Dive Brief:

• Contractors who are renovating the state Capitol in St. Paul, MN, are doing more than just reconstructing the 110-year-old building; they’re hunting for historical treasures.

• So far, builders have unearthed a beer bottle dated 1923; an old-time fly swatter made from a piece of a window screen; and a plumbing trap from 1904, according to a local newspaper, The Post-Bulletin.

• The massive project is expected to cost $273 million and to be finished in 2017.

Dive Insight:

The crews were hired to restore the building to how it looked when it opened in 1905. The Capitol’s historic site manager has already collected century-old paintings and the building’s original furniture, which will also be restored and placed into the refurbished halls.