In a remarkable discovery, archaeologists led by Guillaume Blondel unearthed a small glass vial containing a 200-year-old message from colleague P. J Fére at the Cité de Limes site in France. The note was written during a dig conducted by Fére in January 1825.
The team of volunteers had been conducting an emergency rescue dig to save the Camp de César site near Puys beach in Dieppe, which was threatened by cliff erosion. During the excavation, they found most of the fragments of Gallic pottery and other artifacts. However, it was one student’s discovery that stole the show – a circular rim from a pot with an oval piece rising up from the center.
Upon examination, archaeologist Guillaume Blondel realized that the object wasn’t a Gallic ceramic but rather a small glazed cup with a clear glass object sticking out of it. He described the moment as “magical” and noted that the find was extremely rare in archaeology.
The oldest message in a bottle ever found was 131 years and 223 days old, making this discovery even more remarkable. The Cité de Limes site has been an important archaeological location for centuries, with many significant discoveries made over the years.
Source: https://interestingengineering.com/culture/200-year-old-message-in-bottle-france