Time Capsule from 1795 Opened in Boston: 220-year-old American History Revealed

The oldest time capsule discovered in the history of United States was opened on Tuesday evening in Boston – releasing with it some of the items that come from the nation's infancy.

The capsule, dating back to 1795, was opened by Pamela Hatchfield, head of objects conservation at Museum of Fine Arts, Boston. Hatchfield carefully removed the lid of the small box to inspect a tightly folded newspaper placed inside. The screws of the box was loosened beforehand for about four or five hours.

"This is clearly a newspaper and it's really packed in there," Hatchfield said as she opened the historic box using tools such as a porcupine quill and a dentist's probe, the ABC News notes.

Another item removed. Assorted morning papers of the day?These appear to be 19th century. pic.twitter.com/1HzWgTq28j

— Ben Edwards (@BostonHistory) January 6, 2015

Among the antiques present inside the time capsule were 24 coins in various denominations dating from the 1650s to the 1850s. The newspaper uncovered from the box appeared to be in good condition although it wasn't possible to determine the exact date of the publication of the newspaper or what precise news it contained.

One of the two dozen coins found dated to 1655 and bore the seal of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts. While many of the coins looked corroded, other items were reportedly in a good condition.

A silver plate found right at the bottom of the box gave information about the laying of a cornerstone box by then Gov. Samuel Adams, assisted by another American Revolution patriot, Paul Revere. They had first placed the relic under a cornerstone of the Boston State house 220 years ago.

The contents were shifted to a copper box in 1855 and placed back into the foundation of Statehouse, where it lay until it was discovered last year.

The capsule was removed from the Massachusetts State House cornerstone on 11 December 2014.