Not so fast Nic Cage.
Written on parchment — or animal skin — the original copy of the Declaration of Independence is encased in a titanium and aluminum frame and secured behind bulletproof glass and plastic laminate. Each night the Declaration is lowered into an underground vault.
“It took five years and $5 million to come up with the current encasements,” said Miriam Kleiman, program director for public affairs at the National Archives and Records Administration.
The Declaration is kept with two other key documents -- the U.S. Constitution and the Bill of Rights -- in the rotunda of the National Archives Museum in Washington, D.C. Together the documents are called the Charters of Freedom.
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In celebration of Independence Day, we take a deep dive look into the science and technology behind storing America’s most sacred document—and the history behind its safekeeping.
