Musician gets back his 310-year-old violin left behind on a train

Stephen Morris, a professional musician, was so exhausted after a long day in the recording studio that when he got off a train in London on Oct. 22, he didn’t realize he had left his 310-yearold violin behind. “Devastated” once he realized his mistake the following morning, Morris started a treasure hunt for his missing instrument — one of the few made by master craftsman David Tecchler in 1709. It is said to be worth more than $320,000.

Morris wrote to Southeastern Railway, which operated the train he had taken, and made public appeals on social media for its return. The British Transport Police later released an image taken from CCTV of a man who might have taken the violin, asking him to get in touch, British news outlets reported.

As time passed, the possibility of its return seemed bleak. But on Saturday, Morris announced a surprise breakthrough: “My violin is home safe and sound,” he wrote on Twitter before posting a photograph showing him kissing its side.

Morris told the BBC last week that he had been playing the same violin for 15 years. He is a soloist with the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra in London and has worked with musicians such as Stevie Wonder and U2. Morris told the BBC the violin was in a white case with two “quite historic” bows when he boarded the train.

Morris said he received a private message Thursday on Twitter from someone who said he recognized the person in the CCTV picture.“He said he wanted to hand it to me in person,” Morris told the BBC. The violin and bows were “in tune” when they were returned to him Friday night at a supermarket parking lot.