Gelderland’s provincial authorities have earmarked over €8 million to pay for unpacking 16,000 boxes filled with archeological finds.

Some of the boxes could contain valuable artifacts from Roman or Medieval times but nothing will be sure until all the boxes have been checked.

“I haven’t a clue, and that is precisely the problem. We don’t know what’s in them,” council executive Peter Drenth told local broadcaster Omroep Gelderland.

The boxes, which may be filled with anything from shards of pottery to skeletons, and from jewellery to pots and pans, were put in storage at private organisations, many of which no longer exist.

The province then became stuck with them and has a legal obligation to unpack and register the finds, Drenth said.

No date has yet been set for starting on the work.