COIN FOUND IN LEE STATUE TIME CAPSULE

A rust-colored 1875 almanac, a cloth envelope and a silver coin were found Wednesday in a time capsule that lay hidden beneath a towering statue of Confederate Gen. Robert E. Lee in Virginia for more than 130 years.

As intriguing as the water-damaged items were, they're not what many were expecting to see after state conservators spent five hours gingerly prying the time capsule open. Even the mortar-encrusted lead box was a bit of a surprise.

Historical records led many to believe the capsule held dozens of objects related to the Confederacy as well as a picture of deceased President Abraham Lincoln. But in just a few minutes, its contents were revealed and the items were few.

Devon Henry, the contractor who took down the Lee statue and is continuing to work on the removal of the pedestal in Richmond, said there could be a second time capsule that's yet to be found.

"I'm as intrigued as everyone," he said, as conservators worked to open the capsule. "It was a huge relief to find it. Secondly, we need to see if it's what we are looking for."

The day after the Lee statue was removed in September, work crews spent more than 12 hours searching for the time capsule in the base of the 40-foot-tall pedestal but were unable to locate it.

A time capsule was eventually found on Friday, embedded 20 feet high in the pedestal.

Henry said his work crew is still being extra careful given that the container opened Wednesday doesn't match the description of the time capsule they were expecting.

To read the complete articles, see:
Books, envelope and silver coin found in time capsule beneath former Robert E. Lee statue (https://www.cbsnews.com/news/time-capsule-robert-e-lee-statue/)
An 1875 almanac, books and a coin were discovered in time capsule found in the pedestal of Robert E. Lee statue (https://www.cnn.com/2021/12/22/us/virginia-lee-time-capsule-open-trnd/index.html)

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