Agence France Presse

Bangkok, February 11:

A German tourist has sent a stone he found in historic ruins back to Thailand, blaming it for three years’ of bad luck, officials said here today. The Tourism Authority of Thailand said the tourist, Michael Beil, told officials in a letter that he found the stone in 2001 during a visit to a temple in the old royal capital of Ayutthaya and took it home to Germany.

He had a change of heart however and sent the stone back to the authority’s Ayutthaya office in a package from Gottingen in Germany. “Since (finding the stone) I’ve had only trouble and misfortune in my life,” Beil said in the letter. “I think the stone from Ayutthaya and my lack of respect for its sanctity has brought the bad luck to me. That’s why I wish that this stone should be returned to its original place. Please put this stone back at the temple in Ayutthaya and pray for me so that my luck can return.”

Tourism Authority director Chattan Kunjara Na Ayudhay told AFP the stone would be sent to Ministry of Culture’s fine arts department, but added it would be difficult to ensure it was returned to the temple from which it originated. Ayutthaya was Thailand’s capital for more than 400 years until 1767, a period known as Thailand’s “Golden Age” when it had a population of up to a million people and Thai culture and trade flourished.