Right time to open capsules

Last updated 09:51 10/04/2011

 

The contents of three time capsules unearthed after Christchurch's violent February quake will finally be revealed this week.

Christchurch mayor Bob Parker will open the time capsules under controlled conditions at Canterbury Museum's conservation laboratory on Tuesday, ending weeks of speculation about what's inside.

Two of the capsules were found beneath the toppled statue of John Robert Godley, the "founding father" of Canterbury.

One was a glass bottle with a hand-written note detailing the statue's shift to a site beside Christ Church Cathedral in 1918. The other was a sealed copper tube, measuring about 40cm long and 12cm in diameter, the contents of which are unknown at this stage.

It is believed the two capsules were placed in the base of the statue at the time it made its two moves.

The Godley statue was originally erected in 1867 where it sits now, in front of the Christ Church Cathedral. But in 1918 it was moved to a new site beside the cathedral (where the War Memorial now stands).

There was a public outcry over its move and, as a result of legal action, the statue was returned to its original site in 1933.

The two capsules mark the 1918 and 1933 moves.

The third capsule, in a sealed tin box, was unearthed in the old Civic Building on Manchester St.