?? USA. Civil war monuments are found in the Time Capsule

Memorials to the Civil War, but no treasure: The capsule buried for 134 years under the statue of Confederate General Robert Lee in Virginia did not satisfy the confidence of American collectors, revealing its mysteries this Tuesday in Richmond.

Inside, technicians from the State of Virginia’s Department of Historical Resources, among other things, discovered mini bullets (Civil War ammunition between 1861 and 1865), notes and coins issued by the federal government, newspapers and magazines, and an almanac from 1887. , Books, Bible and documents from Masonic lodges in the area.

No picture of Abraham Lincoln

Two small wood carvings – the set square and the compass and the Masonic symbols of a Confederate flag – were in one envelope. Experts say they were cut from a tree that grew near the tomb of Confederate General Thomas “Stonewall” Jackson.

A bookmark with a drawn profile of General Lee was placed in a book. The box also contained a portion of a bomb used in the 1862 Battle of Fredericksburg, won by the Southerners. The most notable document is a painting of a woman meditating on her knees in front of the coffin of Abraham Lincoln, who was assassinated on April 14th. 1865. Two weeks later it was published as a central issue in Harper’s Weekly.

However, viewers believed that historians would find the photo of the US president historically and that collectors would have panicked the market.

Buried in 1887

The three-inch square copper box buried in 1887 contained sixty items listed in the Richmond newspaper that year. Its contents “are in much better condition than we expected,” said Kate Ridgeway, head of the Virginia State Department of Historical Resources, who slowly opened the metal box. He explained at the end of the intervention that the objects were “wetter than we expected, but not as bad as they might have been,” which lasted more than two hours and was rebroadcast. Live on TV and social media.

The time capsule is a container containing the objects or documents of an era designed for future generations. It was found at the foot of the equestrian statue of General Robert Lee, the leader of the Confederate army who particularly defended slavery during the Civil War. It opened in 1890 in Richmond, the former capital of the separatists.

The first box was recently discovered

The statue, seen by many Americans as a symbol of the nation’s slavery, became the target of anti – racist protests after the death of George Floyd, an African – American man killed by white police in May 2020. It was removed in September. In an environment where the Federation questioned the monuments, its foundation was moved.

A first box from the pedestal was recently discovered, but it contained only a cloth cover with three books and a photograph, all damaged by water, as well as a coin of unknown origin. Workers involved in the construction of the statue appear to have placed it at the base of the capsule.