150 Years Overdue: The $19,500 Library Fine Bricked in a Fireplace
If you think your forgotten library book from high school is accumulating scary late fees, take comfort: at least you didn't brick it into a fireplace tea crate for 150 years.
During home renovations in New South Wales, Australia, local resident Ross Simmons stumbled upon a sealed tea crate buried inside a bricked-up fireplace. Inside was an 1858 copy of Antiquities of Athens, stamped as Book No. 506 from the Kiama Library's original 1872 collection.
📜 Victorian Library Fine Math:
At the original 1872 late fee of 3 pence per week—adjusted for inflation over 150 years—the overdue charge totaled $28,000 AUD ($19,500 USD). Luckily, the library graciously waived the fine.
The Architect Great-Great-Grandfather
The original borrower is believed to be John Simmons, an architect and former stonemason who worked on London's Houses of Parliament before immigrating to Australia. It turns out he borrowed the architectural reference book for inspiration, built the family cottage, and apparently sealed his reference material into the wall like an ancient secret code.
No Return to Circulation
Kiama Library manager Michelle Hudson confirmed the book won't be put back into circulation for teenagers looking to check out Victorian architectural history. Instead, the water-damaged yet intact treasure will join the library's local history archives as a monumental testament to extreme procrastination.
You might also like
The Ultimate Confession: TikTok's Escalating Request Trend Sweeps the Internet
Why start a conversation normally when you can say 'I never told you this' and immediately demand your partner draw on a unibrow?
Busted! Indian Village Formally Bans Ghost-Hunting YouTubers and Influencers
Fed up with clickbait content creators trespassing with night-vision cameras to fabricate ghost stories, Swala village in Uttarakhand enacted a legal ban.
Quack Attack: 90,000 Rubber Ducks Take Over the Chicago River
Over 90,000 yellow rubber ducks were dumped off a bridge into the Chicago River for the annual Chicago Ducky Derby, raising $700,000 for Special Olympics Illinois.