A mystery safe has been sitting inside the Civic Museum of Regina for nearly two decades, and no one knows what is inside or how to open it.
The safe was donated to the museum in 2001.
“Before that, this came from the Regina Furniture Company, they closed down in the late 70s. The family donated it to the museum hoping that we can do something with it,” said Rob Deglau, community coordinator for the Civic Museum of Regina.
Deglau’s job now is to analyze the collection in hopes of using the items to tell stories of the past.
The cast-iron safe was built by Winnipeg Safe Works around 1901. When the safe was appraised back in 2001, it had an estimated value of $1,000. The biggest unsolved mystery still is what treasures are hidden inside.
“There might be a bunch of documents from the original company. We can always hope for lots of treasures like coins and stamps,” said Deglau, as he took a guess of what might be stored within the time capsule.
With no luck discovering the perfect lock combination, the museum is seeking help from the public. They posted on their Facebook page asking for amateur “bank robbers and safecrackers” to take on the challenge.
There is just one rule that aspirants have to follow.
“No dynamite, no nitro,” said Deglau. He doesn’t want to damage the safe, as it’s important to keep its historical integrity.
If opened, the museum plans to offer the newly discovered artifacts to various buildings that are interested in interpreting older objects.
With a three-digit lock, there are a million possible combinations. To take on this one-in-a-million challenge, appointments can be booked with the museum by contacting them on Facebook.