In 1940, an American researcher created a storage chamber for human artifacts, set to be opened and studied in the year 8113.
While researching ancient Egypt, American scholar Thornwell Jacobs (1877 – 1956), who served as the president of Oglethorpe University in Georgia, was surprised to find that there was very little accurate information about ancient civilizations that still exists today. He observed that much of humanity’s knowledge about life in ancient Egypt comes from a few sources, such as pyramids and some engraved tablets discovered in ancient Assyria.
As a result, Jacobs conceived the idea of preserving artifacts of human lifestyle so that future civilizations could study them. He created the “time capsule” — a container filled with representative objects from a specific period, buried or hidden for future excavation and study — marking the first of its kind in modern times.
Inside the time capsule in 1939, before sealing. (Photo: Wikimedia).
At the Phoebe Hearst Hall of Oglethorpe University, Jacobs began constructing the Crypt of Civilization. This large room was filled with artifacts from the 1930s and knowledge dating back 6,000 years, placed beneath an unused swimming pool.
The chamber was designed to function like a tomb of an Egyptian pharaoh. It contained recordings by clarinet artist Artie Shaw, who was famous in the 1930s, films that captured events from as early as 1898, and 100 books in microfilm format. Everyday items included a small model of Donald Duck, but there were no gold, jewelry, or other high-value objects.
Inside the chamber, there exists a “book of records” that lists and describes all the items along with their uses. However, the contents selected by Jacobs for the time capsule were heavily influenced by his subjective opinions and do not necessarily represent a true picture of America in the 1930s.
Paul Hudson, co-founder of the International Time Capsule Society at Oglethorpe University, described the chamber as a living, breathing entity. “It’s older than me and larger than all of us. Imagine a cultural anthropologist opening the chamber in 8113? It would be like finding a treasure trove. Even items like dental floss would become very interesting,” he remarked.
Jacobs also anticipated that there might be a language barrier between people of that time and those who open the time capsule in the future, rendering the books inside useless. To address this, he developed a “language integration kit”. This hand-cranked device displays images of the artifacts along with their names written in English. Simultaneously, a voice from the device reads the name aloud.
The time capsule is scheduled to be opened in the year 8113. This is because, in 1936, when Jacobs conceived the idea of creating the time capsule, 6,177 years had passed since the inception of the Egyptian calendar. He wanted those who open the chamber in the future to see a midpoint between their era and ancient Egypt.
On May 28, 1940, approximately four years after Jacobs conceived the idea, the time capsule was officially sealed. To date, more than 83 years have passed, and it is likely that the chamber will remain sealed for an additional 6,090 years.
