History buffs get ready, because an artifact from the past — 1795 to be exact — was recently unearthed, and its contents have been revealed.
In 1795, American revolutionaries Paul Revere, Samuel Adams and William Scollay covered a time capsule with cowhide and buried it under the cornerstone of Boston's State House. During this time, Adams was the governor of Massachusetts.
The box was finally opened after over two centuries because a water leak in the building threatened to further damage it. The Boston Museum of Fine Arts hosted the unveiling. And although the museum ran X-rays that revealed some of the items, the condition of most of them remains unknown.
The time capsule gives us a never-before-seen link to our American forefathers. What's so amazing about this time capsule is that it's not only from such a distant period, but that it was buried by men who are such an important part of American history. At this point, they're legendary. Everyone knows the midnight ride of Paul Revere, and I've been known to have a couple of Sam Adams beers on the weekend, but now, we get to see something that these men wanted to share with future generations.
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The time capsule was first found in 1855. The contents were cleaned, added to, and then transferred from the rawhide to a copper box and placed back under the Statehouse.
Secretary of State William Galvin heads the historical commission. He immediately called Pamela Hatchfield, the head of object conservation at Boston's Museum of Fine Arts.
Hatchfield appeared on CNN Newsroom to say, "There was a big discussion about whether or not it should be removed. Because there was water infiltration in that area of the building, it was decided that we'd try to see if we could find it, investigate and see whether the box was still intact."
Workers in the restoration process have been giving the box a lot of care and attention. An X-ray to asses the condition of the materials was performed and initially revealed some of the objects.
There was concern. Before the unveiling, Hatchfield revealed: "We're a little worried because in 1855, they cleaned the contents with acid, so we're a little concerned that things maybe deteriorated inside."
The Secretary of State held a brighter point of view, saying, “There were some coins that were tossed in the 1855 ceremony in the mix of the mortar. They are in good condition, so we are optimistic that the box itself has withstood the test of time and that it will therefore be holding the contents securely.”
This is the second time capsule discovered inside the State Building.
In late 2014, a time capsule was unearthed from the head of a lion statue atop the building, though this one was only from the year 1901.
The shoebox-sized treasure was unearthed for fear of it getting damaged. The box included a variety of letters and business cards of Boston politicians from that era.
The biggest surprise in the capsule was a red book without a title that had not been listed on any previous record. When the book was opened, it revealed a message from President Grover Cleveland to Congress.
So what was in there?
A press release regarding the the X-rays revealed a collection of silver and copper coins (dating from 1652 and 1855), a variety of newspapers, cards, a silver plate, a copper medal depicting George Washington, the seal of the commonwealth, cards, and a title page from the Massachusetts Colony Records.
The most well-preserved items in the box were newspapers from the 1855 addition.
Some coins were also in good condition. These date from 1855 as well and a copper medal features George Washington.
This engraved silver plate says that the capsule was laid by Samuel Adams, Paul Revere, and William Scollay. If Revere himself made this plate, it might be worth over hundreds of thousands of dollars.
Unfortunately, some of the documents did not make it completely through. When the items were reburied in 1855, they were washed in acid and they did not come out as preserved.
