An 18th-century crown is returning to its home in Ethiopia after 21 years in the Netherlands.

According to the BBC, a former refugee from Ethiopia, who is now a Dutch citizen, found the crown in a suitcase left by a guest visiting his apartment.

After finding the crown, Sirak Asfaw figured the item was stolen and hid it in his apartment for more than two decades, the BBC reported.

In an interview with AFP, Asfaw said he kept the crown because he thought it would be lost again if he returned it home.

Asfaw said he felt confident in returning the crown after the election of Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed and appointment of Sahle-Work Zewde as Ethiopia's first woman president in 2018.

When he decided to return the crown, Asfaw needed help on how to do so.

That's when he contacted Arthur Brand, who is known as the "Indiana Jones of the art world," according to the BBC.

"I explained to him, look, either the crown will disappear or you [will], if you continue like this," Brand told the BBC. "I said if the people who were involved at the time got knowledge of it, the risk was that they would come back and would take the crown from him."

Brand transported the crown to a secure facility, where experts confirmed its authenticity, the BBC reported.

"It's an amazing piece. It's very big, I feel pity for the people who had to wear it on their heads because when you wear this for a couple of hours your neck hurts," Brand told the BBC.

According to the BBC, the crown is believed to be one of 20 which still exists, featuring an image of Jesus and his disciples.

Asfaw is now waiting for the Ethiopian government to contact Dutch authorities and plan the crown's return.

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