A century-old time capsule that was discovered in the Washington Monument in Baltimore may never reveal its secrets, as officials are hesitant to open the box because of its age.
The time capsule, which was discovered during a restoration project of the Washington Monument, will be transferred to the Walters Art Museum near the landmark.
At the museum, conservators will analyze the box's condition and find out whether it is safe to open it.
According to officials, the contents of the time capsule could have already been exposed to the dampness of the monument for as long as it has been there, which means that the box's contents could be in very poor condition.
The Washington Monument, which is designed by Robert Mills, is nearly 200 years old and is the very first monument erected to honor George Washington. Years after the monument's completion in 1829, Mills designed the bigger Washington Monument that is standing in Washington D.C.
The sealed box, which is made of copper, was discovered hidden behind a plaque that commemorates the centennial of the monument's first day of construction, which was on Defender's Day on Sept. 12, 1915.
The box was initially discovered in Oct. 16 by George Wilk II, the project superintendent, while he was studying the method through which the commemoration plaque was attached to the wall.
Wilk said that he moved the plaque from its position on the wall just enough to be able to insert his hand behind it, so that he could take a picture of the back of the plaque. Wilk was surprised to see that there was a box there when he looked at the picture he took, and quickly notified Lance Humphries, the chair of the restoration committee of the Mount Vernon Place Conservancy.
"Every historical property has a story to tell. You just have to take the time to listen to the building to find out what it's telling you," said Wilk.
Humphries said that they were hoping that the walls behind the plaque could serve as a time capsule of the wall finishes of the monument. However, what they found was a real time capsule in what is a very significant historical discovery.
Possible contents of the copper box include The Sun newspaper issues and commemorate programs copies, said the conservancy, which has led a restoration project worth $5.5 million for the Washington Monument in Baltimore since January.
Humphries is hopeful that the contents of the box were preserved even just a bit better from the dampness of the monument because the time capsule was not touching any walls.
Workers realized that the people that placed the copper box behind the plaque meant to give it protection because the top of the box is soldered shut. The box is also placed on top of two shims made of wood.
