Southwold church time capsule reveals 1923 artefacts

Parishioner of the Sacred Heart church Trisha Scott looking at the contents of the 1923 time capsule

A time capsule has been discovered in a church dating from nearly 100 years ago when the church was being built.

The capsule was buried underneath a pulpit at the Sacred Heart catholic church in Southwold, Suffolk.

A glass bottle was found by contractors repairing the building and it contained early 20th Century coins and a scroll in Latin.

Cedric Burton is overseeing the repairs and says some of the items will be hidden again in a new time capsule.

The Sacred Heart overlooks Southwold Common and the North Sea

"It is a tangible link to the past and the people who built the church," he said.

"This project is the first major programme of work on the church since that time and we feel they left something for us to find.

"We'll now leave something for our successors to find to emphasise that continuity."

Artefacts had been placed in what is believed to be a milk bottle, sealed with a cork and wax.

The Latin scroll is dated 15 May 1923 and includes the names of the donor of the pulpit and of the parish priest, Fr Henry St Leger Mason, who buried the capsule.

He had also included six pages from the 15 May 1923 edition of The Times, three coins and a photograph of himself.

The renovation is part of a £220,000 project funded with the help of the Heritage Lottery Fund, to renovate and restore the church on Wymering Road.