‘1887 time capsule found’ in base of controversial General Lee statue
User Rating: 5 / 5
‘1887 time capsule found’ in base of controversial General Lee statue
Crews working to remove the pedestal of a statue of Confederate General Robert E Lee believe they have found a time capsule buried there in 1887.
The massive bronze equestrian statue of Lee, erected in Richmond, Virginia, in 1890, was taken down in September, more than a year after state governor Ralph Northam ordered its removal.
The massive bronze equestrian statue of Lee, erected in Richmond, Virginia, in 1890, was taken down in September, more than a year after state governor Ralph Northam ordered its removal.
The order came amid protests over racism and police brutality across the country after the police killing of George Floyd in Minneapolis.
The day after the statue was removed, work crews spent more than 12 hours searching for the time capsule in the 40ft tall pedestal, but were unable to locate it.
On Friday, Mr Northam announced that crews had found the top of a square box embedded in a 2,000lb granite block.
It was located about 20ft off the ground in the main section of the pedestal, not in its base. Workers who searched for it in September believed it was tucked inside or under a cornerstone of the pedestal.
Mr Northam said in a news release that the stone must be removed and lowered to the ground before historic preservation teams can confirm whether it is the time capsule.
“It looks like it is,” said Clark Mercer, Mr Northam’s chief of staff. “We’re hoping it hasn’t been damaged by water over the last 100-plus years.”
Records from the Library of Virginia suggest that 37 Richmond residents, organisations and businesses contributed about 60 objects to the capsule, many of which are believed to be related to the Confederacy.
If workers confirm the box is the time capsule, it will be transported to the state Department of Historic Resources to be opened using best practices for historic preservation to maintain the integrity of the artifacts.
The Lee statue, which became a symbol of racial injustice, was one of five Confederate tributes along Richmond’s Monument Avenue and the only one that belonged to the state.
The four city-owned statues were taken down in 2020, but the Lee statue removal was blocked by two lawsuits until a ruling from the Supreme Court of Virginia in September cleared the way.
Mr Northam announced earlier this month that the enormous pedestal would be removed, a reversal from September, when he said it would stay in place so its future could be determined by a community-driven effort to reimagine Monument Avenue.
After Mr Floyd’s murder in 2020, the Lee statue became a focal point of the racial justice movement in Richmond.
Since then, the pedestal has been covered in graffiti, some of it profane and much of it denouncing the police. Some activists wanted to see it remain in place as a work of protest art.
Reference: By Denise Lavoie, Associated Press
Articles - Latest
- Earthquakes can trigger quartz into forming giant gold nuggets, study finds
- Linda Nolan, singer and television personality, dies aged 65
- Sly Stone, pioneering funk and soul musician, dies aged 82
- Dangers of an overloaded car include:
- Natural Disaster today
- Japan earthquake: Kushiro shakes for 'too long' as 6.1 mag tremor hits
- 'Cult' members jailed over coroner kidnap plot
- Flood risk threatens Swiss valley after glacier destroys village
- Thailand Grapples with Floods and Economic Shifts: Government Response, Community Resilience, and Market Predictions
- Powerful hailstorm floods buildings and streets in Gniezno
- The Significance of the 49-Day Journey After Death
- Killing prisoners for transplants: Forced organ harvesting in China
- Southern Japan hit by 6.6-magnitude quake near Nankai Trough, tsunami warnings lifted
- Peru’s coastline battered by tsunami-like waves one day after country declares environmental emergency
- California fires live updates: ‘Dangerous’ winds return as residents are warned over threat of new wildfires
- Osibisa founding member and singer Teddy Osei dead at 88
- Oliviero Toscani, photographer behind shock Benetton ads, dead at 82
- California LA Mayor Karen Bass awkwardly ignores questions from reporter about California fires
- UK set for more freezing weather as homes and businesses deal with flooding
- Jean-Marie Le Pen dead at 96: His political career through the years
- Jimmy Carter, former US president, dies aged 100
- ‘Jazz’s most significant composer’ Benny Golson dies at 95
- Billionaire founder of fashion chain Mango dies in accident
Articles - Most Read
- Main
- Contact Us
- The science behind Ouija boards
- Cosmic Consciousness - What is Cosmic Consciousness-2
- Cosmic Consciousness-Introduction
- Cosmic Consciousness - Introduction-2
- MASSIVE 6.1 MAGNITUDE EARTHQUAKE HITS NEW ZEALAND AS NATION STILL REELING FROM CYCLONE
- ARCHAEOLOGISTS UNRAVEL THE TRUTH OF APHRODITE, GODDESS OF LOVE, ON VALENTINE'S DAY
- Cosmic Consciousness First Words - 1V - 2
- The Human Condition-Thomas Keating
- Cosmic Consciousness First Words - V -
- Cosmic Consciousness V - 2
- Cosmic consciousness - First Words - IV
- Shakyamuni Buddha or India the 1st “Black Revolutionary Hero.”
- Cosmic Consciousness - What is Cosmic Consciousness?
- Evolution and Devolution-Chapter 2
- The Human Condition-2-Thomas Keating
- The Human Condition - Thomas keating-3
- Cosmic Consciousness-On the Plane of Self Consciousness
- Drinking From The Mountain Stream - Milarepa
- The Human Condition - 4
- Cosmic Consciousness - 3 - On the Plane of Self Consciousness
- The Human Condition - 6
- Evolution and Devolution-Chapter 1
- On the Plane of Self Consciousness - 2
- The Human Condition - 5
- Milarepa's World-2
- Milarepa's World
- Contemplation and the Divine Therapy - 2
- The Buddhist System of Liberation - 2
- On the Plane of Self Consciousness IV
- The Buddhist System of Liberation
- JERRY RAWLINGS, GHANAIAN STRONG MAN WHO CAME TO POWER IN A COUP BUT INTRODUCED DEMOCRACY – OBITUARY
- On the Plane of Self Consciousness IV - 2
