Plumber finds mysterious time-capsule with a note from 1887

While finding forgotten items tucked away in old houses is nothing new, it is quite something else to stumble upon hidden curiosities which are from centuries ago.

Something quite fascinating like that was experienced by a Scottish plumber Peter Allan in the unlikeliest of places. As reported by BBC, while working on fixing some pipes in a house, Mr Allen stumbled upon an antique bottle hidden beneath the floorboards containing a message written 135 years ago.

The antique message in a bottle

Mr. Allan told the BBC,

The room is 10ft by 15ft and I have cut exactly around the bottle without knowing it was there. I can't quite believe it.

I was moving a radiator and cut a random hole to find pipework and there it was, I don't know what happened.

I took it to the woman downstairs and said 'Look what I've found under your floor.

He reported the find to the owner of the house, Eilidh Stimpson. Mrs Stimpson and her family discovered an old note tucked away inside the bottle. They tried very hard to reach it but found that it was near-impossible to do so.

The family had to finally break open the bottle to reach the note. However, they ensured that they kept the glass pieces of the antique bottle. The note inside the bottle dates back to 1887, making it one of the oldest such notes ever discovered.

This is what the note said

The note was written by two workmen who built the floor. The note reads,

James Ritchie and John Grieve laid this floor, but they did not drink the whisky. October 6th 1887. Who ever finds this bottle may think our dust is blowing along the road

The note has since become an object of historical interest and the family plans to keep it safe. Mrs Stimpson is quoted as saying,

I've ordered some pockets and think ultimately we will frame the note with a piece of the bottle such as the neck because it's such an exciting and lovely thing to have.

Sources used:

BBC: 135-year-old message in a bottle found under floorboards