Six old coins estimated to be from 1795 to 1828 and a commemorative medal from 1826 were found inside a time capsule at The U.S. Military Academy at West Point this week, the Detroit Free Press reports.
Officials at the military academy initially opened the box on Monday (August 28) and didn't see anything upon initial inspection. On Wednesday (August 30), the items were found among a thick, caked silt at the bottom of the lead cube, according to Lt. Gen. Steve Gilland.
The mysterious items include an 1800 Liberty dollar, an 1828 50-cent piece, an 1818 quarter, an 1827 dime, a 1795 nickel, an 1827 penny and an Erie Canal commemorative medal, the Detroit Free Press reports. Military and civilian experts are still questioning why the box was placed in the base of the monument honoring Thaddeus Kościuszko, selected by then-Gen. George Washington to lead West Point's defenses, at the academy in the first place.
Academy officials have speculated that the lead box was placed in the monument by cadets in 1828, 26 years after the academy was founded, to serve as a time capsule, though the concept has not been confirmed as there are no records to explain the box, which was found when the monument was undergoing renovations.