Posted on 09/01/2023 5:31:19 AM PDT by Red Badger
A nearly 200-year-old West Point time capsule that appeared to yield little more than dust when it was opened during a disappointing livestream contained hidden treasure after all, the U.S. Military Academy said Wednesday.
It was just more hidden than expected.
The lead box believed to have been placed by cadets in the base of a monument actually contained six silver American coins dating from 1795 to 1828 and a commemorative medal, West Point said in a news release. All were discovered in the sediment of the box, which at Monday’s ceremonial opening at the New York academy appeared to be its only contents.
“When I first found these, I thought, man, you know, it would have been great to have found these on stage,” said West Point archeologist Paul Hudson, who after the event, took the box back to his lab and began carefully sifting through the silt with a small wooden pick and brush.
“Before long, lo and behold, there’s the edge of a coin sticking out,” he recounted by phone, “and I thought, well that’s OK. That’s something, that’s a start.”
He said he was as disappointed as anyone by the underwhelming results of the live opening, which brought comparisons to Geraldo Rivera’s televised 1986 unsealing of a Chicago hotel vault purportedly belonging to gangster Al Capone, which infamously revealed nothing but dirt. A crowd that had gathered at the U.S. Military Academy had hoped to see military relics or historical documents when experts pried open the top and pointed a camera inside.
It was probably better to extract the coins and medal in a controlled setting anyway, said Hudson, who still plans to analyze the sediment for more clues about what else may have been inside.
(Excerpt) Read more at apnews.com ...
PINGGG!..................
They are probably worth thousands, so it’s not a total lost.
I know that cleaning old coins is a no-no, but in this case I think it’s justified.
What a cool find!
I recall the time when Telly Savalas opened a safe that purportedly came from the Titanic in some TV production and again, basically nothing but muck and other worthless stuff found in it.
All they have to do is remove the old dust and dirt.
Right clik on the coin pics and select ‘OPEN IN NEW TAB’ and you will see them full screen close up................
Geraldo should go back to Chicago, and sift through the dust at the bottom of Al Capone’s safe. Maybe Geraldo missed something there, too.
Side note to Geraldo: Do this on live TV, pal. This is the chance to redeem yourself.
Actually, depending on how that 1800 silver dollar cleans up, it could be worth $3000-5000.00 It appears to be in exceptional condition.
I don’t know how to do that on my iPad. But, I’ll check some other sources.
Thanks.
Sorry, I don’t know anything about Apple stuff.................
No prob.🙂
200 years from now they’ll open a time capsule containing butt plugs, lube, false eye lashes and a big purple wig.
Why a time capsule with only 6 coins in it?
Did all the paper disintegrate with age? Seems anti climactic unless one of those coins has the secret incantation to enslave the evil of the world.
Organic matter would have disintegrated because the lead box had a leaky seam.....................
Red badger,
To see the coins in full screen on your iPad, just do the “stretch your fingers” move …. Put two fingers on the photo, then move them apart, and the image will enlarge as much as you want.
At least the damn things are round, unlike the Roman coins.
Rick Harrison at Gold & Silver Pawn in Las Vegas would like to talk to them.
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