An anonymous donor left 160,000 euros on the altar of a church in Lower Bavaria, southern Germany, for aid projects in Africa.
The funds are scheduled to serve several projects after an examination, according to the Regensburg diocese in the German state on Monday.
A worker found the money in a church in the town of Zell an der Donau in May, but the donation was not announced until earlier this week.
Speaking about the amount of the donation, Clemence Bey, a spokesman for the diocese said: "Such things rarely happen.”
According to a report by the local newspaper Mittelbayerischen Zeitung, the church worker discovered an envelope containing 500 euro banknotes under the cross of the altar during the preparation for the Pentecost prayer in 2018.
"I was surprised with the huge amount of money," she said. She explained that she then went with the money to the church council, where the pastor was preparing for the prayers, and he could not speak at the beginning.
The donor had left a note on which he wrote that the money is "for Africa."
