TSA Finds 5 Stolen Civil War-Era Cannonballs in Passenger’s Luggage

If you’ve ever wondered whether one could—theoretically, of course— transport five stolen Civil War-era cannonballs by wrapping them in paper towels and stuffing them into checked luggage before boarding a flight, the answer is no. Whether you can bring them as a carry-on remains untested. But thanks to the folks at the TSA, five Civil War-era cannonballs wrapped in paper towels have been seized, and we can all finally breathe easy.

According to the TSA and reporting from The New York Times, officers at Alabama’s Gulf Shores International Airport stopped a passenger after an X-ray revealed what looked like a handful of suspicious spheres. Could have been a few Dragon Balls. Maybe the guy was smuggling some heads of lettuce now that the crop has been tainted by the explosive diarrhea bug?

Passenger Tried to Fly With Stolen Civil War Cannonballs in Checked Luggage, TSA Says

Alas, it was five Civil War cannonballs, which are classified as prohibited artillery and munitions. This particular set was somehow allegedly stolen from historic Fort Morgan. The sheriff’s office looked into it and found that there was nothing inherently dangerous about the cannonballs, but they hold enough historical significance to warrant seizure.

The person in possession of the cannonballs said that they had been purchased from a roadside stand, you know, one of the many roadside Civil War-era cannonball stands you can find on street corners around Alabama. Authorities later traced them back to Fort Morgan. They have since been returned.