This picture turns out to be Franklin Joseph Robinson, the deputy minister of public works, during Premier Walter Scott's government. (Sask. Legislature)

A photograph found among the items stored in a century-old time capsule at the Saskatchewan legislature has been identified as that of a senior civil servant of the day.

The picture was a mystery, however, for a few months after the time-capsule was opened.

On December 15, 2011, Lieutenant Governor Dr. Gordon Barnhart and Premier Brad Wall opened a time capsule that had been placed in the legislature more than 100 years ago.

The capsule had been placed into a cornerstone in 1909 by Governor General Earl Grey and Premier Walter Scott, as part of a ceremony celebrating the construction of the building.

Inside the capsule there were photographs, journals and currency from their time.

But there was also an envelope containing a black and white picture of an unidentified man — an artifact which was not on the official list of the things placed in the capsule.

The envelope points to Franklin Joseph Robinson as the mystery man, according to the provincial capital commission.

Robinson was Scott's deputy minister of public works while the legislature was being built.

He was also in charge of assembling the contents of the capsule and it's believed that he unofficially placed his own picture inside, according to the province.

Robinson was positively identified when the picture was cross-referenced with a biographical entry of members of the Saskatchewan Land Surveryers Association.

Other items found in the capsule

The time capsule also included a list of all the main personalities involved in the construction of the legislative building, including Prime Minister Wilfred Laurier, Premier Walter Scott and Governor-General Earl Grey.

There was also a program from the ceremony, the two-page invocation that was read, a photograph of the inscribed trowel used by Governor-General Earl Grey and a written list of contents.

Inside was also included a 62-page book that describes the early developments of a telephone service in the province as well as the start of long distance service as far as Portage La Prairie and Winnipeg.