(WXYZ) — A Michigan treasure was recently discovered inside a vault located at the Meadow Brook Estate in Rochester.
"It's been here for 50 years, out of sight, out of mind," Madelyn Chrapla, the curator for Meadow Brook Hall said.
The discovery was found in a centuries-old book dating back to 1788. It's a compilation of 115 folios, all featuring maps from around the world on pages made from cloth.
"It is definitely the best recent find. It was incredibly exciting. It got everyone at the university very excited," Chrapla said.
Chrapla manages over 75,000 artifacts in a house that once belonged to Matilda Dodge Wilson, a widower of John Dodge, one of the brothers of Dodge Motor Company. She says the point of the maps was more for documentation.
"The purpose, I think, would be more so to put in a gentlemen's library. A wealthy family to have these and perhaps point out the place they themselves had traveled. Perhaps someplace they had business dealings. This also has 12 maps of the ancient world," she said.
Inside the book, Chrapla also found something later confirmed by Oakland Univerity researchers to be a rare authentic folio from the German edition of the Nuremberg Chronicle.
"It is the first time a book was printed with text, maps, and pictures inside one book. The Nuremberg Chronicle is one the most famous books of all time," she said.
And the back of the map confirms the ownership dating back to the 1700s.
"This is the family crest for Urs Gibelin and 1657, 3 years after he died, his son gave it to his friend. This is the inscription," Chrapla said.
Over the years, Chrapla has found other cool items including John Dodge's toolbox and over 200 pre-prohibition whisky bottles.
"Do you think somewhere deep down inside, you are hoping to find a treasure map," 7 Action News reporter Faraz Javed asked.
"I'm always hoping I'll find a treasure map here. 50 years of us being a museum sometimes I think everything has been discovered, but this is proof that is not the case at all," Chrapla said. "I'll give you a call if I find one."
Chrapla says she is still learning more about the atlas and hopes to have digital versions of the maps on the estate's website.
