SANDPOINT — An artifact from a bygone era has suddenly turned up in a Sandpoint post office box after a mysterious 47-year journey.

Shy James thought he was being pranked when his girlfriend, Leah Fain, handed him the mail, which included an auto parts catalog from Warshawsky & Co. that dates back to 1971.

“How can it show up almost 50 years later?” said James.

The lightly crumpled 178-page catalog is addressed to an R. Speer, who previously held the post office box used by James and Fain. Evidence that the catalog was recently handled by the U.S. Postal Service comes in the form of a pair of adhesive bar codes the service uses to automatically sort mail.

“My instinct tells me it got stuck somewhere,” said James.

James would like to get the catalog back to Speer or the person’s family in case the catalog holds some significance.

Although the catalog would not pique the interest of Indiana Jones, it does provide a interesting snapshot of a specific point in time. In addition to debuting the first of the after-market auto accessories for 1972, it offers Columbia House records for less than $3.

Need a custom, in-dash cassette player for your Toyota or Datsun? Warshawsky has you covered for the price of $29.99. Be sure to specify whether you need a stereo cassette player or an 8-track player, though. Want a motorcycle jacket without draining your bank account? Warshawsky has your back at the low cost of $14.98. Wondering what to do with that Corvair engine gathering dust in the garage? Drop it into a dune buggy chassis for only $229.95.

The catalog’s striking resemblance to a JC Whitney catalog is no coincidence. JC Whitney began its life in 2015 as the Warshawsky Co., a scrap metal yard on the south side of Chicago that was founded by Lithuanian immigrant Israel Warshawsky.

Fain said they have used the post office box for the past decade, but have never received Speer’s mail before.

“That’s got to have some story to it,” James said of the catalog’s journey.

If Speer or the person’s family would like the misdirected catalog, they can reach James at 208-263-6152 or 208-304-1023.

Keith Kinnaird can be reached by email at kkinnaird@bonnercountydailybee.com and follow him on Twitter @KeithDailyBee.