It’s a reminder of part of the  heritage  lost by the destruction of Canada’s pre-Confederation parliament.

The charred remains of seven books have been recovered from a dig at a site  in Old Montreal .

They are hardly  recognizable as books and appear, in colour and consistency more like charcoal.

in 1849 About 24,000 books and documents -some dating back to the original colony of New France – were destroyed in a fire.

A mob of English-speakers burned down the parliament in a  fury against plans by the government to compensate francophone landowners for losses during the rebellions of 1837-38.

The building had only housed parliament for a few years but it was the site of key moments in Canadian history.