface was the name Beethoven,” Kaufmann said.
KMAX
The fragments of Beethoven’s skull.Inside, wrapped in tissue, were fragments of a skull thought to belong to one of the greatest composers the world has ever known.
“Surprise and wonderment. What is this all about?” Kaufmann thought to himself.
For the next 30 years, Kaufmann tried to answer that question.
He traveled back to the States with the skull in his suitcase and began researching, finding help from the top scholars in San Francisco and San Jose.
“And we later learned that the investigator just, you know, was very excited about it,” Kaufmann said.
Researchers would find a connection to Kaufmann’s great, great uncle, Dr. Franz Romeo Seligmann, a Viennese physician, medical historian and anthropologist.
Dr. Seligmann received the bone fragments in 1863 after Beethoven’s body was exhumed for research to learn what made the composer go deaf in one ear.
But technology was limited at the time and research went cold.
“And it was then handed down, all these 170 years to me, as the only survivor in the family,” Kaufmann said.
Just in the past week, Kaufmann traveled to the Medical University of Vienna to return the fragments as a donation.
They're now known as the Seligmann fragments.
But nearly 6,000 miles away in a home in Carmichael, California, Kaufmann’s gift is much more than a donation but a family destiny fulfilled.
“I mean, I can look up now in the sky and, you know, see my mother and all my relatives being so happy they're back to Vienna where they belong,” Kaufmann said.
Watch the video above for more on this story.
English (US)