DELFT, NETHERLANDS—According to The Netherland Times, construction crews digging a new railway tunnel in the city of Delft uncovered a shiny metal object that turned out to be a luxury container for turtle soup. The can was made of tin and wrapped in brass. The print, written in French, reads: “Preserved foods, W. Hoogenstraaten and Sons, purveyor, turtle soup, Leiden.” Bas Penning of Archaeology Delft explained that the company W. Hoogenstraaten and Sons was founded in Leiden in 1860, and changed its name in 1900, so the can was manufactured sometime in the late nineteenth century. The soup was therefore Dutch in origin, but was probably exported throughout Europe. “French was a common language then,” he said. To read about another recent archaeological discovery in the Netherlands, go to "Medieval River Engineering."
