Sealed 120-year-old lead box discovered in Lac des Brenets

Yvan Durig, the director of navigation for Lac des Brenets, discovered a sealed lead box while measuring water levels near Villers-le-Lac in the Doubs region. The discovery was made possible by extreme drought conditions, which left the water level 14 meters below its normal height.

The rectangular box, roughly the size of a shoebox and weighing 9.875 kg, was found hidden in a rock cavity near an old graduated scale installed in October 1906. The lead container is completely sealed with no inscriptions to indicate its origin or contents.

Durig has expressed his intention to open the box in the presence of local authorities and heritage experts to determine what has been preserved inside after 120 years of immersion.