Hanoi selects 1000 items for millennium time capsule

1000 objects representing Vietnam in 2010 will be buried in a special container in Hanoi this October and opened in 1000 years from now.
Among the objects, 63 will be chosen by 63 provinces and cities and another 937 items will be suggested by the public. They will all be stored inside a 1000 liter container, which will be kept in vacuum so the objects will last for over 1000 years. The container is a gift from Seoul to Hanoi on the occasion of Hanoi’s 1000th anniversary.
The container will be buried in the campus of the Hanoi Museum on Pham Hung road. On this site will be a lotus-shape monument.
Vu Phuong, Hanoi Culture Foundation’s Vice-Chair, introduced the idea to preserve items for future generations from South Korea’s capital city of Seoul.
The foundation suggested “sending” 1000 typical items of daily life today to the Vietnamese living 1000 years from now. The objects must represent the character of each region to help the future generation understand the cultural and scientific-technological level of Vietnam during the 1000th anniversary of Thang Long – Hanoi.
The objects can be anything -- everyday appliances, labels of famous brands, newspapers or magazines, photos, coins, or mobile phones, but they must be tiny, not exceeding 100 cubic square meters.
From now until April 1, the organizing board will cooperate with 63 provinces and cities to choose 63 objects representing each location and they will also call for the Vietnamese people to suggest 937 others. The organizing board will collect or place orders to buy selected items. The 1000 objects will be buried in September 2010.
A letter to the future generation is also now preserved at the Hoa Binh hydropower plant, resting under a one-ton rock. It will be opened in 2100.