(美国有线电视新闻网) 弗吉尼亚州里士满的历史保护专家周三计划打开 1887 年的时间胶囊，该时间胶囊是在基座中发现的，该基座曾经是邦联将军罗伯特·李的雕像，州长拉尔夫·诺瑟姆宣布。
根据诺瑟姆办公室的新闻稿，工人们于 12 月 17 日在里士满纪念碑大道拆除 40 英尺高的基座时发现了时间胶囊。
重达 12 吨的李骑马雕像于 9 月被拆除，成为前联邦首都里士满的种族正义抗议活动的焦点。
时间胶囊是在距地面约 20 英尺的基座塔中发现的。
官员们原以为它被包裹在基座的底部，9 月，工作人员使用起重机和其他重型设备搬运了 21 块花岗岩，其中一些重达 8,000 磅。
工人们还在基座的基石附近挖了一个 5 英尺深的大洞，希望能找到时间胶囊。
据州长办公室称，历史学家认为时间胶囊放置于 1887 年 10 月 27 日，其中包括由 37 位里士满居民捐赠的约 60 件物品，其中许多物品与邦联有关。
该州计划将基座保存起来，直到官员决定如何处理部分纪念碑。
1887 time capsule discovered in pedestal of Robert E. Lee statue to be opened
(CNN)Historic preservation experts in Richmond, Virginia, on Wednesday plan to open the 1887 time capsule that was found in the pedestal that once held a statue of Confederate Gen. Robert E. Lee, Gov. Ralph Northam announced.
Workers found the time capsule on December 17 while dismantling the 40-foot pedestal on Monument Avenue in Richmond, according to a news release from Northam's office.
The 12-ton statue of Lee on his horse, which was removed in September, became a focal point for racial justice protests in Richmond -- the former capital of the Confederacy.
The time capsule was found in the tower of the pedestal about 20 feet above ground level.
Officials had thought it was encased in the base of the pedestal, and in September crews used cranes and other heavy equipment to move 21 granite blocks, including some that weighed up to 8,000 pounds.
Workers also dug a large 5-foot-deep hole near the cornerstone of the pedestal in hopes of finding the time capsule.
Historians believe the time capsule was placed on October 27, 1887, and included about 60 items that were donated by 37 Richmond residents, many of which were related to the Confederacy, according to the governor's office.
The state plans to store the pedestal until officials decide what to do with the partial monument.
CNN's Amir Vera and Artemis Moshtaghian contributed to this story.
