A vintage viola that was lost almost two years ago is back making music with the Chicago Symphony Orchestra thanks to a quick-witted violin shop owner.
The orchestra's principal violinist, Charles Pikler, left the instrument behind on a downtown Chicago sidewalk in September 1996. Within minutes, it vanished.Its value is estimated at between $30,000 and $1 million, depending on its authenticity.
Orchestra officials thought they had lost the instrument for ever, but it turned up last week in the hands of a 71-year-old Chicago man who tried to sell it to a violin expert.