The death of Joseph Stalin, the premier of the Soviet Union, in 1953 triggered a series of events that started to move things along. The newly elected government in Poland appeared to be independent of the Soviet Union’s influence, and so the Bank of Montreal completed negotiations with Polish officials to release the two trunks in their possession to Poland’s custody. A group of delegates arrived to accompany the pieces back home. They travelled from Montreal to Toronto through Ottawa and then to New York to avoid Duplessis’ government. Eventually, they made their way across the ocean to Poland where they were quickly put back on display at Wawel Castle. Among these pieces were the Coronation Sword and Gutenberg Bible, two of Poland’s most valuable treasures.