Andy Lee is currently renovating his 148-year-old home by the Melbourne River.
Located in Hawthorn, the once grand home sat abandoned for a decade before Andy, 43, and his fiancée Rebecca Harding, 32, purchased it for a whopping $8.5 million.
And as they peel back the layers of the story, the couple stumbles upon a series of “strange” discoveries.
“We found a couple of trinkets as we started cleaning the place up,” he said. 9Entertainment.
‘It was mostly just cleaning up pigeon droppings and algae, because they used algae as insulation in the past, which is pretty weird,’ he shared.
More than a century ago, algae were the preferred method for isolation.
Andy previously revealed he made the discovery after ripping out a chimney.
But in the midst of the mud, jewels could be found.
Andy Lee (pictured) is currently renovating his 148-year-old home by the Melbourne River.
“We found a coin from 1897, I think, which is quite interesting,” he added.
In May, The Hundred presenter revealed he will be building a completely new mansion closer to the river and connecting the property to the original house via an underground tunnel.
“We gave the architects some general rules: 1. Respect the old house and 2. We would like to live in the new one,” he explained.
“Flack Studio was the first to come up with this idea. The historic house stands alone and will be restored. The new part takes full advantage of the river views.”
And as they peel back the layers of history, the couple has come across a number of “strange” finds.
“We found a couple of trinkets as we started cleaning the place up… ‘It was mainly cleaning up pigeon droppings and algae, because they’ve used algae as insulation in the past, which is quite strange,’ he told 9Entertainment.
“Everything is connected underground, under the square,” he revealed.
Andy then joked that his fiancée’s wardrobe was going to take up “pretty much the entire back building.”
Andy and Rebecca gained council approval for their development application in June last year.
Plans for the site include adding a second building that will be connected by a tunnel to the original Italianate mansion, which was built around 1876.
But among the mud were found jewels: “We found a coin from 1897, I think it was, which is pretty cool,” he added.
Other highlights planned for the 1,950-square-meter lot include a home theater, gym, pool and “mega bedroom.”
Historically, the front of the property faces the river, as it was the original arrival point for residents.
Rebecca and Andy revealed that the house was last occupied in 1992.
The previous owners left the property in a horrible state for over a decade after their own renovations ceased for unknown reasons.
In May, The Hundred presenter revealed he will be building a completely new mansion closer to the river and will connect the property to the original house via an underground tunnel.
