$170k rare violin left on bus by music student recovered

A violin student got back her 170,000 dollars instrument, which she had left on a bus in Philadelphia.

Muchen Hsieh said she only later realised that she had left the 176-year-old violin in an overhead compartment.

The 18-year-old had boarded the Megabus coach in Boston with the Naples-made instrument on Tuesday, police said.

The bus company later found it lying in a holding area, the Daily Express reported.

A cultural foundation in her native Taiwan had loaned her the instrument.

"She contacted us about a half hour after she got off, but by then [the bus] had moved on," MSNBC quoted Megabus US director Bryony Chamberlain as saying.

"We couldn't trace down the luggage immediately. It was found by our cleaners yesterday. I'm very relieved. We're very lucky," he said.

Philadelphia police had earlier said that they believed someone could have picked up the item without realising its value.