Workers make 'astonishing' discovery: Heart of 19th-century mayor found in fountain

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Workers made a stunning discovery when they were renovating a fountain in the Belgian city of Verviers.

The heart of the city’s 19th-century mayor was found in a metal box entombed within the fountain.

“A few days ago, workers discovered a stone in which a metal box containing... the heart of the former Mayor Pierre David was located,” the town of Verviers explained in a Facebook post on Tuesday.

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In a translated statement, the city explained the “astonishing discovery” was made during dismantling and renovation work of Verviers' David Fountain, which bears the former mayor’s name. “A hollowed-out stone contained a box containing the heart of Pierre David,” it said.

The casket, which contains the heart of Pierre David. (Ville de Verviers)

David was the first mayor of Verviers following Belgium’s independence in 1830. The Brussels Times reports that the discovery confirms a local urban legend that David’s heart was entombed in the fountain.

The heart is sealed in a jar of alcohol inside the zinc casket, according to the BBC, which notes that David died in 1839. The fountain was inaugurated in 1883 and the casket placed inside, it reports.

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The casket containing the heart will be on display at Verviers' Museum of Fine Arts and Ceramics until Sept. 20, according to the city.

The casket containing the heart was found inside a hollowed-out stone. (Ville de Verviers)

In a separate project earlier this year a wall made from skulls and bones, believed to be nearly 500 years old, was found near a cathedral in Ghent, Belgium.

Last year, grisly amputated limbs and a French howitzer shell were discovered at the site of the Battle of Waterloo in Belgium. Napoleon’s French Army suffered a famous defeat at Waterloo on June 18, 1815.

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The first complete Battle of Waterloo skeleton was identified in 2015 as a German soldier.

Fox News’ Chris Ciaccia contributed to this article. Follow James Rogers on Twitter @jamesjrogers