A resident of the small Italian town of Brindisi found 23 million lira (the currency that was in use in Italy before the euro), in banknotes. The money was hidden in a 16th century painting that belonged to the resident’s father, a renowned local artist. The man wanted to exchange it for euros, but was unable to do so, according to local media reports.
When the man went to the local branch of the Bank of Italy, he was told that lira cannot be exchanged for euros as the 10-year period introduced by the Italian authorities for such operations expired in 2012.
Then the fortunate (or unfortunate) man turned to the Giustitalia association, which defends citizens' rights in court to obtain the conversion of lira to euros. Representatives of Giustitalia are preparing a lawsuit to obtain the exchange of this once impressive sum, equivalent to almost 12,000 euros today. They claim that the 10-year exchange period starts after one obtains possession of the cash, meaning the moment it was found.
This is not the first time that large sums of lira have been found in Italy, which their owners have unsuccessfully tried to exchange. Italy is the only Eurozone country that has introduced legislation on the expiration of the exchange period.
In May 2016, exactly the same amount of 23 million lira was discovered in Udine, in northern Italy, where the money had been kept in a double-bottomed drawer of an antique writing desk. The person who found the money also turned to court in an attempt to turn the withdrawn banknotes into "living" money, but, according to media reports, was unsuccessful.