Could You Wait 1000 Years… The NY Times Capsule
October 20, 2010 A*RT!? Happens
Enjoying crisp breezes, apple cider at the local farmers' market and trading my flip flops in for a pair of cool brown boots is how I've been spending fall in NYC. Fall is my favorite season in NYC and anticipating the leaves changing color is exciting. A good place to do that is in the small park just behind the American Museum of Natural History. Just off Columbus Ave. and 79th Street is…
…the entrance to a quiet and peaceful haven in the heart of the Upper West Side (my neighborhood), the Theodore Roosevelt Park.
And what I discovered there is this sleek, stainless steel sculpture. No, it's not a spaceship, it's a time capsule- the New York Times Capsule. It was designed by Spanish architect and sculptor, Santiago Calatrava.The design is said to explore the properties of folded spherical frames; Calatrava has descibed it as a flower.
It sits right outside the backdoor entrance to the museum, retaining today's culture for people to dig through 1000 years later.
This plaque explaining that it should not be opened until the year 3000 AD got me wondering what is in this time capsule (hopfully no food items). There is a full list of the contents on the American Museum of Natural History's website. Some of the funny things I saw there were: WalMart barcodes, condoms from Zimbabwe, a child's tooth and a fortune from a fortune cookie.
Do you think it will stay closed until the year 3000?
©2010 Danee Gilmartin All rights reserved
Comments
Camels & Chocola 10.20.2010
I'm very ashamed to admit I lived there for three years and didn't even know about that park! Much of my world existed in Midtown (home and work) during the week, downtown (play) on weekends!