A vanished world of motifs

The figures on the Golden Horns disappeared forever, when they were melted down. All that remained of the precious items were drawings, and it is these drawings that the later copies are based upon. The great uncertainty associated with the original appearance of the Golden Horns could be removed if the casts of the Golden Horns, made before their theft and destruction, could be found. However, like the Golden Horns, these casts were also plagued by bad luck. By all accounts, one set of casts sank with a ship on its way to Cardinal Stephano Borgia in Italy. Another set of casts was sent to Professor Böttiger of Dresden in Germany, but these were also lost. The casting moulds were even discarded as they were not thought to be of value.