Bridge Construction Workers Discovers 19th Century Time Capsule Treasuring A Newspaper And A Whisky Bottle

A group of construction workers has discovered a metal box about the size of a shoe box near Kingussie. The box, which is being regarded as a time capsule containing items from the 1890s, was discovered by workers from Morgan Sindall, a construction company.

The rusty metal box was discovered buried deep in the Ruthven road bridge near Kingussie, Cairngorms. Upon opening, the metal box yielded a folded newspaper dating back to September 1894, a paper scroll and a glass bottle containing liquid, which is thought to be a bottle of whisky.

The construction workers were reportedly working to replace the Ruthven road bridge as per the contract from the Highland Council when they stumbled upon the 121-year-old time capsule. The artifacts have been handed over to the Highland Folk Museum nearby Newtonmore.

"It is fascinating to think these items have been sitting in the bridge's structure for 121 years,” said Robert Ogg of the Morgan Sindall, in an interview with the BBC. "The changes which have occurred since it was placed there are extraordinary. If you think that the bridge was being used by horses back then, it gives you a sense of the time which has passed."

Ogg further added that they are working in collaboration with the Kingussie Primary School to create a time capsule, which will last as long as the one just discovered by the team of construction workers.

In 2007, three bottles of whiskey were discovered from the Antarctic. The bottled dated back to the Ernest Shackleton’s failed expedition to the South Pole, which was conducted in 1907. The scientists decided to recreate the whiskey and sample it. However, there is no such information from the Highland Folk Museum officials regarding whether they are planning to conduct similar experiments.