Justin and Margaret Mussel were married in 2006. He got her a 1.1 karat, princess cut diamond on a white gold band.
The couple visited San Marco dei Cavoti, an Italian town where Margaret's family owns a home, in 2008. At some point during the trip, she lost the ring.
They always thought it was lost somewhere in Pompeii, never to be seen again.That is, until they returned to the Italian village this past summer.
Justin was seated on a bench out front of the house Aug. 5 when something caught his eye.
"I saw this flicker of light coming out of a crack in the sidewalk," Justin told the Asbury Park Press.
He grabbed a screwdriver and uncovered the ring, wedged in the step.
“When it fell off (in 2008), it must have bounced into the crack with the stone facing down,” Justin said. “It was covered in dirt, but there was just enough of the stone sticking out of it (to reflect the cars’ headlights).”
It still fit.
“The band is a little scuffed up, but not too bad,” she said. “The diamond looks good. If you saw it, you wouldn’t think it was in a crack for nine years.”
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