graceandhayes

Yes, I am one of those people who feel like they arrived at the party 30 years too late. I seem to have hit a roadblock in my research. I have read all the posts on Image 2 and Verse 6. I have read all the theories posted here and on The Secret wiki.

I’m Sorry I totally missed your original post Welcome! you aren’t late you are right on time!
I am so jealous, Charleston is such a beautiful area.

Unknown

Unknown:
Also, for what it’s worth, the Charleston Facebook page for The Secret is a Josh-free zone.

It also seems to be a content-free zone with only 5 posts in the last 30 says. Maybe some new blood will perk things up.

Euhirudinea

It also seems to be a content-free zone with only 5 posts in the last 30 says. Maybe some new blood will perk things up.

I am also on the Facebook page for The Secret – Charleston, but as mentioned, not much activity there. Not much activity on the wiki either for Charleston. I think most on the wiki are convinced it is, or was, in WPG and no one is actively searching. Let me throw out a couple of things that bother me on the image, but I have not seen much discussion on. Maybe this will start some polite conversations, or an argument. LOL.
– The birthmark on the lion’s forehead must be important, and like most, driving me crazy. WTF is that!
– The lion’s left cheek, on the right in the image. Is it me or does anyone else see the head and neck of a horse maybe. The eye of the horse is the dark spot to the left of the lion’s eye. The nose/snout extends toward the lion’s nose under his eye. The hairs on the lions mane even appear to come out of the back of the horse’s head like the mane on a horse. Its not exact, but there is something there. I say this because the two cheeks on the lion do not match.
– What is that to the right of the mask? Part of ships mast? Must be important, but what it it?
– What is the face behind this ships mast/ropes to the right of the mask?
– Willing to listen to any ideas on the fairy or her wings. This must have clues, but I have not seen anything solid on this.
– I think the branch is less significant than the needles on the branch. They seem to form shapes where they overlap. Triangles, X’s or Roman Numeral 10’s, there are clues in the needles I think. I should mention, the shape of the branches to the right of the pear reminds me of the Eye of Horus.
– The African mask. Any links to the shapes of the eyes? What are the broken bits in the eye sockets? The “h” or outline over the eyes that extends onto the map?
– The Ft Sumter mask/charm. Why is it not oriented correctly? On a map the long flat side of the fort faces SW, not N like shown in the image. What are the eyes, star, stripes, and mouth?
– The diamond. Why do the two triangles on either side face up and not towards the center of the stone? What do these represent? What is written at the bottom – 75, 73, 7S? What does it mean? The center of the diamond is an hourglass shape which reminds me of a miniature of the fairy’s body. It even has triangles at the top facing each other similar to the fairy bikini top or the shapes formed by her crossed arms.
Ok, so that’s a start. Looking forward to hearing what others think. Peace, Chris

Just a question. Is it appropriate to post thoughts and questions about Verse 6 here, or is there a Verse 6 thread I should post on?

graceandhayes

I am also on the Facebook page for The Secret – Charleston, but as mentioned, not much activity there. Not much activity on the wiki either for Charleston. I think most on the wiki are convinced it is, or was, in WPG and no one is actively searching. Let me throw out a couple of things that bother me on the image, but I have not seen much discussion on. Maybe this will start some polite conversations, or an argument. LOL.
– The birthmark on the lion’s forehead must be important, and like most, driving me crazy. WTF is that!
– The lion’s left cheek, on the right in the image. Is it me or does anyone else see the head and neck of a horse maybe. The eye of the horse is the dark spot to the left of the lion’s eye. The nose/snout extends toward the lion’s nose under his eye. The hairs on the lions mane even appear to come out of the back of the horse’s head like the mane on a horse. Its not exact, but there is something there. I say this because the two cheeks on the lion do not match.
– What is that to the right of the mask? Part of ships mast? Must be important, but what it it?
– What is the face behind this ships mast/ropes to the right of the mask?
– Willing to listen to any ideas on the fairy or her wings. This must have clues, but I have not seen anything solid on this.
– I think the branch is less significant than the needles on the branch. They seem to form shapes where they overlap. Triangles, X’s or Roman Numeral 10’s, there are clues in the needles I think. I should mention, the shape of the branches to the right of the pear reminds me of the Eye of Horus.
– The African mask. Any links to the shapes of the eyes? What are the broken bits in the eye sockets? The “h” or outline over the eyes that extends onto the map?
– The Ft Sumter mask/charm. Why is it not oriented correctly? On a map the long flat side of the fort faces SW, not N like shown in the image. What are the eyes, star, stripes, and mouth?
– The diamond. Why do the two triangles on either side face up and not towards the center of the stone? What do these represent? What is written at the bottom – 75, 73, 7S? What does it mean? The center of the diamond is an hourglass shape which reminds me of a miniature of the fairy’s body. It even has triangles at the top facing each other similar to the fairy bikini top or the shapes formed by her crossed arms.
Ok, so that’s a start. Looking forward to hearing what others think. Peace, Chris

Hi Chris! From your username I thought you might be two people.
I am not active in the Charleston Search, but I am pretty sure there are quite a few people actively hunting there. I’m not sure they are even on q4t or FB
I will mention your questions if I chat with any of them.
Best of luck!

graceandhayes

Just a question. Is it appropriate to post thoughts and questions about Verse 6 here, or is there a Verse 6 thread I should post on?

yes there is a verse 6 thread.

graceandhayes

Please don’t reply by telling me to read your solve. Most likely I have already seen and read it. Since I am still hunting that should tell you your “solution” was not convincing enough for me.

But Chris, as I clearly stated in my “solution”…
I’m not as open minded on I2 as I was last year, but good on you for keeping at it– these casques aren’t found if they’re still in the ground. Not currently “home” in Charleston at the moment, but would be happy to offer thoughts/opinions on any new theories.

boogieman

Trying to keep Lobster going.  Do these #s mean anything to you?

Sorry I’ve been gone for a while.
http://www.srcalifornia.com/Battles1775-77a.htm
Notice the fourth one under the 1776 heading.  William Moultrie led an American force of 436 men during the battle of Sullivan’s Island during the American revolution.  I can find none of the other numbers in the picture (British forces, casualties, deaths, etc), but if you can, please let me know.
I remain completely convinced that this casque is at Fort Moultrie.

Unknown

Unknown:
If the earthquake bolt theory is correct, then we can have some confidence this casque is still findable. Buildings that are old enough to have such a bolt are worth preserving, so if a casque is under such a bolt, I’d be inclined to think it is still there.
P.S. Some of them have lion faces on them.

FB Said:
Exactly. And see my notes in MF’s new thread, about the simple solution.

Tried sharing the attached via Facebook and email with burnstyle and James Vachowski yesterday.
Not good with technology and loathe social media.
Facebook account got disabled and no response from email.
Thought I’d try to post a link instead.
Link is to a *.docx file which I believe lists around 5 ‘new’ insights into the Charleston casque location
《Snip》
Link removed on request.
If the link from my google drive is not functional, I would appreciate some guidance on how to post

i really liked the likeness to the girl in the image
i looked up suriname and found this:
“The Surinamese Creoles form the middle group 18% of the population. They are the mixed descendants of West African slaves and Europeans (mostly Dutch).”
maybe just another reference to africa? like the gem.
merry merry merry christmas everyone!

I have no particular favorite or preference for what might be ascribed as the “bar that binds”, so I hope it’s not taken as a distraction to suggest it be added to the list.  Things I’ve gathered as options are,
Charleston
Law or Court
Any of the prominent sand bars in the area including distant ones involved with stopping or wrecking a historically significant ship.
An Earthquake pin to stabilize built structures,
An Anchor
A Locked Gate
..any others?

Macfos

Thought the official logo is a pretty good match.
http://stellamarischurch.org/page/christmas-schedule-2017
Regards,
Mac

Ohhhhhh! Macfos gets in a hilarious zinger, I assume against the Catholic church

Lol… at least someone around here has a sense of humor…
Regards,
Mac

cthree said this long ago, talking about the mask in the image:
Cthree’s:
“Fang Ngil type.–this applies of course to the african theme but keep in mind that this mask signified a judicial responsibility”
justice was carried out by hanging….
so………….what do you guys think???

does it mean chief cw?
no i dont think so, just a literary use of the word, to describe the human spirit
maybe it is a clue to s.c. as simms wrote the book, about mans new ideas for the
new world, yet he was carrying, his same old immorals to carolina, through the use
of slavery. the book is about what went on in carolina. this link describes the book
http://books.google.com/books?id=128X55 … t#PPA13,M1
the pirate’s link, made me chuckle as my last name is worley, and their are and were, several richards
no one ever mentioned,  pirate’s though in our history, will have to check that again, as the worleys came out of the carolinas
http://good-times.webshots.com/photo/24 … 3633hzSGsQ

lol, cw…………….it must be your relatives!  you’re still a treasure hunter!
that’s interesting about the “human spirit” to me…….in the boogieman, it talks about a spirit……..i had just liked the word cassique……

another reference to cassique
http://books.google.com/books?id=qp0KAA … A72-IA1,M1
v-6 to this pic if i rememeber right
Simms, William Gilmore, 1806–70, American novelist, b. Charleston, S.C. He wrote prolifically, both prose and poetry, but it is for his historical romances about his own state that he is remembered
Simms, William Gilmore (1806–70) writer; born in Charleston, N.C. After the death of his mother (1808), he was raised by his maternal grandmother and schooled locally. He was admitted to the
bar
(1827), but spent his time writing poetry and working as an editor in Charleston. He became a prolific writer of historical romances, notably The Yamassee: A Romance of Carolina (1835).
link for above
http://encyclopedia2.thefreedictionary. … am+Gilmore
have not read The Yemassee yet it may have a line from v-6, will check
yep i guess treasure hunting is in the blood…..lol

SJW, welcome to the hunt! While I respectfully disagree with you on both the location and the Image/Verse pairing, it’s exciting to see “our” casque finally getting the attention it deserves.

Hello all, much like a lot of people I saw the Secret on Expedition Unknown. We happen to be in Charleston the weekend after that show. A couple of things I noticed after looking at image 2 and being at White Point Garden. The old capstan statue’s base was much larger than the existing Moultrie statue. There is either a metal plate over the hole that they made when they removed the capstan in 2007 or they filled it with concrete. I found some information about the companies that removed and replaced the statues. I have not had any luck contacting them to see if they have any records regarding the exchange. They are Soil Consultants Inc of Charleston and Berenyi, Inc. I have phone numbers if anyone would like to try to contact them. The reason I bring these up is I believe the casque is buried beside the path where the old capstan used to sit. The main reason i believe this is that the “birthmark” on the lion’s head is almost an identical match to the 1980’s view of Havana bay in Cuba, where the USS Maine was sunk. Any questions, comments, or thoughts that I am crazy are fine, just let me know. Sorry for such a long post.

Smokey Joe Would

Hello all, much like a lot of people I saw the Secret on Expedition Unknown. We happen to be in Charleston the weekend after that show. A couple of things I noticed after looking at image 2 and being at White Point Garden. The old capstan statue’s base was much larger than the existing Moultrie statue. There is either a metal plate over the hole that they made when they removed the capstan in 2007 or they filled it with concrete. I found some information about the companies that removed and replaced the statues. I have not had any luck contacting them to see if they have any records regarding the exchange. They are Soil Consultants Inc of Charleston and Berenyi, Inc. I have phone numbers if anyone would like to try to contact them. The reason I bring these up is I believe the casque is buried beside the path where the old capstan used to sit. The main reason i believe this is that the “birthmark” on the lion’s head is almost an identical match to the 1980’s view of Havana bay in Cuba, where the USS Maine was sunk. Any questions, comments, or thoughts that I am crazy are fine, just let me know. Sorry for such a long post.

This was good work. Have not heard that Havana bay theory before.

Perhaps this pic can be connected to verse 5.  I will post some info there too.  Hampton Park, near The Citadel, had a lion that could be heard roaring from The Citadel.

cw, i have no idea what that is, lol
it kindof looked like an elephant to me.
there are more words on that jasper statue, but i don’t think it’s important anymore.  this site tells some of it, scroll down a little:
http://ytinamuh.blogspot.com/2007/04/wh … ttery.html
i’d seen pictures of that obelisk, I even took pics of that obelisk when i went there.  but it wasn’t until you posted that site, and i read the states were  “EMBEDDED”  in the description, that i thought, that’s the place.
“EMBEDDED” is at the end of the verse, “beside the long palm’s shadow”, shadow for the “sundial,” long palm for “charleston’s “‘s   flag, or and especially if washington, dc is close to the south carolina one.
doesn’t everything fit?
cthree’s pic with the arrow and charleston:
http://outdoors.webshots.com/photo/1158 … 4516GzDSPp
well, florida’s flag has a palm on it too…..so check there too, lol
if white house isn’t for washington, dc, maybe it’s just saying on the side facing the gazebo, or if there is a white house close by.  that would all depend on where the south carolina or florida brick was positioned, i think.

slappy some things i see in img
don’t know why i never thought of this flag on this statue, it’s the one with
the “palm” tree and moon and his “palm”, i think.
http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/e … DSCN2288(2
).JPG
if you click img to enlarge, and look in the lower right hand corner,
to the left of the 3rd post, counting from l-r, is that a donkey
this picture shows bandstand, simms and jasper all in a row:
http://flickr.com/photos/bobindrums/1553750213/
not sure where the fountain is for “hear”
the fountain is to the right of the base of the statue in the background
behind the big tree, near parking lot
large pic
http://flickr.com/photos/bobindrums/1553750213/sizes/o/
i think there is more writing too, on the plaques that are on each
side under the feet ,wonder what they say

Do the eyes of the African mask represent clouds with rain drops in the form of three short vertical lines?

I think the point is, that the solutions aren’t meant to be very complex.  Meaning, keep it in the ballpark of the Chicago/Cleveland solutions.

bigmattyh

I think the point is, that the solutions aren’t meant to be very complex.  Meaning, keep it in the ballpark of the Chicago/Cleveland solutions.

I think that’s fine and safe if you feel assured that the next solution will truly follow the same pattern.  We don’t really know what’s going on here.  One moment were playing T-ball, then it’s kickball and pretty soon it’s tackle football.

He never said a child could find them, to my knowledge–either in emails, on the forum or anywhere else. I dont think a child could find these. This was definitely a hunt made for someone who had the ability to reason out and solve more complex rebuses than what a child could, and what child would know the quotes from Moby Dick, or Stevenson, or the Sarmiento book? The only time I’ve ever read or heard that phrase was associated with Michael Stadther (who apparently has known some extremely “special” children.)

shecrab

Actually, he
didn’t
–that is not in the book.  It was, however, in
Michael Stadther’s
books. Both of them. Turns out, however, that it wasn’t true. No child actually DID solve either hunt, though one or two children helped their parents gather up the tokens in the first hunt.  The second hunt remains unsolved and unsatisfied, and if a child could solve it, it would have to be one very special child–with superpowers.

i dont want to get to O/T,but that Stadther,statement,and yours the very special child–with superpowers
in the summer of 09,i meet a child that is a genius,and gave her the book of sad,she is in her freshman yr
of college this yr,age 15,and still hasnt solved it, she is good in every subject,but loves math,i thought for
sure she would solve it,so far no go,she did say that it might be a morse,but she hasnt found it yet
go figure,IMO,its only simple if you know the answer,and im still looking LOL

erexere

I think that’s fine and safe if you feel assured that the next solution will truly follow the same pattern.  We don’t really know what’s going on here.  One moment were playing T-ball, then it’s kickball and pretty soon it’s tackle football.

In that case, I think it’s still like playing T-ball, only the field has been unmowed for 30 years and it’s only getting darker out, and you only
think
you should be playing football because you can’t find the bases that were so obvious when the field was laid out.

I don’t get the impression this was designed for children. The phrase was also used to describe “The Merlin Mystery”, which was unsolved. The
solution
, when published, was longer than
War and Peace
and made no sense at all.

I mentioned T-Ball because those are set on or next to the home plate and the globe lamps at the 2 c’s look like giant T-ball.  Theme wise it doesnt follow the Paul revere or ancient historian stuff, but it does go with Fenway Park some.  “Feel at home” can then have this meaning as you stand next to a globe lamp.
(Oops, forgot whiich thread I was discussing in -cross posting this ti I11)

Please also keep in mind that
a short road at the beach, east (?) of the Fort
is ” L’on Road”  (pronounced ‘lion’)
It has been photographed and posted earlier.
It is in direct proximity to the likely
‘last standing memeber to the south’

yes i like that l’on avenue too, especially since the lion is such a big part of the image.
i should have said sullivan’s island instead of ft. moultrie.
trying to get back into this charleston hunt, (sorry, forts just don’t hold much interest for me, lol)
one thing, if verse 6 instead of 5, i remembered out of all those guns and things, some are called parrot guns……wanted to keep that in mind for the part about “stand and listen to the birds”

Egbert

I do not think that we should ask for solutions or even hints, unless it is an “emergency” — such as Wilhouse’s plight in Houston and the imminent demolishing of the treasure ground.  I got along well with him during my telephone call with him approx. 2 years ago, so I do not think anything bad will come of this.

I think you hit it on the head here Egbert.  I wouldn’t want answers either, but any inclination he might have to Houston, or any other site that may have been demolished or drastically changed would be great.  Does he look at this forum?  Would he let us flutter about knowing a casque was gone?
I think he would be proud of his work and flattered to know there are still people out here who value that work.  Just my opinion.

In the newspaper article about the Cleveland find, it says that BP often sent him all kinds of dossiers and photographs of stuff so he could draw the pictures.  It’s likely he still has these.

I called his work number, and there was no answer (not even a machine).  So, I called his home number, got a machine, and left a message.  I’ll let you all know as soon as I speak with him.

Fair enough.  I agree tho that this call should only cover the issue of whether he has the locations/solutions & any possible “emergency” such as Wilhouse’s plight or any destroyed or constructed over sites.  Please oh please, lets avoid the fishing expeditions or “you know, I have what seems to be a solid lead to Milwaukee…could you confirm or deny this and possibly nudge me in the right direction” type requests.  The LAST thing we need is to pester the only possible guy left with any knowledge of the solutions/locations.

I think I would be more comfortable just knowing that someone out there knows the solutions, so that eventually, once the hunt is over for real, we will know for sure.
And what did happen to those jewels, anyway?? They couldn’t have just disappeared.

If the jewels were in a safe deposit box, then his wife should have custody of them (if she did not have them set in jewelry, or sold them – death in a family can be rather expensive depending on insurance, etc).  That doesnt necessarily mean she would honor the hunt still though if someone found a casque and tried to claim one!  My understanding is all that was lost was the solutions.

Egbert

I do not think that we should ask for solutions or even hints, unless it is an “emergency” — such as Wilhouse’s plight in Houston and the imminent demolishing of the treasure ground.

do you think it would be worth the contact to show him the photo of the “treasure grounds” I have posted and see if that rings any bells with him for the Houston casque?
wilhouse

Egbert:  I have decided not to call JJP at risk of cheapening a potential find.  This seems to coincide with popular opinion on this board.  You no longer have to put in a good word for me, but it might be good to set up for potential future “emergency” calls.

Unknown

Unknown:
(deleted)

Rob, why are you deleting all your posts?

over on the numbers/letters thread. Rob felt some numbers he spotted weren’t taken seriously enough.
I tried his email and it bounced. I think he’s quit. Hopefully not.

Where on the mask is the “is”? I see the “23” but it looks like a “73”…

lobster411

Using a metal detector on NPS property carries the same penalties for digging.  Don’t do it.
How much was the GPR rental for the other side of the rock?  How well did it work?  If I was willing to spring for it, would you recommend it?

Except in Florida…  You can use a Metal Detector on NPS property in the sand part of a beach between the waters edge and the dune line.  In your case, you can use it on the non-park side of the rock, and when no one is around a couple quick swings on the other side
Not like you are metal detecting around the fort itself…  However, you may get some false reads very close to the rock because it has metal in it itself.

Talk about eating crow.  Looks like this verse is SC and not NY.  Nice. Nice Nice.  Go get it Lobster!
Egbert, I owe you a dollar!
edit: the ship in Forest’s pic could be the ship above the pear in image2.  And notice the shape of the diagram under the canon.

quick question:  couldnt the lines that read “white stone closest at tweleve paces from the west side” mean that the casque is 12 paces from the west side of the stone and not the stone is 12 paces from the tree?
– could the line “Citadel in the night” just be a confirmer for Ft. Moultrie?  Not that it is a citadel…just that The Citadel is on Moultrie Street.
– where on this pic is your tree & stone?  Is it on left side of pic above the words “Carolina Legion” ?  Not much space to the ocean is there?
http://www.geocities.com/e6nchunley/Moultrie.jpg

boogie – you don’t owe anyone $1 until a casque gets uprooted. The shape of the diagram under the cannon is for the old Ft. Moultrie, and isn’t the proper shape. The mask in P2 is the exact shape of Fort Sumter, however – Charleston’s most enduring icon.
fox – The stone is directly up from the ‘m’ in ‘Camp.’ 12 paces from the stone would put you either on the beach or underwater, from what I gather (and remember). Maybe there has been hurricane erosion?
…and that’s a nice photo of the area!

fox

quick question:  couldnt the lines that read “white stone closest at tweleve paces from the west side” mean that the casque is 12 paces from the west side of the stone and not the stone is 12 paces from the tree?
– could the line “Citadel in the night” just be a confirmer for Ft. Moultrie?  Not that it is a citadel…just that The Citadel is on Moultrie Street.
– where on this pic is your tree & stone?  Is it on left side of pic above the words “Carolina Legion” ?  Not much space to the ocean is there?
http://www.geocities.com/e6nchunley/Moultrie.jpg

You aren’t planning on digging it up are you?  Because I would really like to get it myself…

macfos asked to post this…

Macfos

In addition there is a very rare African cypress tree planted out front of the church which was brought a long time ago.

This one?
The book didn’t have any information about these trees out front, what type, when they were planted, etc.

I think the big clue here would be the
h
type symbol pointing to the heart of Charleston in the African mask.  Unless you can find a map or something real close in the image that leads to Fort Moultrie.
The h looks real intentional.  I still contend that the thing under the h is an old shoe with a face melting off looking to the right.

That symbol too has haunted me.

Gotta agree. The land near the window is undeniably Roanoke. The verse tells us to go there. There’s just too much pointing that way to think of anything else.

Macfos

Another item rarely discussed is the second set of numbers in the lions mane. 32/79 are coordinates for Charleston, but what about the 33 and 80?

Rarely discussed in the past many years, because early on it was assumed to be drawing a box, not pinpointing a GPS location. Back in the 1980s, the best access to latitude-longitude numbers to the average person was the grid lines in an atlas. Charleston is approximately somewhere between 32 and 33 degrees north latitude and between 79 and 80 degrees west longitude. No further accuracy was expected back then.

catherwood

Rarely discussed in the past many years, because early on it was assumed to be drawing a box, not pinpointing a GPS location. Back in the 1980s, the best access to latitude-longitude numbers to the average person was the grid lines in an atlas. Charleston is approximately somewhere between 32 and 33 degrees north latitude and between 79 and 80 degrees west longitude. No further accuracy was expected back then.

Got it. Why dont we see that in other images? Seems like the second set of numbers may be more significant than just generalize coordinates.
Just my thoughts though.
Regards,
Mac

Macfos

Got it. Why dont we see that in other images? Seems like the second set of numbers may be more significant than just generalize coordinates.

I know we’ve found pairs of numbers in other images, and they are always just one degree in difference, which reinforces the box concept. I don’t have the list at hand, but i’m sure someone can point you to pre-existing lists of data.

Macfos

I remember reading that the feet were thought to look like the peninsula or possibly local rivers.
Another interesting thing is that the girl in general besides the hair resembles the “logo” of the Stella Maris church on Sullivans Island across the street from the Fort. I threw that out a while back but did not get any feedback except for drunknerds… which was a hoot. He is a funny dude.
Regards,
Mac

I could see them being the peninsula or the river, except we have have a depiction of all those on the mask. Msybe I just like feet, or maybe they look oddly squared off and pointy where tee toes would be. Flip them up side down and the silhouete could be the the outline of a building? If they are left right side up they kind look like horse hooves…?

Macfos

I remember reading that the feet were thought to look like the peninsula or possibly local rivers.
Another interesting thing is that the girl in general besides the hair resembles the “logo” of the Stella Maris church on Sullivans Island across the street from the Fort. I threw that out a while back but did not get any feedback except for drunknerds… which was a hoot. He is a funny dude.
Regards,
Mac

I tried to find what you’re talking about just now as far as the “logo” is concerned. Unfortunately, the link you posted earlier int thread now gives a 404 error.

Here is the artwork I was referring to:
Fineartamerica.com/shop/greeting+cards/stella+maris
Also note it is on Middle street. The passage of the boats with slaves from Africa was The Middle Passage.
Regards,
Mac

Also note the waves resemble the fairy wings and she is holding an old boat which could resemble the boat mast and rope next to the mask in the image.
In addition there is a very rare African cypress tree planted out front of the church which was brought a long time ago. There is an obelisk across the way at the fort and white stones at the ww2 memorial across the street. In addition, it is all sand.
Just sayin’
Regards,
Mac

As I recall, if you face that sign from the direction where the bars in the flag *do* match up with the mask, you face that single tree in the distance.  I think it’s one of the more promising leads there is, despite the fact that no casque was ever found in a couple of dig attempts.

bigmattyh

As I recall, if you face that sign from the direction where the bars in the flag *do* match up with the mask, you face that single tree in the distance.  I think it’s one of the more promising leads there is, despite the fact that no casque was ever found in a couple of dig attempts.

Unknown

Unknown:
I went today and found nothing.  We dug 4 feet deep over an area of about 16 square feet.  This took 4 hours.  This is the area where the casque would have been expected to be.  Possible reasons the casque was absent include: The casque is actually under the tree

lobster411

Beneath the only standing member of a forest to the south of the fort, there is a white stone at twelve paces.  On the west side, get permission to dig out.

forest_blight

The upshot is that the treasure could be (a) on the NPS side of the white stone or (b) 12 paces west of the tree, ignoring the stone altogether. These are different because the stone isn’t exactly due west (as the raven flies!). Pacing off a treasure location was likely a deliberate play on the fact that Poe’s “The Gold Bug” – one of the best treasure hunting stories ever – was set on Sullivan’s Island, and pacing off locations is a classic part of unearthing buried pirate treasure

Glossiphoniidae

Anybody want me to hit this place up soon?

…yep, would agree with that. I’d be interested to get hold of some pics of this area with the tree and the stone, and an explanation of exactly where they tried, which isn’t at all clear…
Beneath the only standing member
Of a forest
To the south
White stone closest
At twelve paces
From the west side
Get permission
To dig out
Difficult to get your head round this. There’s the idea of the stone and the tree, and one being in a certain direction from the other…and there’s also the idea of the casque being buried to one side of something. It could mean, buried to the south of a tree, which would be very like Milwaukee’s “at its southern foot the treasure waits”. Although I’ve resisted the idea of casques being buried at the base of trees, I have to admit that’s the simplest interpretation of these verses. That way the white stone would just be an identifier for the tree.
Thinking out loud here…
To be honest, it’s difficult to interpret it any other way. Working backwards from the end, I’d been thinking of another way of looking at it as digging out the casque from the west side of the white stone…
…but that way “beneath the only standing member of a forest” wouldn’t make much sense unless it was another way of saying “to the south of the only standing member of a forest”, like, on a map. I then wondered if the “only standing member of a forest” could be a metaphor for something else, like Stella Maris. But it’s a bit of a stretch.
Beneath the only standing member
Of a forest
To the south
I was thinking that the white stone at Moultrie can’t be said to be “beneath” a tree which is 25 steps east. But then, taking another look at the above map, I guess the stone is southwest of the tree, so it’s “beneath” in that map way, where beneath=south. Still a bit of a stretch.
So…I guess I’m reluctantly returning to that tree. I’m not sure that anyone has actually tried digging by that. Since it’s so difficult to get permission to dig round that area it’ll probably take ground penetrating radar to check it.
In The Gold Bug, as I remember, the spot where the treasure was buried was measured off from a tree.
This also resembles Milwaukee in using “paces” to measure distances. In this Moultrie theory, a pace was two steps, though paces could also mean steps.
I suppose another possibility might be twelve
steps
west from the tree…? Perhaps between the tree and the stone…? Maybe there’s an overlooked clue in the image.
Go for it. Can you hire a GPR? Maybe we could have a whip-round.  😉

Unknown

Unknown:
Geodetic survey markers were often set in groups. For example, in triangulation surveys, the primary point identified was called the triangulation station, or the “main station”. It was often marked by a “station disk” (see upper photo at left), a brass disk with a triangle inscribed on its surface and an impressed mark that indicated the precise point over which a surveyor’s plumb bob should be dropped to assure a precise location over it. A triangulation station was often surrounded by several (usually three) reference marks(see second photo at left),[3] each of which bore an arrow that pointed back towards the main station. These reference marks made it easier for later visitors to “recover” (or re-find) the primary (“station”) mark.

Beneath the only standing member
Of a forest
To the south
White stone closest
At twelve paces
From the west side
Get permission
To dig out
OK, how about this.
The only standing member of a forest is that tree.
There’s a white stone “Beneath…to the south”; to the southwest, though mainly west, walking past the sign with the flag and the pendant fort pic.
Take twelve paces (pace = two steps) west from the tree and arrive at the stone.
This stone has stern injunctions on it about not disturbing it on penalty of fine or imprisonment.
But you’re convinced it’s right because of stuff like this…
You don’t want to risk jail, so you get permission to dig, right there, by the stone, as approached from the tree.
Has anyone tried that spot? I don’t know what it looks like from the ground, from that angle. Would be great to see a pic.
It would be a pretty crazy place to bury a casque.
Here’s another of these markers which shows the missing text.
Wikipedia article on these things here –
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Survey_marker
(Plumb bobs feature in The Gold Bug. In Poe’s story, the “gold bug” of the title – a gold beetle which gets confused with a skull – was used, on a length of string, instead of a piece of lead, to find the treasure; reminiscent of the pendant perhaps.)
The diamond has a kind of blue circle with triangular shards which might suggest the disk. There are also blue circles in the butterfly wings.
If he’d wanted to include a confirmer for the disk, though, he could have made it a heck of a lot more obvious without giving much away until you found it.

JoshCornell

what are you referring to spirit?

you should know what I’m referring. Since you’ve been there and you’re right next to it. Check again, look carefully.

I guess it just depends if you’re following the branch outwards or are you following it inwards. What did Byron want us to do?
I also think that all the other clues narrow it down. The map in the image is a clue, but doesn’t at all narrow it down to a specific locations. I think the map says Charleston, and the clues say WPG.
I guess as far as the birthmark goes, I definitely see a similarity. It might not be perfect, but it’s rather convincing if your already leaning on the USS Maine, it’s an excellent added clue.

I think its really important to figure out what the teeth represent, the flag(?), star, and what the eyes represent.
For whatever reason I’ve been really trying to figure the eyes out, both on the mask, the flat head screwdriver eyes on the fort sumter, and also the lion. I’ve always wondered why the bright lines under the eyes on the lion.

Unknown

Unknown:
phinetic said:
I guess as far as the birthmark goes, I definitely see a similarity. It might not be perfect, but it’s rather convincing if your already leaning on the USS Maine, it’s an excellent added clue.

That would be called shoehorning…
Regards,
Mac

phinetic

I guess it just depends if you’re following the branch outwards or are you following it inwards. What did Byron want us to do?
I also think that all the other clues narrow it down. The map in the image is a clue, but doesn’t at all narrow it down to a specific locations. I think the map says Charleston, and the clues say WPG.
I guess as far as the birthmark goes, I definitely see a similarity. It might not be perfect, but it’s rather convincing if your already leaning on the USS Maine, it’s an excellent added clue.

Check back a few pages, I posted a side by side comparison of the two
Edit: bottom of page 58

phinetic

I think its really important to figure out what the teeth represent, the flag(?), star, and what the eyes represent.
For whatever reason I’ve been really trying to figure the eyes out, both on the mask, the flat head screwdriver eyes on the fort sumter, and also the lion. I’ve always wondered why the bright lines under the eyes on the lion.

I did a ton of searching but could not find a match in the collections of the Charleston Museums, but that’s not to say it doesn’t exist. Or that Preiss and JJP maybe used a different source. Have a look at this mask from Congo. One of the countries where many of the slaves were taken.
https://www.rrtraders.com/Masks/chokwesd.htm
It could also be an interpretation of a Chilkat traditional blanket.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chilkat_weaving
During the 1901 Inter-States and West Indies Exposition, there was an “Eskimo” village included. Some of the peoples may have been from this region. Ironically in 2007 a blanket of this type turned up in Charleston on Antiques Roadshow. The guy that had it appraised said it had been in his family for a while. It is entirely possible that it was from the Expo of 1901.
http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/roadshow/season … 201506A14/
Alternately, it could be design elements from in and around Charleston. Sometimes it is difficult to pinpoint the inspirations for these Images. The important thing is to walk through the entire Verse and Image and make as many possible connections that you can.

Macfos

I will be photographing multiple items at a park this weekend and will upload for interpretation.
Every detail documented for 1 park for disection by the group.
You guys have great intelltec into these puzzles. My mind does not work that way so all I can do is provide on the ground info and an occassional “ah ha” moment… if that … lol.
Regards,
Mac

Tell us which park, dude, so we can research!

I think with comparing maps that Byron would have had vs what we are using, literal satalite images, may play into affect? I’m not sure.
I think strictly speaking, the birthmark on the lion – it must be significant in some way. I think we cna agree on that. The only thing I can think of is that either its an exact outline of something, or its an ambiguous and crudly representation of something else. I would think its the former. It must be an outline of something, and with hwo it looks, it must be geographical. And if that is the case it boggles my mind that nobody has been able to fit to yet if Havannah is vetoed.

I will be photographing multiple items at a park this weekend and will upload for interpretation.
Every detail documented for 1 park for disection by the group.
You guys have great intelltec into these puzzles. My mind does not work that way so all I can do is provide on the ground info and an occassional “ah ha” moment… if that … lol.
Regards,
Mac

WPG. It has to be.
1. The argument for WPG is that there is a daisy (think flower, garden) and there is also white on the tip of the nose on sumter (or AKA a White Point). Bringing it together, White Point Gardens. The flower can also be similar to the shape of a palm tree, which is in the verse.
2. We come to the USS Maine capstan (which has
May 1913 on it
, from the verse).
3. The lion has a massive mane (or should I say Maine) in the photo. The lions mane is so exaggerated in this photo you instantly notice it.
4. I almost see the ferry as a ships decorative african figurehead which further illustrates ships (also notice the trail of blue, or water, underneath her in the painting).
https://imgur.com/a/oSNOT
(Even look at her wrists!)
5. Someone has even posted about the lions birthmark looking like the the Havana Port in Cuba, which is where the USS Maine originally sank.
https://imgur.com/a/bPhY0
I think we can either argue this is just coincidence, or that there is some merrit.
Between two arms extended ——> Cannon
Below the bar that binds ———–> Bar (n) 1) A shoal usually composed of sand or sediment transported by currents causing an obstruction to navigation, usually a shoal lying just offshore the entrance to a harbour
Beside the long palm’s shadow ———-> There are two palm trees next to what was the USS Capstan
Embedded in the sand ———-> Embedded in the path
Waits the Fair remuneration ———–> treasure
White house close at hand. ————-> This could mean either be ON the side of the white house of S battery road or just simply mean its near by.

I don’t know. I was waiting for input from the group on which park everyone wanted to start with.
Let me know before Saturday morning. Going to rain Sunday so we are going early Saturday.
Regards,
Mac

Macfos

I don’t know. I was waiting for input from the group on which park everyone wanted to start with.
Let me know before Saturday morning. Going to rain Sunday so we are going early Saturday.
Regards,
Mac

Since you are there, pick one and the rest of us can research from afar.

phinetic

I think with comparing maps that Byron would have had vs what we are using, literal satalite images, may play into affect? I’m not sure.
I think strictly speaking, the birthmark on the lion – it must be significant in some way. I think we cna agree on that. The only thing I can think of is that either its an exact outline of something, or its an ambiguous and crudly representation of something else. I would think its the former. It must be an outline of something, and with hwo it looks, it must be geographical. And if that is the case it boggles my mind that nobody has been able to fit to yet if Havannah is vetoed.

I agree completely. He didn’t have Google earth to look at stuff. We have to be a little abstract, the maps he had for reference might have been 50 years old in 1980.
Also we have to get on the ground in these places. We can’t just google a place and use street view. So much has changed in 30 some odd years that the A-ha moment might be gone. Every passing day makes it harder to find.
WPG has so many clues that point to it, are those just red herrings, maybe. But why would he do that? Just to make it harder? These are supposed to be hard but not impossible, he expected them to be found within 6 months to a year. I think sometimes we over think them.

Smokey Joe Would

I agree completely. He didn’t have Google earth to look at stuff. We have to be a little abstract, the maps he had for reference might have been 50 years old in 1980.
Also we have to get on the ground in these places. We can’t just google a place and use street view. So much has changed in 30 some odd years that the A-ha moment might be gone. Every passing day makes it harder to find.
WPG has so many clues that point to it, are those just red herrings, maybe. But why would he do that? Just to make it harder? These are supposed to be hard but not impossible, he expected them to be found within 6 months to a year. I think sometimes we over think them.

If it was me, I would make the diamond more difficult to find.

I feel like burying it in a place that’s illegal to dig would make it harder than any red herring ever could

drunknerds

I feel like burying it in a place that’s illegal to dig would make it harder than any red herring ever could

by that logic he could have just tossed it in the water…

I am going to start up the Peninsula and go to Wragg & Marion Square this weekend. Will take lots of photos of the parks and surroundings and some notes as well.
Regards,
Mac

Shecrab,
As much as I want a casque to be in Boston, I am not convinced by most of the evidence so far.  I believe: Th. and Xenophon are there (but maybe not oriented correctly, a concern); 42 on the wristband.  The Paul Revere reference 18th day, 12th hour (which must be a double clue giving more information about the exact spot to dig somehow…)  The rest is unconvining.

Oh, I believe that most of the evidence points to Boston–that isn’t a problem for me at all. What is, is the exact location of the casque. Though there is a lot of matching imagery in Copley Square, I have a very hard time believing that Copley is the location because there just isn’t a lot of area in which one might bury a casque. However, I do believe the casque could be in the North End–where “all the letters are there to see” (the street names–A St., B St., etc.) and where Black Falcon Ave. is at the waterfront.
I think the evidence points at Boston–in fact, of all the locations mentioned, this is one of the few that has a solid connection for me.
I am curious as to what you don’t agree with, though, Rihel–can you elaborate?

Shecrab, I have added some comments on this to image 11, where it fits better, but I will elaborate here.
The street names as letters and the Falcon are in the South End, not the North End, isn’t it?  Regardless, I’m just pointing out that I can find similar vague clues in almost any city in America.  Lettered streets in New York City, Washington DC, just to name 2, and I can play the same game with every image clue so far, I can find a globe/ball/sphere in many cities, and I can find a falcon/hawk/bird of prey reference in most cities as well.
Contrast those clues with the wall and columns in the Grecian Cultural Garden, or the Milwaukee building (and Milwaukee rebus), or the water tower in Chicago, or the map of Charleston, S.C. in the skull.  Those unambiguously place casques in those cities.  I mean, these seem so spot on to me that if you showed them to one of your friends who think that this whole treasure hunting hobby is nutty, they would have to agree that the match is real, and maybe they would even search themselves for more clues.  But, just for a sobering experience, take image 11, and start showing a friend, while explaining, “See, there is a globe, for Boston Globe, and there is a falcon, for Black Falcon, and there is a T, for the subway, and there is a castle– Castle Island, and there is a 42, and if you look cross-eyed, you can see a 71, and her hair kind of looks like the outline of the wharfs in the city…..”  I tried this and my friend commented that it reminded her of the scene in A Beautiful Mind, when Nash was seeing patterns in magazines.
But, when I show her the picture of the wall in Cleveland and the image in the book, she says, “No question.”  Same for Milwaukee. And the detail in that Charleston map is also pretty striking.
Now, it may turn out that all of these vague clues are “confirmers” for a Boston location, but without the real solid stuff, I am worried that we might be “digging in the wrong place!”
That’s all I meant.  We have to put all our assumptions under scrutiny until we hit the jackpot clue.

message deleted…reposted under “Image 11”.

dizalot

Hey dizalot,
So the Pear… Some have speculated that it is a representation of the gold ball one might find at the top of a flagpole like the one found in WPG or at one of the forts. I also read a post comparing it to a weather vane like the one atop St. Michael’s Church across from Washington Square Park. Once upon a time, I thought it was a golf ball on a tee. If you head over to Mount Pleasant, there is a golf course at Patriot’s Point. Using the branch as a map, the pear would be about where the golf course is. That was back when I thought “Or on the eighth a scene…” might refer to something you can see from the 8th hole. I left that theory there and played through. Others are dead set on the pear referencing the old Pearman bridge. So, to answer your question, no one really knows for sure.
-I think one creative mind even joked that the pear was food for the lion. That didn’t go over too well.-

I’ve noticed a lot of Salvador Dali influence in JJP’s works. Here’s another one, most likely Civil War reference:
Salvador Dali “Face of War”

Hi y’all.  I’m taking 29 people down to Sullivan’s island day after tomorrow to do some digging.  We have worked on this for a while and I just finished reading this thread.  I think we came up with a few little ideas I didn’t see here so I thought I would share them. (honestly I couldn’t read slappys posts so if they are buried in there forgive me;)
We wondered if the wingless bird and last member of a forest might be a rebus…moa+tree = moultrie.
Moa being the only wingless bird etc.
My daughter thought the drawing of ft. Sumpter looked like home plate on a baseball “diamond” and since baseball was invented at fort moultrie and diamonds are the birthstone for April…the field south of ft moultrie is even where spring training started for a while.  Well we thought that was cool.
The other interesting connection is the painting of the revolutionary battle at moultrie.  Y’all have probably seen it.  It shows sgt. Jasper climbing the last palmetto tree left south of the fort to hang up the battle flag after the British shot it down.  Well the artist is named “White”.  So we kind of wondered if “Jasper” could be “white’s” “stone”.
As for Arc of lights, we are divided between the lighthouse and the appearance of the barrier island as you cross the bridge at night with the darkness of the marsh in the foreground and the sky in the background.
We plan on looking around the charleston lighthouse site too.
I know specific pictures are helpful. If you have any requests I will check back here right before I leave and post them as we get them.
Please forgive the long post.  I really enjoyed reading all the hard work and cool ideas.  I will post pictures if we find anything new.

Greetings Shelshock. Here’s a PDF summary of my thoughts on Sullivan’s Island…
http://www.lemontiger.co.uk/images/misc/thesecret/stellamaris.pdf
I’d be very interested to see some more photos of this area (especially of a newly-dug casque.)
Good luck!
WR

nice find guys.  stubborn ole fox is still tying this P with NM but if you keep finding finds like these, I may just have to change my mind………again

Yes Egg, there do appear to be several letters/numbers scattered throughout the lions mane…I have not been able to make neither heads nor tails of them though.
The part of the mask I was referring to is located just above the eyes.  I see what you refer to as maplike.  Now, what would one of my posts be without a stretch?  Here goes:
Excluding the smaller specks/dots/formations low on the mask, you have (from left to right) what are similar (once again, not exact matches) to Texas, Florida & and 2 formations that could be any number of states.  IF this is the case, than you have 4 states…..which again leads me to my possible burial site of being the Four Corners area.  There are many other things within this P which also leads me there.
I have tentatively paired this P with V1 which I have also found things which could point me here.  Unfortunately, I have yet to locate the “982” which Cat has found in a park in Houston….still looking for that one.

XeroDM

Looks like you’ve put some work into it…
Have you looked into the history of the park and elements? Most parks we’re dealing with have had major changes throughout the last 30+ years. Much caution needs to be made to looking at a park as it is today, but not thinking about how the park(s) were in the early 1980’s. More importantly, muddy patches come and go, and trees grow and are removed. 35 years will allow a fair amount of tree growth, so the landscape will be vastly different than it was a while ago. Even considering a tree’s shadow or a muddy patch is shaky at best.
As for the rest, it’s all very vague, with lots of possibilities (i.e. the eyes of the Fort Sumter could have been lamp posts, man hole covers, etc.), the “shadow” of the flagpole was assumed to be at 6pm (downwards). If we assume that Preiss wanted us to find the treasure, we can assume that there are possibilities, but as we work through the puzzle, some “paths” along the solve will be negated due to that possibility being wrong. If there weren’t red herring possibilities, they’d have been found by now. Essentially, when you’re on the right path, everything else will not make sense or be less likely to be correct, and the vagueness will disappear. I liken it to someone telling you that a treasure is in a large field. Vague. Difficult to dig up. Fine if you don’t want people to dig it up, but not if you do. If you are then told that it’s in a corner, then the bulk of the field is taken out. No matter what else is said, we know we need to be in a corner. Still too vague though… which corner, how far from the corner, etc. And the refinement goes on, and we eventually come to a point that is accurate. Accurate being the key word. The casque is less than 1 foot square, so the end point needs to be pretty small to ensure that we get to 2-4 foot square as an end point. Or else… buy a backhoe and start levelling city parks to 3 foot deep to cover all bases…
It might be a good exercise for you to pick Hampton Park, do some reearch and redo your same theory on that park. If you come up with a point that you think is correct, you’re still too vague because you can’t rule out all other places in Charleston… That’s what I have been doing… It shows how vague and loose your theories are…
Keep hunting!

Well in the video I mention the replacement of the capstan so yes I did look at the history of the park.
I have had to rush this video out. And there are some spaces that I indicate. And I do give precise measurements in terms of meterage however. Also some of the lines are accurate and some are general. The general ones relate to the ‘ beside ‘. Remember without being there with some equipment it can be hard to place at exact locations. Also Remember that that park is a big space narrowing it down to a few reasonable patches not too bad. Remember you can multiple probe an area and search down and borescope.
Multiple meanings are possible in the verses. Sometimes they are meant I feel. Sometimes they are a subjective coincidence. I present them all for people to consider.
I have to do a short follow up video as I’ve had another epiphany. I am on the right track though in thid vid.

Regarding the lion (a.k.a. the king of the jungle),
King St.
goes smack down the center of Charleston and ends up at White Point Gardens. This would be consistent with BP’s other clever uses of road names.
Aside: If I2 goes with V2, it is interesting that Meeting St. (“The namesakes meeting / Near this site”) also terminates at White Point Gardens.

I have a theory that I have been working with
but like everything, no concrete confirmers….
While the images all relate to their single related
verse and burial site, there exists a piece of the image
that connects it to another site so that an order can be
obtained (linking one site to the next)
examples…  The Lion in this Image (mostly sure that it
firmly connects to the Charlestown area – and more
or less to Sullivan’s Island)
connects this buried casque to the one located in
Lake Park Milwaukee (with the Lion matching up with
the Lion Bridge)
another example – Image Six (believing that this relates to a
site in Florida – yet to be confirmed) has an Island with a Palm
(lower right) – which connects to this (Image 2) burial site
as that Palm Island is a location on the indicated route from Pear
Bridge to Sullivan’s Island.
I have a rough outline with a chain of eight – it helps to make
educated guesses on BP’s overall plan.  (Still and maybe always,
unconfirmable)

cw0909,
I always assumed that a pace is one “walking step” or stride. (I could be wrong.)
If you use 2 steps for a pace, that makes the Milwaukee clue entirely different.
AP
(I like your illustration…
)

{moved}

Yeah, considering they also occur in Milwaukee, I guess it would be pretty unreasonable for BP to expect someone to measure paces other than by a typical step. You can’t really imagine someone “striding” for 100 paces.

animal painter

cw0909,
I always assumed that a pace is one “walking step” or stride. (I could be wrong.)
If you use 2 steps for a pace, that makes the Milwaukee clue entirely different.
AP
(I like your illustration…
)

how much dif do you think,maybe 2Xs what you had b4
i did my driveway my measure was 231/2 paces,the 2 foot fall
count and going with the 5ft,117.5 ft, taped measured 118ft
and i walk with a slight limp,left leg

erexere

What species of winged insect is characterized by the wonder woman?

Intro 17: “…the Fairy Spirits of Africa…fluttered down like a windfall of butterflies”.
(Get yrself a copy of the book – there are plenty on Amazon…)
http://www.amazon.com/gp/offer-listing/ … ition=used

Thanks!  I am one of those people who never uses Amazon.  My mom gets it all there.  I tend to just do ebay or craigslist…silly me, I just forget Amazon is the place to go.
So the woman is more Butterfly than Moth, still the “eye” features are consistent on the wings.  The verse mentions ‘eyes of old’ is that possibly a cyclopsian myth connector?
Also, i want to say how much better it is seeing the Sumpter connection.  I cant believe I had workedup such an elaborate view of image 2 as the Milwaukee image early on.  It was that African, lion bridge thing that got me…  Now I’ve settled down enough to look for a more plain process:  find the key (charleston map) area confirmer, narrow it down from there, like the Terminal Tower or the Old Chicago Water Tower two or three miles off.  In this case, I think Sumpter/Charleston is the regional connector, and now I wonder if the Beaufort area is the more specific result or is it a stretch being too far away?  Blackbeard’s history seems consistent with the first part of the verse and was involved in several cases of being immobilized by sand bars.
I read a note on the .gov website that metal detecting is not allowed in the area.  Things have really changed in 30 years to hamper any chances eh?
The Sumter shape has rotation when compared to the actual site.  Perhaps some other rotations will match something.  The clock hands has a similar angle to the Outer Banks.
Lighthouses and Lions both have “Keepers”.

This Core Sound thing has my interest.

Unknown

Unknown:
Two years after the lighthouse went into service, the Civil War started. As the Confederates lost hold on the Outer Banks, they retreated. To prevent the Union soldiers from using the lighthouse to their advantage, the Confederates blew it up.

Unknown

Unknown:
During the war, the lighthouse served as a lookout post. When the Confederates were driven back, the lighting system was removed so that the Union soldiers would not be able to use the lighthouse.

Unknown

Unknown:
During the Civil War, the lighthouse became very important. The area surrounding the new Cape Lookout Lighthouse served as a military stronghold. When the Confederates were forced to retreat in 1861, they attempted to blow up both beacons so they would be inoperable for arriving Union soldiers.

Asking a few really straight forward questions I am able to come up with the following notions:
1) Why the lion?  Perhaps it is attached to the common phrase “in like a lion, out like a lamb” and suggest we are looking at a site that endures massive wind storms.  The lion, symbolic of the sun as well, and the moth have me considering a destruction theme, like the story of Icarus…minus the part about moths being nocturnal.
2) What species of winged insect is characterized by the wonder woman?  How about the Polyphemus Moth, which is the name for the Cyclops of Greek myth.  A Cyclops could indicate a lighthouse perhaps?
3) Does the certainty about Fort Sumpter relate to any specific lighthouse’s history?  Fort Sumpter’s greatest moments revolved around the Civil War.  It’s lighthouse was destroyed in the conflict.  Where any other lighthouses nearby destroyed, did any survive?  Was it important to the war that a secondary lighthouse location be maintained for an alternate path to safety?  Here is a list of lighthouses that existed during the Civil War:
a) Bodie “Body” Lighthouse, NC:
b) Cape Hatteras Lighthouse, NC:
c) Ocracoke Island Lightouse, NC: No mention of damage or soldier involvement during the Civil War.
d) Cape Lookout Lighthouse, NC:
e) Bald Head Island Lightouse “Old Baldy”, NC: No mention of damage or soldier involvement during the Civil War.
Okay, I’m interested in going with option D, the lighthouse that was “very important”, and survived the attempted bombardment.  Part of the story at Cape Lookout includes mention of the original lighthouse being totally destroyed, but the newer one was maintainable through the conflict.  I’m not a history buff, so excuse me if I get anything wacky.  All of the South Carolina light houses were preemptively prepped (lenses removed and secured if possible) for the conflict so the Union soldiers couldn’t use them to easily land when the state ceded from union.
Cape Lookout is right in the Harker’s Island area.  If we are seriously looking for an anchor as the pointer to the specific dig spot, then I’ve located one large black anchor at the Harker’s Island Visitors Center on the southeast corner of the island.
http://www.nps.gov/calo/planyourvisit/v … enters.htm

There is some sort of “observation tower” which can be seen from
Washington Park…as you look North.
Can’t tell if it has loudspeakers or tornado sirens on it.
http://www.panoramio.com/photo/6832836
Aerial shots from Bing show that the tower is now the
same red color as surrounding roofs.
Update:
It is an old fire-watch tower.
Upon magnification, there seems to be a
bel
l in the tower.
Still searching…
AP

AP, those towers fit perfectly for an iconic image, i thought……..but, i don’t think they were there in 1981.  were the old bridges an iconic image for charleston?
“The eight lane bridge satisfied the capacity of U.S. Route 17 when it opened in 2005 to replace two obsolete cantilever truss bridges. “
look at the struts under the old bridge here…looks like a capital H  ;D

cw0909,
That is an excellent job of “communicating” with the right people in Charleston.
I just received a response from the administrator of the East Bay Playground,
(which is now called the Hazel Parker Playground and Community Center.)
The playground is along the waterfront on East Bay Street…which is the
same street as East Battery…but farther down the way.
I sent her the photo of the obelisk-type object behind the Historic Charleston
Preservation Building.  At first she thought it was one of the bridge supports.
Then she took a walk down the Battery to see the area for herself.
She says that she could not see the object from where she thought it should be… Hmmm
So she sent the photo to several other people to see what they could make of it.
(I know it MUST be the bridge support…but how strange that she could not see it.)
We shall see what comes of it.
AP

I have found a photo that I believe conclusively shows the
bridge support tower with the cables…end of mystery…

From what I remember about those, he would have had to be right up on something for it to be a detailed picture…there was no zoom on those and it had a wide angle.

A Christmas raffle in 1980 gained me a Sonar One-step and a lifetime supply of color film. It was an awesome camera.

well, the only kind of strawberry that has a blue variant is the “woodland aka alpine strawberry” which is part of the rose family…and strawberries ripen for harvest in june (the first berry of the year…im a huge forager)…so there’s that.

theres both a golden apple and golden pear in the charleston image, the apple is on the african mask, you can see the stem coming up from the brow area above where the nose would be located pretty easily.

Come on guys….don’t you see it – alice in wonderland – magic mushrooms – purple haze…..he’s literally putting the cask in your hands.

ok, so a golden pear and a blue strawberry, you think there’s a connection?

i really like your interpretation of “two arms extended”  as in a “greeting” or when people “meet” and hug or shake hands.  but that still could go with “meeting” street and white pointe gardens.  I see your cobblestones more as oysters, and white pointe gardens used to be called oyster point.
seems our hunters are gonna have to be more like pirates.  you guys be careful out there.
especially you cw, since i promised to bail you out, lol.

Hello again.
For the past four days I have been in Charleston and I believe I have located the treasure’s location. Unfortunately I have just received a call back for the City of Charleston Parks Department saying they will not allow digging in the city’s parks. Barring any change, I will be leaving this hunt behind.
I will post here my complete solution with my proposed digging site. I will put a link to here under Verse 6.
Please, do not dig at this site without permission.
All of Charleston is an archeological site and if that isn’t reason enough, there are cameras in the park right by where you would be digging.
Some of this is a reposting from my original post, some of it is revised and some is new. I am doing this to create a complete, one-stop solution. Also, in trying to explain some of this to non-hunters I have realized you need a little more background to really understand this stuff if your new.
Here goes.
WHAT’S THE THEME AND TRIBE?
In the image we have a lion, African looking masks and a winged fairy that appears to be a fair skinned African American. Referencing page 21, we find, “Africa’s Diamond, earth-born star, Bright harvest of the midnight rock.” Also, pages 16 and 17 refer to the African fairy tribes as flying and “like a windfall of butterflies”. This establishes our theme for Image 2 as African.
The final location must have a strong African connection. I think this idea of site theme may have been a little under estimated. The Chicago treasure (Scots-Irish theme) was found in a park that borders the river dyed green each year for the St. Patrick’s Day parade. That is the largest St Patrick’s celebration in the country. The Cleveland treasure (Hellas) was found in gardens themed for Greece and Rome. Cleveland was the center of Greek immigration into Ohio. City and park share the origin theme in both cases.
WHY CHARLESTON?
Charleston’s history with African Americans is long, varied and frequently regrettable. Charleston and New York were the largest slave holding cities in the colonies. One of the largest slave revolts in the early 1800’s happens in Charleston, The Confederate States secede from the Nation in Charleston and the Civil War begins in Charleston. African American’s found some of the their oldest and most influential churches in Charleston. These churches play a large part in the Liberian Exodus that starts in Charleston with the sailing of the Azor. And some of the most important court rulings on Civil Rights have a start in Charleston.
There are four clues within the image that lead me to Charleston, SC.
Pine Branch
There is a loop in the pine branch in the middle left of the image. To me this enclosed shape looks like an outline of South Carolina. Stylized, but still South Carolina.
Daisy/Palmetto
The petals of the daisy in the images lower left seem to have been arranged to look like the Palmetto in South Carolina’s state flag.
Map in Large Mask
I thnk this speaks for itself.
Longitude and Latitude
Lion’s main numbers: 33, 79 (upside down), 80, and 36. Charleston, SC (32.77°N 80.01°W)
WHICH CHARLESTON PARK?
There are a few clues in the image to the location of the park.
The first may be the inclusion of a map of the city. Washington Square Park was previously (and still) called City Hall Park. The park is small, walled and nestled against the back of Charleston’s City Hall (south), Meeting Street (west), Chalmers St. (north) and private homes (east). A building in the NW corner houses the South Carolina Historical Society and the park contains many monuments and memorials. This may be the first clue but there are others.
The Fairy, Cobblestones and Ironwork
The moth/fairy woman repeats the overall theme of fairies, Africa and perhaps slavery and freedom.
The wings resemble an emperor moth but the inner, brown scales of the wings look very much like cobblestones. Chalmers Street is the longest remaining cobblestone street and runs along Washington Square Park.
The scrolling, spirals in the wings also resemble the decoration above the gates to the park itself.
Chalmers Street is also the location of the first home to be owned by a freed black in Charleston. That is 38 Chalmers, built c. 1844 for Jane Wightman. The house faces the north gate to Washington Square Park and the wrought iron of it’s gate has spiky Chevaux-de-Frise iron at it’s top and a looping butterfly like decoration at the bottom. I think someone previously mentioned Chevaux-de-Frise ironwork as resembling the fairy’s hair, and I agree.
At the time the treasures were buried Laura Bragg owned and lived at 38 Chalmers. She was at the center of an artistic and social group on Chalmers street during the Charleston Renaissance in the 1020’s and 30’s. One of her close associates was Ned Jennings. He was known for the creation of fantastical masks and a large butterfly and moth collection that he kept at his studio at 23 Chalmers.
Important sites on Chalmers Street:
6 Chalmer
s — Old Slave Mart Museum
17 Chalmers
— The Pink House (Sailors’ Tavern)
23 Chalmers
— Confederate Home & College, Ned Jennings studio
38 Chalmers
— First home owned by a Freed Black in Charleston
At the center of Washington Square Park there is an obelisk dedicated to the Washington Light Infantry and particularly to its service in the Civil War. On the obelisk there are several plaques that may have supplied inspiration for the fairy. A plaque identical to the one featuring the state seal is also found in White Point Gardens (the Battery to locals) and the winged trumpeter also appears on the City Hall.
REFRENCING THE VERSE
To choose a park conclusively I believe it is necessary to pair the Image with a verse so please excuse the cross post.
I have chosen Verse 6. I believe the verse leads us from a starting point to the park where the treasure is hidden. Before beginning to work with the verse I think it is important to rearrange it a bit so that it is assembled into rhyming sets, giving us…
Of all the romance retold
Men of tales and tunes / Cruel and bold
Seen here / By eyes of old
Stand and listen to the birds
Hear the cool, clear song of water / Harken to the words:
Freedom at the birth of a century / Or May 1913
Edwin and Edwina named after him / Or on the eighth a scene
Where law defended
Between two arms extended
Below the bar that binds / Beside the long palm’s shadow / Embedded in the sand
Waits the Fair remuneration / White house close at hand.
The Sets and Progression to the Park
Of all the romance retold
Men of tales and tunes / Cruel and bold
Seen here / By eyes of old
As has been pointed out before the first four lines seem to be paraphrased from Robert Louis Stevenson’s Dedication to “Treasure Island”. Robert Louis Stevenson relied heavily on a description of Blackbeard for the creation of Long John Silver in Treasure Island. In May 1718, Blackbeard’s pirate fleets appeared at Charleston, South Carolina. They plundered vessels, took important citizens prisoner and extorted medical supplies from the city before leaving.
http://www.charlestonpirates.com/edward_teach.html
Thus these lines serve to point us toward pirates. It may also point to the oldest sections of the city and the specific location of the Pink House (Sailors Tavern) on Chalmers Street. In addition I finally found a pear. Directly across the street from the Pink House there is a pear tree. My mom recognized this as a local variety that people used to bring them in by the bag full. She said the pears were small, hard and really only good for making jelly not eating raw.
I also found this information, that also seems to point to the Pink House. “…the Pink House was also the founding site for an unusual club called the
Piping and Marching Society of Lower Chalmers Street
. … It was begun by a group of World War II veterans for
philosophical discussions and judicious beer drinking.
Each month a member gave a serious paper on a subject outside his chosen professional field and during their ‘Winter Rout’, a prize was awarded for the best presentation. At this meeting and
at their ‘Summer Frolic’, the group marched through the city accompanied by bagpipes.
”
http://pinkhousegallery.tripod.com/id13.html
122 East Bay, The Old Exchange and Provost Dungeon also has a strong pirate connection but no clear African theme as I will demonstrate for Chalmers street. White Point Gardens (the Battery) also has a pirate monument but little to no African historical connection beyond a monument to Confederates, which seems inappropriate.
Stand and listen to the birds
Hear the cool, clear song of water
Harken to the words:
At the time the casques were buried, The Pink House was being used as a law office but it did have a rear walled courtyard with a fountain as well as a lion door knocker. Standing next to the wall and facing Chalmers Street, the Old Slave Mart Museum can be easily seen across the street to the left.
The Pink House’s fountain is not working at the moment but if you go there, visit their courtyard and you can clearly hear the neighboring gallery’s fountain across the wall. This will give you an idea of what it would have been like.
6 Chalmers St, Old Slave Mart Museum
— This is the only remaining place in Charleston where slaves were sold. The auction of slaves at the Old Slave Mart ended in 1863. In the 1870s the shed was altered for use as a tenement for black families and later an auto repair shop. From 1938 to the 1980s the building housed a privately owned museum of African and African American arts and crafts. A new slavery museum has recently opened in the space but is unrelated to the first.
http://www.ccpl.org/content.asp?id=15669&action=detail&catID=6028&parentID=5747#8
Freedom at the birth of a century / Or May 1913
Edwin and Edwina named after him / Or on the eighth a scene
These lines represent what you should be thinking about as you stand next to this old pirate tavern looking at a much later slave mart. Slavery, emancipation and segregation which are all African American issues that will ultimately lead us west down the street to Washington Square Park.
Freedom at the birth of a century
— Paraphrase of lines from Lincoln’s Gettysburg Address.
“Four score and seven years ago our fathers brought forth on this continent, a new nation … that we here highly resolve that these dead shall not have died in vain — that this nation, under God, shall have a new birth of freedom …”
Or May 1913
— 1913 was the 50th anniversary of the Battle of Gettysburg (July 1-3) and the Emancipation Proclamation (celebrated on multiple dates). Both occasions were celebrated widely. However, soon after his inauguration and particularly in May, Woodrow Wilson’s begins pushing forward his policy of ”The New Freedom” and publishes “The New Freedom: A Call for The Emancipation of The Generous Energies of a People.”
He sites Lincoln as model but Wilson sought freedom from trusts and monopolies. He did a great deal to institutionalize segregation into the federal government and was slow to recognize women’s suffrage as well. He sites Lincoln put the nation is well on its way to healing by pushing African Americans to the back of the bus.
The two lines form a though about emancipation. It’s expectation and denial.
Edwin and Edwina named after him
— Edward Wilmot Blyden. Blyden’s visit to Charleston in 1889 and the twins named for him is mentioned in “Abroad in America” but is also in other sources. I had another source that even mentioned where he stayed while in the city but I was working on a different theory at the time and have lost the reference. I think it may have been in a biography about Blyden but haven’t been able to get out of the house to track it down.
I found Blyden early because I was focusing on major African American events in Charleston and he popped up. I have also noticed that there seems to have been a lot of writing done about him in the late 1970’s. A search of EBSCO Host shows a lot of scholarly work during this time. So Preiss referencing him would not have been obscure or dependant upon the single book.
Or on the eighth a scene
— The best explanation I can find for this line is the affirmation of Richard Harvey Cain’s second election to the US House as representative for the State of South Carolina on May 8, 1878. Rev. Cain was pastor in to the historic Emanuel Church in Charleston in the late 1800’s. He also founded the South Carolina Leader newspaper in 1866 and was elected twice to the legislator during Reconstruction.
Paring him with Blyden seems to form a thought about political power and independence. Or he was just convenient for the rhyme.
Where law defended
Between two arms extended
Now we leave the Pink House and walk down Chalmers Street. Go to the corner of Chalmers and Meeting and turn left. The County Courthouse will now be in view. Go to the Corner of Meeting and Broad Streets.
Washington Square Park is located next to the intersection of Broad and Meeting Streets. This intersection is known as the Four Corners of Law. Charleston City Hall, the Charleston County Court House, the Federal Post office and St. Michael’s Church make up the intersection.
Where law defended
— In the late 1940’s and earl 50’s Judge Julius Waring handed down several decisions that greatly influenced voting rights and segregation in South Carolina and the nation from his Federal courtroom in the Court House. Most important was June 1951 Briggs v. Elliott. Judge Waring was part of a three-judge panel presented with substantial psychological evidence and expert testimony on African-American school conditions. The court denied the plaintiffs’ request to abolish school segregation. Instead, they ordered the school board to begin equalization of the schools. In a lone dissenting opinion, Judge Julius Waring adamantly opposed segregation in public education. Siting the intentions of the 14th Amendment and concluding, “Segregation is per se inequality”
The appeal of this decision was combined with other such cases to become Brown v. Board of education. Waring’s decent became the foundation of the decision overturning Separate but equal in the US Supreme Court.
We begin with happy bold pirates (Pink House) move to a place to consider African American issues (the Old Slave Mart) and end with the law defending their rights (County Court House). Much as the image seems to take us on a tour of Chalmers Street, the verse has lead us from one end to the other.
Between two arms extended
— This line could have two meanings.
1. It could refer to arms extended in welcome = Meeting Street OR
2. Between the paths in Washington Park
SEE NEXT POST FOR THE BIG FINISH

This is PART 2 of my solution for Image 2 referencing Verse 6
WHERE’S THE TREASURE BURIED?
Below the bar that binds / Beside the long palm’s shadow / Embedded in the sand
Waits the Fair remuneration / White house close at hand.
Turn left at the corner of Meeting and Broad Streets and walk east up Broad to the south gate of Washington Square Park. Enter the park walk to the edge of  the Washington Infantry Obelisk in the center of the park. Notice that the second step on this side is engraved with the words “Fort Sumter”. Move to where you can see the West and South steps at the same time. The second step on the west side is engraved “Seven Pines.”
Now recall the smaller mask from Image 2 and the pine branch it hangs from. The shape of the smaller mask is the same as Fort Sumter from above.
http://www.ccpl.org/content.asp?action=detail&catID=5764&id=14764&parentID=5748
Fort Sumter lies in Charleston harbor and is where the Civil War began. I feel the stripes and star of the mask reinforce the military or national theme of the object.
The clock hands are a representation of 4:00 = 4th month = April . But 4:00 also connects nicely to the date and time of the firing on the fort by rebel troops (4:30am, April 12, 1861).
http://www.ccpl.org/content.asp?id=14761&action=detail&catID=5764&parentID=5748
Turn around and walk on a diagonal line until you line up with the two palmetto trees to your left. You will be standing here. (This is my bubby Carl.)
Below the bar that binds
— This is the one thing I’m still not 100% clear on. Could be a reference to earthquake bolts on the east side of city hall or it could be a reference to the BAR (Board of Architectural Review).
Beside the long palm’s shadow
— site is in line with palmetto trees that were definitely in place at the time of burial. The state flag also flies atop city hall.
Embedded in the sand
— the soil here is sandy
Waits the Fair remuneration
— the front plaque of the Washington Infantry obelisk is visible from here. “Fair renumeration” may be a reference to the plaque text “Fair Renown”
White house close at hand
— site is at the corner of Charleston City Hall, which is white.
I would also like to point out that this path is all left turns. That is, it is turning windershins, which was a traditional way of reaching fairy, or allowing fairy to reach you. I think the left hand courses have been mentioned before but I didn’t think anyone had pointed out why Preiss might have done it.
So that’s my solution. Short of getting an archeologist out here with a ground radar, I don’t think there will be any digging. I do have a very slim hope in that direction but it wont be any time soon.
So what do you think?

I think you’ve done a lot of great research, jstarr. But I’d urge you to not read too much into “pine” in the various places you’ve used it. That’s definitely a cyprus (common in the area), not pine.

I so like the idea of a widdershins path, I thnk you are spot on with that.
I think you nailed the palm tree on the flag/ flower connection
the charleston map cannot be denied nor the ft Sumter map.
All those things, makes me go Yep! Charleston!
The top of the infantry obeliisk fits the outtline but so would just about any monument spire.
Your description of the Chalmers house/pirate connection/blackbeard/bagpipers, leaves me scratching my head going huh?
your lincoln gettysburg address paraphrase makes no sense to me at all.
and your may 13 reason takes place in July…
Law defended – sure makes sense
arms extended = meeting st. maybe, – not the first thing that comes to my mind though.
I think you nailled the city – you might even have the exact spot, but your reasoning to get there, seems a bit convoluted to me.
When I read the chicago/and cleveland solutions, I was suprised at how actually obvious they were, and how it totally made sense.
I just dont get that Aha from your solution
But go dig it up and prove me wrong!  sometimes its easier to ask for forgiveness than permission!

Unknown

Unknown:
to not read too much into “pine” in the various places you’ve used it. That’s definitely a cyprus (common in the area), not pine.

Unknown

Unknown:
Your description of the Chalmers house/pirate connection/blackbeard/bagpipers, leaves me scratching my head going huh?

Unknown

Unknown:
your lincoln gettysburg address paraphrase makes no sense to me at all.

forest_blight
For me the “Seven Pines” inscription when combined with the “Fort Sumter” inscription is a confirmer.
Cypress is common in the swamps of North Charleston, Goose Creek and surrounds but it is not a tree you find in the pennisula ciry. In fact, of the four parks I seriously considered inside the city, only Hampton has any evergreens of any kind in it. Park trees in Charleston tend to be oak, with mixes of flowering trees.
maltedfalcon
Okay, a writer I’m not.
What I’m trying to explain is that when I look at Verse 6, I see a beginning that references pirates and a few lines later it seems to be about slavery. So I looked for a place in Charleston that had both kinds of sites in close proximity. The Pink House (or Sailors’ Tavern) and the Old Slave Mart are right across the street from each other and Washington Square Park is on the same street with both. To me it was like referencing the the Art Institute in Chicago.
I also wanted to point out that the Pink House still fits the first three lines, even without knowing about the Treasure Island paraphrasing. Because those three lines are also a pretty good description of what the Marching and Piping Society did in that building.
In the Gettyburg address Lincoln is talking about the nation being born, a “New Freedom”. I felt the verse was comparing this hopeful sentiment with Woodrow Wilson’s “New Freedom”, which sites Lincoln but is really something very different. Especially if you weren’t white.
And yes, the Gettysbury anniversary was celebrated in July. The Emancipation Proclaimation was celebrated on several different dates that year. I mentioned them to highlight the general importance of that year. I left out the Women’s March on Washington the point is the same. In 1913 a lot of people were asking for freedom and Wilson shoved their concerns aside.
Neither idea moves you closer to any Charleston park, which I think he knew, because he’s telling you to stand and think. Then four or five lines later he tells you about a new place. (Where law defended)

Oh I wanted to say
the bar that binds if that is the horizontal stripe about head high on the wall, and if it has large bolts/nuts/washers embeded into the building.
I would say that is a perfect fit.

The Florida in the mask really jumped out at me.  I don’t think the other shapes in the mask are important.  Also, Florida has a lot of theme parks and whatnot.  The lion face looks familiar, like something from a zoo advertisement.
Also the Florida shape suggests either central or Southern Florida (Orlando, Tampa, Miami, etc)
Google: Florida + lion +safari + park =
http://www.lioncountrysafari.com/info/history.shtml
Lion Country Safari, Florida opened in 1967, in rural Western Palm Beach County. At the time it was the first drive through safari park in the country and introduced a new concept to animal lovers, “The Cageless Zoo.” The opening generated enormous interest on the part of residents, visitors to South Florida, and the media. The park developed into a popular and successful attraction.
No easy link to the pear yet.

You’re right, it does appear to be New York City.  I just spent a little time with an online atlas and it does appear to be a closer match to NYC than the state of Florida, although it’s swapped East-West.
Mind you, they are about the same shape, and Florida has Cape Canaveral (NASA) about where the island is, but I think you’re right, it’s NYC.

Well, despite my conjecture, I’ve always felt stronger that image 12 actually represented New York.
The woman standing over the water has the face of the Statue of Liberty.
Also, the head of the eagle looks exactly like the eagle on the Chrysler building.
One thing to look at in the book:  There is a map that shows how the fairies traveled from Europe to America.  Each group has a horizontal line from their country of origin heading east.
Maybe the lines intersect with the state that the fairies settled in?  Tie this together with the type of stone each fairey had from the verse on pp 20-21 and the picture of the stone in each image to figure out what image goes with what state?
What do you think?

gajojo

B) From Fort Sumter, take the return ferry to the the ferry’s departure point:
http://www.fortsumtertours.com/quick-answers/
The ferry departs and returns in Downtown Charleston at Liberty Square’s Fort Sumter Visitors Center, 340 Concord St. Charleston, SC 29401

gajojo

E) On Meeting Street, on the way to WPG, you will pass Gibbes Museum of Art. I believe the girl in Image 2 is a reference to the statue outside the Museum. I copied picture from animal painter’s Oct 18, 2009 post. At some point, I read something about the girl being a nod to the Flying Charleston and the Hand to Hand Charleston (dances). I thought that was pretty clever.

gajojo

Stay on Meeting, keep heading to WPG.
F) From Meeting Street, cross the street into WPG.
From this point, we need verse 6.

On this topic…the ferry didn’t depart from Concord st in the ’80s, nor was that entire plaza near the aquarium there. I think it was built around 2005…
I’ve long thought of the Gibbes (and museums in other casques’ locations) as
very
important. My theory is, BP visited and used local pieces of art to “influence” or as some base material from some of the images.
I like your path…I think Meeting is the most obvious, and using images and then the verse as a starting point at the park is good…and consistent with Cleveland and Chicago.

gajojo

White Point Garden is where they hung the pirates.
Of all the romance retold – Treasure Island
Men of tales and tunes –What kind of men? Sailors
Cruel and bold—What kind of sailors? Pirates
Seen here—Pirates were seen here hanging for several days.
By eyes of old—a long time ago.
When you step into WPG from Meeting Street, the first thing you see is the Hunley Memorial that has a fountain (17). If you keep walking, you come to a gazebo that once served as a Band Stand (18).

gajojo

Stand and listen to the birds: I assume “stand” refers to the band stand(18). I have no idea what time of year BP was in Charleston, but I did find a website that stated that Yellow Crowned Night Herons nest every year in the oak trees in WPG. Maybe BP was there during this season??

gajojo

Hear the cool, clear song of water: I am assuming that this refers to either the Hunley fountain (17) and/or the river, ocean and harbor on the other side of the bandstand (low battery on map). Standing in the bandstand, you will have water on both sides. I am assuming the “clear song” refers to bandstand.
Harken the words: From the bandstand, head to to the Simms statue (16). Simms was a famous writer and orater, hence “Harken the words.”

gajojo

Point A (15) –Freedom at the birth of a century: No real clue, but I will throw out two thoughts. 1) I have wondered if this could refer to Liberia (in that Liberia means freedom). I don’t think it could have referred to Simms since from everything I have read, he was pro slavery. However, the verse seems to move to a contrast thing with the “Ors”, so maybe there is an intentional comparison of freedom vs. slavery—but how this line helps us find a casque is beyond me. 2) My other thought is that maybe “Freedom at the birth of a century” could refer to the Jasper Monument (15). Jasper distinguished himself in the defense of Fort Moultrie (then called Fort Sullivan) on June 28, 1776. Thomas Jefferson’s wrote the Declaration of Independence in June of 1776. BP published the book in 1982. That is pretty close to the bicentennial. Could it be a nod toward 1776?—I wonder if that year is anywhere on the Jasper Monument. Century—100 years? Bicentennial—200 years? I know—it is a bad stretch, but from my perspective, this line either has nothing to do with any landmark in WPG (rather a Liberia reference) or it is has to do with the Jasper Monument.

gajojo

Point B (8)–Or May 1913: This date was on the USS Maine Capstan.(was once located at #8)

gajojo

Beside the long palm’s shadow: Initially, I saw this as having two options: either the palm of a hand on one of the statues or the really tall palm in WPG. If it was referring to the really tall palm, I wanted to see where the shadow of the tree fell at 4 pm. I thought maybe it would fall or point across the street toward the battery wall. I took this picture at 4 pm. Even if BP was there during a different time of year (spring forward or fall back Day light saving time), I don’t think the shadow is going to fall on anything near sand.

gajojo

Side note: I have wondered if the flat center of the daisy referred to the Fort Sumter Monument at the corner of Murray Blvd and East Battery. (In the shadow of the tall palm picture above, the top of the shadow of the tall palm touched it.) I have seen aerial pictures of WPG where that monument looks like a flat disk. The monument is surrounded by what looks like 16 concrete petals. In image 2, the daisy has 17 petals. One is bent. When I look at it, it reminds me of “He loves me, He loves me not,” like I need to pull one off. No idea if this is what JPP was trying to convey. If there was sand around that monument in the 80’s, maybe the spot beside the shadow of the tall palm is significant.

gajojo

Does anyone know if someone has tried to dig up this spot? Would love to have ya’lls thoughts. Please let me know if I need to clarify anything or if the pictures do not work. New to this.

Agreed and agreed. This is a very straightforward way to tell a hunter to begin at this park.
Interesting! I need to check this out.
Agreed, agreed, and agreed.
The bicentennial is interesting to me…I think it potentially has ties to other locations as well, but this probably borderlines into conspiracy-theory-land. (e.g. Milwaukee’s “grand 200” could have been a bicentennial trail sign or similar…)
Yes, I never found anything other than the capstan that had to do with “May 1913” in Charleston.
Yes, I’ve always liked that tree…but we know that shadow, taken literally, can only cast certain directions, which all point toward the center and north side of the park.
Interesting on the daisy petals…I think the whole park is (was much more) pretty sand-covered.
That spot, not that I know of…

@gajojo
Forgot…Re:local art and museums
Google “anne worsham richardson” and look at her artwork…
It might not get us any further, but it might help piece together how these were constructed and where BP went.

Continued.
I don’t have a clue what some of the verse means; maybe some of you can help me. Most of this is on the forum already.
I am using the numbers in the landmark map to indicate what I am referring to.
If you would like to see pictures of some of the landmarks, here is a link:
http://thesecret.pbworks.com/w/page/108 … 0Landmarks
.
White Point Garden is where they hung the pirates.
Of all the romance retold – Treasure Island
Men of tales and tunes –What kind of men? Sailors
Cruel and bold—What kind of sailors? Pirates
Seen here—Pirates were seen here hanging for several days.
By eyes of old—a long time ago.
When you step into WPG from Meeting Street, the first thing you see is the Hunley Memorial that has a fountain (17). If you keep walking, you come to a gazebo that once served as a Band Stand (18).
Stand and listen to the birds: I assume “stand” refers to the band stand(18). I have no idea what time of year BP was in Charleston, but I did find a website that stated that Yellow Crowned Night Herons nest every year in the oak trees in WPG. Maybe BP was there during this season?? Does anyone have any other ideas what the bird reference could be?
http://glimpsesofcharleston.com/we-just … -they-are/
Hear the cool, clear song of water: I am assuming that this refers to either the Hunley fountain (17) and/or the river, ocean and harbor on the other side of the bandstand (low battery on map). Standing in the bandstand, you will have water on both sides. I am assuming the “clear song” refers to bandstand.
Harken the words: From the bandstand, head to to the Simms statue (16). Simms was a famous writer and orater, hence “Harken the words.”
I am wondering if BP is giving us four points, and that the casque is buried between the four points.
Point A (15) –Freedom at the birth of a century: No real clue, but I will throw out two thoughts. 1) I have wondered if this could refer to Liberia (in that Liberia means freedom). I don’t think it could have referred to Simms since from everything I have read, he was pro slavery. However, the verse seems to move to a contrast thing with the “Ors”, so maybe there is an intentional comparison of freedom vs. slavery—but how this line helps us find a casque is beyond me. 2) My other thought is that maybe “Freedom at the birth of a century” could refer to the Jasper Monument (15). Jasper distinguished himself in the defense of Fort Moultrie (then called Fort Sullivan) on June 28, 1776. Thomas Jefferson’s wrote the Declaration of Independence in June of 1776. BP published the book in 1982. That is pretty close to the bicentennial. Could it be a nod toward 1776?—I wonder if that year is anywhere on the Jasper Monument. Century—100 years? Bicentennial—200 years? I know—it is a bad stretch, but from my perspective, this line either has nothing to do with any landmark in WPG (rather a Liberia reference) or it is has to do with the Jasper Monument.
Point B (8)–Or May 1913: This date was on the USS Maine Capstan.(was once located at #8)
Point C–Edwin and Edwina named after him: Edward Wilmot Blyden had a connection with both Liberia and Charleston. Blyden, like Simms, was also an author. Unlike Simms, he was not pro-slavery. This is my most ridiculous idea: This line has either nothing to do with a landmark in WPG (rather a Liberia reference) or could it be a weird reference to the fraternal twin looking palms near the spot where the USS Maine Capstan once stood.
http://i1347.photobucket.com/albums/p71 … xng8x3.jpg
Point D (3)–Or on the eighth a scene
Where law defended: I think this refers to the small monument about pirates that is on South Battery. It is almost parallel to the twin palms.
I think that there is something significant about the “OR”s, but I don’t know what.
Once you are in between those four points, get between two arms extended.
Between two arms extended: I think this is referring to the long cannons that the USS Maine sat between (7) and (9). I know that some have speculated that the two arms could be the arms on the statues. I think the picture of the moth or butterfly in Image 2 tell us that the two arms are cannons. You can see the two cannons in the picture with the twin palms.
http://i1347.photobucket.com/albums/p71 … xng8x3.jpg
Below the bar that binds: I am assuming that this is referring to the capstan that is no longer there (8). It could be referring to the battery wall. This may be a stretch as well, but I am assuming it means that the casque is buried in the sand along this path.
Beside the long palm’s shadow: Initially, I saw this as having two options: either the palm of a hand on one of the statues or the really tall palm in WPG. If it was referring to the really tall palm, I wanted to see where the shadow of the tree fell at 4 pm. I thought maybe it would fall or point across the street toward the battery wall. I took this picture at 4 pm.
http://i1347.photobucket.com/albums/p71 … dww5mx.jpg
Even if BP was there during a different time of year (spring forward or fall back Day light saving time), I don’t think the shadow is going to fall on anything near sand.
Seeing the shadow of the really tall palm eliminated my thoughts that the casque could have been buried a) across the street by the battery wall or b) near the capstan. Both of those place would have been beneath a bar that binds and between two arms extended. I was quite happy to find that the shadow of the tall palm did not point to where the USS Maine Capstan once stood because I was concerned that the casque would have been destroyed if there was any digging to replace it with the other monument.
Side note: I have wondered if the flat center of the daisy referred to the Fort Sumter Monument at the corner of Murray Blvd and East Battery. (In the shadow of the tall palm picture above, the top of the shadow of the tall palm touched it.) I have seen aerial pictures of WPG where that monument looks like a flat disk. The monument is surrounded by what looks like 16 concrete petals. In image 2, the daisy has 17 petals. One is bent. When I look at it, it reminds me of “He loves me, He loves me not,” like I need to pull one off. No idea if this is what JPP was trying to convey. If there was sand around that monument in the 80’s, maybe the spot beside the shadow of the tall palm is significant.
Finally—where I think the casque could be buried:
I think that the long palm’s shadow may be referring to the hand on the Jasper monument.
https://www.flickr.com/photos/hunky_punk/9263287324
Beside the long palm’s shadow, meaning in front of the extended fingers, there is a bricked in bed of greenery.
http://i1347.photobucket.com/albums/p71 … fyny8y.jpg
If the shrubs are planted the same way underneath the statue as they were in the 80’s, there is a clear spot where a casque could have been buried.
http://i1347.photobucket.com/albums/p71 … 1etjzk.jpg
I would not have thought BP would bury something in a bed of bushes, but he did with the one Egbert dug up. If it was buried there, it may still be safe after the hurricane. My problem with this is that I grew up near the beach. And I would see the garden bed as being filled with dirt, rather than sand. However, right outside that garden bed is the long path through WPG that could easily be called sand—though it is extremely packed and hard sand. I wonder if the casque is buried right beside the extended hand in the sand.
http://i1347.photobucket.com/albums/p71 … h0kgmc.jpg
Embedded in the sand, Waits the Fair remuneration, White house close at hand:
What convinced me that this is most likely the spot is that while I was standing there taking pictures, I glanced to right to see a building that looked a lot like a miniature White House close at hand. The white house called the Villa Marguerita on the corner of Church Street and South Battery is parallel to the spot.
http://i1347.photobucket.com/albums/p71 … ul5nyn.jpg
I was not standing right next to the Jasper Monument when I took the picture of the white house. But it is the closest house to the Jasper Monument. Also, you can see a tall palm in the picture, but it’s shadow would not be near two arms extended.
Does anyone know if someone has tried to dig up this spot? Would love to have ya’lls thoughts. Please let me know if I need to clarify anything or if the pictures do not work. New to this.

Thanks tjgrey! Are you the one who lives in Charleston? If so, the next time you are at WPG, I would love it if you would go to that spot and turn and look at the white house. If that verse is actually talking about WPG, the last line felt right on point if it is in that spot. If Fort Sumter ferry doesn’t lead you to Calhoun, then I am back to the drawing board. I also could easily see BP acting like a gardener digging in the bricked in part. I will definitely look up that artist. Thanks.

As always, I’ve been comparing clue types found in the various pictures. One that stuck out to me was the use of overlayed images that work together, kinda like on that show classic concentration. Examples include the crossbow and archway in I3 (Fletcher and the Elizabethan Gardens entrance), the L and the bell in I4 (Liberty Blvd), and the millstone, walking stick, and key in I10 (Mil-Wau-kee). Although, I guess this proposition is a little more akin to the I3 “solve”:
The hooks on this image have always bothered me:
Well, much like fletchers make arrows, fisherman make/use hooks. So I Googled “Fisher Charleston”, and the first link hit the spot (a wikipedia entry for Lavinia Fisher).
Where was she held… the Old Jail in Charleston, famous for housing the worst pirates. Tales cruel and bold came outta that place, no doubt.
I thought it coincidental that the clues could be used much in the same way as in I3, a name and a place overlayed/adjacent in the images. The verse (V6) begins…Of all the romance retold
Men of tales and tunes
Cruel and bold
Seen here
By eyes of old
…also drawing our focus to the eyes.
Also coincidental is that the jail has a massive octogonal wing (eighth?), covered with earthquake bolts, that was built by Barbot and Seyle (bar that binds… bar and seal?)

I like that creativity.  Fisher could also be Fischer, right?

erexere

I like that creativity.  Fisher could also be Fischer, right?

It could be many things, it could be nothing.

I’m drawn to the simple observation of the female form combined with a common term description that is the pear-shape.  The narrow upper portion followed by the wider lower portion.  woman + pear = shape description.  The 1827 Cape Romain lighthouse is narrow on top and wide at bottom as is true of most lighthouses.

JamesV

To be honest, I don’t really know myself, so I don’t want to speculate too far outside my lane. Could be months, could be years before we see any kind of movement? I’d love to have some kind of definite way forward lined up before this summer though, since I’m slated to head back overseas for a couple more years. Although I told NPS, if a dig were to get approved then I’d definitely be on the first flight home!

I think it really comes down to how much ‘historical significance’ they place on the cask. As exciting as a discovery it would be, I would be curious to know how they would view the recovery from an archeological perspective. It seems in other areas there has been some good cooperation from the local archeologist. Even archeologists though have to go through their approval process, which given the proposed location here, may take more time.

davinci4

I think it really comes down to how much ‘historical significance’ they place on the cask. As exciting as a discovery it would be, I would be curious to know how they would view the recovery from an archeological perspective. It seems in other areas there has been some good cooperation from the local archeologist. Even archeologists though have to go through their approval process, which given the proposed location here, may take more time.

I suppose if someone found some lost writings from Edgar Allan Poe that said The Gold Bug was real and there was an actual treasure, archaeologists would be all over that. The Secret, maybe not so much…

James, nicely done. Good to hear someone has the opportunity to make such close connections in the area around their solve.

davinci4

Wondering what ‘steps’ are required on their end to move forward.

To be honest, I don’t really know myself, so I don’t want to speculate too far outside my lane. Could be months, could be years before we see any kind of movement? I’d love to have some kind of definite way forward lined up before this summer though, since I’m slated to head back overseas for a couple more years. Although I told NPS, if a dig were to get approved then I’d definitely be on the first flight home!

Note the necklace chain of the Sumter medal here in image 2.
The first neck worn civillian medal in the US was introduced by Kennedy in 1963 by executive order 11085. The Presidential medal of Freedom… (superceeding Harry S. Truman’s “Medal of Freedom” in 1945).

erexere

I think Preiss made a conscious choice to use the word freedom over liberated. Why that would be the case, I’m still guessing. For instance, I like the idea that “birth of a century” applies to the start or founding of our nation in 1776 and that “a century” could apply equally to either the first 100 years or second 100 years passing, thus the years 1877 and 1977 might pertain. I thought to cross reference Freedom and those dates and I discovered an interesting recipient for the Presidential Medal of Freedom, awarded to First Lady “Bird” Johnson in 1977. The subject of “birds” in the verse then being an important aspect of catching the reference to that particular First Lady.

erexere

I feel it’s important to explore Charleston’s connection to Liberia. Discovered in Abroad in America (pub. 1976) Edward Wilmot Blyden is a direct link to twins named Edwin and Edwina. After his stay in the United States in 1874, he traveled back to Liberia and wrote many letters supporting further efforts to emigrate freed African Americans, primarily the “Negro” as opposed to the “Mulatto”. In 1878, a steamship left Charleston’s port in what was known as the Liberian Exodus.
http://docsouth.unc.edu/church/liberian/liberian.html

erexere

Hilary R.W. Johnson is just a guess on my part. I wouldn’t rule him out just for not being born exactly 100 years before Preiss hid the casques. His birth is significant in the same way as we would recognize Virginia Dare in N.C., she being the first “White” child born in the British Colonies of the New World, while Johnson is the first African born person in Liberia of African American decent. Consider the birth reference in the Litany of the Jewels: Africa’s Diamond, earth born star, bright harvest of the midnight rock. I think it’s justifiable to consider a connection to President Johnson of Liberia. At this time, the only conclusion I’m able to make is that the name “Johnson” helps us connect the events of the murder reported on April 8th, 1873 at the Cape Romaine Lighthouse by Keeper Andrew Johnson.

erexere

There’s good historic context to consider Vesey’s role in Charleston, but I’m not absolutely sure the verse has him in mind when it says “Freedom at the birth of a century”. We have to keep asking ourselves WHY each piece of the verse/image puzzle is relevant.

As I said before, it’s interesting to consider other possibilities but I don’t really see the point of reaching for something with less connection to Charleston in a historical sense than Denmark Vesey. He’s not just some random person. There are literally endless interpretations for the “birds” reference so why would Lady Bird Johnson be the one that makes the most sense, historically? What is her connection to Charleston?
Yes. The Edwin/Edwina line is another reference to Charleston’s history. BP is walking us through some of the important historical and immigration connections to Africa. It really doesn’t have to be complicated so unless there’s some reason to focus on Liberia in Charleston, what’s the point?
Is any of this supported by the image or the verse? You jump from “freedom” to liberation to Liberia to Hilary Johnson to Lady Bird Johnson to a murderous lighthouse keeper who also happens to have the same name (a very, very, very common one at that) to lead us to Cape Romaine? Again, any of this supported elsewhere?
In the painting of Denmark Vesey that hangs in the Gaillard Auditorium (blocks from WPG) he is portrayed from behind with the congregation “harken[ing] to the words” that he’s speaking. His house (most likely not his actual house) is an historical landmark in Charleston (blocks from WPG) and he was instrumental in founding the AME church in Charleston, which is kind of a big deal, historically. Why is all of this important? Most likely BP wanted searchers to understand the deep connections between DV and the city of Charleston, particularly because he had become a controversial figure in the late 1970s when BP was doing his research. Denmark Vesey might not get us closer to the casque but that is the case with so many of the clues. Obviously your time is your own but it seems to me that there are other more controvertible parts to this puzzle which may be more worthy.

fort moultrie
hmmm, you might have something there

erexere,
Here is an idea for the butterfly lady…in Charleston.

Hrmmph, I’m not ready to let a nude statue topple my pairing theory, but I’m stuck with the idea that charleston is involved.

too much fun with that one

I posted a bunch to verse 8 earlier and should’ve posted to this image instead.  I think I’m working more with the image perspective.  I’ll try to copy and paste after first adding this pigeon idea, which is somewhat independent of any verse theory.
(copy from verse 8 thread now follows)
Anyways, this is verse 8 discussion and I am unclear on whether you’re pairing it with Image 10, 1, or 2.
Here’s why I think it is 2:  The Mitchell (verse) connection to Africanology (image), the wonderstone/hearth (verse) connection to a moth’s wing spots and attraction to a flame (image ..see moth winged lady).  A line may be drawn through these two points that points to Lake Park.

I’m tempted to lean towards Charleston and the Fort Sumpter being red herring because 1) more obvious than anything else, 2) still serve a purpose towards a Milwaukee interpretation
In the Sumpter shape, the correlation of the eye slits to the lion bridges is strong, and the center of the time piece may be the light house.  The star fits the General statue in Lake Park as a symbol, and the three stripes do look yellow after a second study of two different sources.  The contrast between the “teeth” and the cheek stripe is a good way of seeing what is white and what is almost white but actually yellow…if it were the other way around I’d be looking for a smoker or coffee drinker…so please consider the Ellsworth Kelly, 1965 art piece that hangs just a stones throw from the light house in the Milwaukee Art Museum.
Here’s a better mix of the moth lady and the topographical map image, elbows to hips on BOTH sides are strong match as well is the lower left (southern paw?) wing segment:
I was looking just one analogy deep, but now I think it’s two deep
Wonderstone : Hearth :: Moth : Flame :: Pigeon : Bridge
Now tell me pigeons aren’t attracted to bridges.

You forgot the bracelets. It could only be wonder woman.

I was thinking along the lines of the Lady being an ATLAS moth, but I like the Wonder Woman identifier.
Charles Moulton Marston, her creator has a ‘bird’ reference in his name with MOULT.  Does that get us
anywhere?

This is art 101.  The pear shape is well documented and utilized in art and architecture.
I am not insinuating the female form and a pear have the commonality of shape, the art world has already drawn that conclusion.  I’m not saying ALL women are pear shaped.  I’m just saying there’s a pear and a woman in image 2, and in terms of art, the best inference is that we might be smart to look for some pyriform type visual clue.  The lighthouse is an example of a pyriform which is a shape something between a cyllinder and a cone (geometry 101).

erexere

This is art 101.  The pear shape is well documented and utilized in art and architecture.
I am not insinuating the female form and a pear have the commonality of shape, the art world has already drawn that conclusion.  I’m not saying ALL women are pear shaped.  I’m just saying there’s a pear and a woman in image 2, and in terms of art, the best inference is that we might be smart to look for some pyriform type visual clue.  The lighthouse is an example of a pyriform which is a shape something between a cyllinder and a cone (geometry 101).

i understand art 101 and geometry 101, but “man does not make reference to pear-shaped woman” is reason 101. his target audience includes many pear shaped, self-conscious women – psychology 101. don’t ostracize your readers – writing 101.

Put you’re osteriches away now.  I see you’re point where it’s not politically correct to bring attention to a person’s body shape, but I personally don’t see the term as derogatory and I don’t know how it would’ve been inappropriate in 1982.  People nowadays are more armed and ready when it comes to bodily reference, that’s for sure.
Something to be considered is the bold-all-taboos-aside freedom which comes with art and it’s interpretation.
I liked looking at this treasure hunt from a Classicism perspective.  Here’s a nice article about the pear:
http://www.hort.purdue.edu/newcrop/pearinhistory.pdf

UnprovenFact

So the Pear… Some have speculated that it is a representation of the gold ball one might find at the top of a flagpole like the one found in WPG or at one of the forts.

Most people seem to think it represents the old pearman bridge near WPG.

More activity to report from the Charleston search, although it looks like the news reporters were unclear on the Image/Verse pairing:
https://www.postandcourier.com/news/dis … sbPmKSSk5E
I’m still not budging from my own I2/V5 “solution” for Fort Moultrie, but there’s a small part of my soul that’s pulling for Josh Cornell to find one in White Point Gardens…

This is great news! Maybe the treasure will finally be unearthed, and a lot of questions could finally be answered! Although, it sounds more like they just want everyone to stop contacting them for permission to dig, and this is going to be the one and only last chance. My guess is, there will be some GPR, a little probing, and finally a hole or two dug in areas that wouldn’t necessarily disturb the historic site but would suffice as being “allowed to dig”. Treasure or no treasure, they are going to put it to bed… for good.
Best of Luck to the team!

The red, white and blue bars corresponded *very* well to a sign someone found at a park in the area — the right length, spacing and colors in order.  There was a picture back in this thread somewhere.

Jambone

I noticed something in Forest Blight’s picture – the red, white, & blue stripes.

forest_blight

Why do I always miss these things? And in my own pictures!

These are the previous references to the red-white-blue stripes on a previous page of this thread.
(page 14 I think.)
Thanks ,Bigmattyh, for the lead…
AP

So which is it, are the three lines red white blue OR red yellow blue?

erexere,
In my opinion…
The color, if it is not vibrantly obvious, is just “pale”.
If it were necessary and required for recognition,
it would have been made more distinct.
In this case…I don’t think it would help to “sweat the details”.
AP

Has anyone found out when the filming/dig date is? Live around the corner & would Love to be preset when/if any thing is uncovered. Personally I’m torn on whether I want it found or not. I love the rabbit hole of wondering & linking Charleston landmarks to this puzzle. On the other hand; closure would be good. I think there’s great possibility it is in a few lesser visited parks in this city. Huge fan of the Chalmers, Marion Sq, and Hampton theories.
Also, very very well done to JamesV- one of the best solves I’ve ever came across

I don’t know why my images keep disappearing, getting quite annoyed.  Anyway, I had mentioned Alice in Wonderland, (I know it’s way out there), I tried to show how the upper right wing of the tree angel looks just like a naked statue at Brookgreen Gardens. Links below.  I noticed that the long. and lat. of Charleston is 79 and 32.  At Brookgreen, it’s 79+33(lion’s hair).  Then I found an old story about a girl named Alice, from the Brookgreen Plantation.  Link just below.  I’m starting to think that everything in the entire world is just a coincidence.
http://www.icw-net.com/tales/gtalice.htm
http://f4.grp.yahoofs.com/v1/0N7vQoRXBu … kgreen.jpg
http://f1.grp.yahoofs.com/v1/0N7vQlWlv9 … 2-lion.jpg

I have to add this because it seems the most obvious thing to me in the whole picture….glasses.
Does anyone else see the eyeglasses on the far right above the fairy wing and next to the mask?
They jump out at me and I don’t think I’m out on a limb with this one. “out on a limb” hmm, check that out too.

http://games.groups.yahoo.com/group/arm … ing/files/
All images are on this page.  Some of you are members of this group, some will have to join.  Don’t know why my pics keep disappearing.  Look under paddyjoecash.

Hallucination #2;
Been out of work a month due to injury.  I better get back soon!

Cormac

Welcome jstarr,
Thank you for sharing your story and your findings.
Disregarding the text at the top of the included pictures (since it doesn’t match the V you selected),
see if you agree with these two images matching the shadows on the lion’s forehead and the mask.
Also, regarding the Moth wings, the cobblestone pattern you mention could also be compared to local sea turtles.
The circles remind me of turtles laying their eggs in the sand.
When will you be going back there?

Unknown

Unknown:
… someone said (cthree, i think, somewhere in this thread) , [the mask] stands for “justice” …

Unknown

Unknown:
… the pear that you are puzzled about, fit’s perfectly for charleston, as there was a pearman bridge (now Ravenel Bridge), there (it’s been awhile since i read all the posts)…

Unknown

Unknown:
… when you go, please take lots of pictures and posts …

Unknown

Unknown:
regarding the Moth wings, the cobblestone pattern you mention could also be compared to local sea turtles.

Thank you Slappybuns and Cormac
I’m really not sure when I will be going home to Charleston but it probably wont be long. Probably in a month or two. When we lost Laura’s father a few years ago there was this incredibly hectic week right after, a week or two of settling affairs and then too much time to think. That’s the time I expect to go home for a while.
Laura’s also anxious to go look or at least have me look for us. Every time she’s awake she asks me if any one has commented on our solution. We’ve been game players and puzzle workers for a long time and she’s not about to change now.
Slappybuns
Yes, ” … [Fang Ngil] masks were worn by members of a male society of the same name during the initiation of new members and the persecution of wrong-doers…”.
I’m not convinced the purpose of the mask isn’t lucky coincidence. But the more I work this, the more convinced I am that Preiss did a huge amount of research and might have known.
The pear. I hate the pear.
I know a lot of people are connecting the pear to the bridge but I just don’t think so. Even when we were working a solution for Fort Moultrie and Sullivans Island I had my doubts about the pear representing the bridge. The bridges were not really that unique among southern cities of a certain age, and locals always referred to the bridges as “the Cooper River Bridges”, not by their dedication names. True, Preiss might have still used the Pearman reference but I just don’t think so.
The bridge was not actually close to any of the park locations, including Fort Moultrie, which is the only route it might have been on. But I think Verse 6 has a stronger linkage to Charleston than Verse 5. Verse 5 might have led to Fort Moultrie but Verse 6 does not, so I don’t see him referencing the bridge.
We also worked a solution with Verse 5 that might have lead to Hampton Park. This solution was weak and that route wouldn’t have referenced the bridge.
Our third solution used the pear as part of a rebus. This was very promising. It used Verse 6 and led to an important African location in the city but not a park and not a place that should be dug in.
Chalmers Street and Washington Square Park is actually our fifth solution and the best so far. I’m still mulling over a few meanings for the pear but I’m not convinced enough of any of them to post yet.
Absolutely. It’s been very tempting to send my mom or one of our old friends to snap a few, but really I’m anxious to go myself and the pictures just aren’t a substitute.
Cormac
I’m not sure the central outline shape on the larger mask represents anything beyond the original mask’s decoration. But if it does, I think it looks a bit like the Washington Light Infantry Obelisk in the center of Washington Square Park.
Ummm? The College of Charleston (might be University now) are the Cougars. The Gamecocks are at The University of South Carolina in Columbia. Clearly you’ve been missing the best college football in the country. That’s SEC football.
GO Gators!
Yes, could be. But I was looking at the common visual elements and language of Palencar’s drawings when I noticed that the shapes looked like parts of other images that were intended to be stone.
Image 1 = the top of the hill left of the face
Image 3 = the floor
Image 4 = the arch way sides
Image 6 = the hill
Image 8 = the ground
Because so many lines of Verse 6 seem to lead me to Chalmers and because other elements of the image relate to the street as well, I’m more inclined to read the shapes as stone.
Now if you really want to twist your mind, research Stono Ferry.
Big, important African event there, and could be a rebus for the place, but probably not.
We’ve been trying to only accept theories with multiple references from the the image and verse. And I just don’t think Fort Moultrie is the place. Not with Verse 6.

Frisco

Joking aside, I just learned something new. There’s an insect called the “Rabbit Moth” (Megalopyge opercularis) that’s native to the Southern Atlantic coast between North Carolina and Florida.

In before Egbert shows up to tell you this belongs in the “High Brow” thread.
Just having a little fun, Eg.

Hi Everyone:
Seems like this thread had stalled.
I’m in Charleston all week. I have just finished photo-surveying Washington Square and will be doing the same with White Point Gardens tomorrow.
Let me know if anyone would like specific photos taken while I’m there.

erexere

Or this 1982 video compelled BP to walk the dog of Oz….
https://youtu.be/FTQbiNvZqaY
J/k even though Mt. Kilmanjaro rises like Olympus over the Syren Jetty…right there, these Toto guys must’ve been heavy into Greek Mythology.

Whoa! Hold the line, erexere. It’s Serengeti.

Heh. Can’t sneak in a little disinformation with Merlot on the case…

erexere

Heh. Can’t sneak in a little disinformation with Merlot on the case…

I get the wordplay, just wanted to.. oh nevermind.

But let’s just get this straight, for the record. You honestly are suggesting that Bryon Preiss cleverly hid a clue into Image 2 of his 1982 book The Secret, which required you to not only listen to, but understand and decipher the lyrics to Toto’s “Africa”, and this is what gives you the “A-HA!” moment to what? We already know and agree that Image 2 = Charleston regardless of Preiss’ backstage connections with Steve Porcaro, right?

Do we need to find a statue of Rosanna Arquette?

For the record, I was kidding, but I still have some curiosity about the “strange fruit” being a lynching reference. Any historic markers about lynching might’ve been a supporting hint whether its pirates or those executed along with Vesey.

Hey premiernc, Not sure if anyone active here lives there, but I’ve been all over that area, so I am pretty familiar with it. Post your theory and we’ll see where it takes you.
Thanks!

I am in Charleston and active in the search. PM me if you don’t want to post to the thread yet.
Regards,
Mac

My apologies. We went almost two months without a Charleston post, so I had been playing around with New York and San Francisco. (And then there was the JC debacle.) I guess I just forgot about our Charlestonians. Sorry about that. I went back a few months, and I recalled actually having a conversation with graceandhayes who is also nearby down there. Hopefully, we can get this going again!
Thanks!

premiernc

Anyone live in Charleston?
I have an alternative solve that works with the verse and the image. It is not in whitepoint park and I can point to a very small area for the probing.
Let me know. Thx a million.

Wow, Charleston AND NYC!!

I don’t know if it is related or just a weird coincidence, but this sandbar just south of Charleston looks a lot like the fairy’s wings.

is the butterfly lady a slave,last pic in set
could BP have seen a similar pic
http://www.scribd.com/doc/2541625/The-Slave-Plantations
jpeg
http://negroartist.com/SLAVE%20SALES%20 … 0s_jpg.htm

cw0909

so if the pillory, was put there in 2006, where did it come from, or is it a replica
maybe need to call again, would they let you see the docs on the info

Yes they said they put it in during a renovation then (2006 I think). I don’t think it was moved from somewhere (I.e. An original piece). To me it sounds like it was constructed but I can’t say. I can call them again but I’m just not sure entirely on the location itself. What do you guys think?
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cw0909

the one at Charleston Battery Museum, is a replica
http://www.flickr.com/photos/51744281@N08/4870759814/

Yeah I think that is the Powder Magazine-the surroundings in the pic from the site matches the one I took above. I haven’t been inside there but I don’t think there would be much digging *allowed* there either.
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Did someone mention at one point that Preiss liked or preferred more obscure places to hide the casques? Or was that just implied from the two found?
Reason I ask is, there could be many specific potential dog spots ruled out for Charleston if the he preferred obscure (not big/flashy/historical spots)…
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tjgrey

Did someone mention at one point that Preiss liked or preferred more obscure places to hide the casques? Or was that just implied from the two found?
Reason I ask is, there could be many specific potential dog spots ruled out for Charleston if the he preferred obscure (not big/flashy/historical spots)…
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Other than the Preiss’ listed exceptions for flower gardens and cemeteries, nothing is specifically mentioned, no.  At the same time though, we do know that he was burying the casks covertly, so I do consider the implications Preiss would have had to think about in terms of leaving a busted up patch of sod in a high traffic area.
Pure speculation, but had I been Preiss, I would have been very concerned about someone randomly stumbling upon a “disturbed” area and checking it out without necessarily knowing anything about the hunt.
There’s an annual treasure hunt in my city involving a silver medallion and a similar situation has actually happened in the past (i.e. Someone not involved with the hunt uncovered the medallion and ended the game due to chancing upon it).

tjgrey

Did someone mention at one point that Preiss liked or preferred more obscure places to hide the casques? Or was that just implied from the two found?
Reason I ask is, there could be many specific potential dog spots ruled out for Charleston if the he preferred obscure (not big/flashy/historical spots)…
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Tapatalk

i dont think obscure was his intention, maybe the challenge ,if you look at these 2 views
i think if someone was looking they could see you, front and back
http://goo.gl/maps/0NmYH
http://goo.gl/maps/IHIGn

gajojo, that is a cool reference. She could definitely be the inspiration for our Charleston woman. Nice catch.

gajojo

Animal Painter posted a picture on Oct 18, 2009 post, 6:38 pm. It is on page 25 of this thread.

Looking for some help with this solve:
I’m trying to take out my eyeballs, do I want to use a flathead screwdriver or a hexagonal socket wrench?
Thanks in advance, Preiss was really ambiguous about this part of the puzzle

try a drumstick.

to me, since the lion is so prominent in the picture, that has to be king street, and the mask could be for city hall (judicial) or for the hangings at white point gardens. don’t you think the lady ends at white point gardens? like you go past city hall (if the mask is for city hall)?
couldn’t the mask just be the skull and crossbones for pirates?….
why do they call it “gardens” instead of garden?  (there’s our pair/pear, lol)
don’t know why i never thought of this
flag
on this statue, it’s the one with the “palm” tree and moon and his “palm”, i think.
http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/e … DSCN2288(2
).JPG
“The brave deeds of our local heroes are memorialized here as well. During the time of the American Revolution, South Carolina troops repelled the Royal Navy in an attack on Fort Moultrie. During the battle, a shot brought down the indigo-blue
flag
of the newly created state. Sgt. William Jasper grabbed a gun sponger, attached the flag to it and braved heavy fire to mount it in the face of the enemy. A monument stands in his honor today in White Point Gardens.”
also, i believe it says on the monument “don’t let us fight without a
flag
“
this picture shows bandstand, simms and jasper all in a row:
http://flickr.com/photos/bobindrums/1553750213/
not sure where the fountain is for “hear”
“stand” could also just be for band”stand”
okay, i guess researching the fairies didn’t get us any closer, i’m right back where cthree started years ago…….but i do believe she found the right place, just a matter of someone finding the exact spot.
maybe it’s on the side of the jasper monument facing the water fountain..
washington park and marion square park both close to king street and washington park has going for it that it’s named after a president, but….because of the “gardengoyle” from the guide, i like white point gardens, and white point gardens was designed by olmsted.

forest_blight

The book is not specific about precisely who named their children after Blyden, but it was definitely not Blyden himself. A pair of twins born in Charleston during one of his visits were named in his honor. Perhaps the only important detail from this whole Blyden issue is that it occurred in Charleston, thus further nailing the city. If so, it doesn’t help us much (except to link the V and P) because we already knew about Charleston.

Let us not also forget Edwin HARLESTON (like Charleston without the C) who was a famous African American painter living at the time, who adopted his neice and RE-named her Edwina (after himself). So you could have “Edwin, and Edwina named after him.”
There is plenty of information on Harleston on line. Some of his paintings are located in the Old Slave Mart, in Charleston–which could be a likely locaiton for a casque burial.
http://www.artfact.com/auction-lot/edwin-a.-harleston-1882-1931-servant-and-child-6-c-l78sdsn2ci

fox

Using somethings shadow to pinpoint a dig location is a little ridiculous I think.  That means that there would be only ONE day per year to dig the thing up.  Not buying it.

But that was the solution to the original Masquerade. However, Preiss may have not known that when he created this hunt.

erexere

I was wondering, are you implying that BP wouldn’t have this method because it predates the solution to Masquerade?

If you like, I will imply that he wouldnt use this method–
because it doesnt match the other two solved puzzles. and while I beleive there is room for variance in the solutions, I am sure that the general methodology is the same from casque to casque

Doing the math on the clock angle needed some extra care, since the hour and minute hands move at different rates.  The idea of 1913 being the military time version of 7:13 is very interesting since the Sumter clock reads a time of just about 4 o’clock.  The angle of the arms at 7:13 is 138.5 degrees with respect to each other.  The clock time where the same angle is reached and the hour hand is nearest the 4 o’clock mark is between 3:56 and 3:57.  This looks nearly undisputable as a point to consider.  Verse goes with image.  138.5 degrees may be related to a sun position for the shadow we are looking for.
I’ve included the length of the distance to the other lighthouse.  It looks like BP must’ve wanted to choose a time that fits the shadow length of the same distance.  Pretty cool.
I didn’t expect it to look like that or go in that direction.  I worked out everything under some distraction and haven’t double checked my work.  I did think it through carefully before I started plugging in numbers.  Here is my accounting:
Used May 1st 1980, 15:56 (almost 4pm) as my solar reference.
Used 37 degree elevation, 265 degrees.
Used taller lighthouse for the shadow based on the line ‘between two arms extended’.
Shadow length is about 200ft and that happens to be the distance between lighthouses, perhaps that coincidence lends some sense to this particular setup.
Apparently the corner of a house or whats left of it is at this position. Looks like that is the ‘white house at hand’.  The spot looks like it may have been right at the outside corner of the white picket fence.

Im not that familiar with masquerade.  Was the idea to use sun position in that hunt obvious and the trick more about finding where to apply it?
Attn, fox, and all, I know my presentation and process in handling this is non-traditional or flawed for abandoning the recommended background information.  I hope I’m at least right in my approach and if there are mistakes that they are only in the execution. My math is terribly sloppy these days.  With the clock-angle problem, I didn’t catch at first that angle changes with both hands at different rates.  Maybe it sounds simple, maybe it’s not, my brain was spinning just thinking about some interesting angle-time problems.  Anyways, not trying to sound defensive, it’s great that I’m at least in a 33/79 lat/long vicinity.
With the construction of this problem, theme lends a hand in putting my focus on “eyes of old”, and then Cyclops, and then lighthouse, combined with twins, and the image clue with sphere and outline supplies me with a sun/shadow type of problem.  Anyone setting up this kind of problem would know there is lots of variation and dependency with the process.  The Sun might seem fickle, but light never lies.  And if you are going to argue that light doesn’t always follow a straight line then you’re going to bring up more complicated mechanics than this hunt is concerned with, like gravity and curved space.  If you don’t like the Sun problem and you just make a really simplifying assumption that “between two arms extended” and the fraternal twins is just your left and right arm of equal length.  Follow a line that bisects the two lighthouses and look for a reasonable point…then you might find the fence corner where the tall lighthouse to the left is at the same distance from the shorter lighthouse to the right.  It’s at least an isosceles if not an equalateral triangle.  I expect something at that point confirms in the image…but I don’t know for sure what buildings were standing 30 years ago.  This place has gone straight from seed to jungle.
Reengineering the problem from this fence corner gives me a specific angle and distance from the tall lighthouse.  Looking that up in the Farmer’s Almanac (now don’t even try to argue that is an obscure book…and if you’ve never bought one yourself, don’t bother complaining about me not yet purchasing The Secret -I’m buying both actually) tells us a specific time and date…19:13 is the Sunset on May 17th for which the distance from lighthouse describes an angle consistent with the Sun’s elevation.  The perfect execution of this selection of coordinates is very noticeable as intentional and therefore something BP mustve been proud about.  See for yourself.
I’ve convinced myself after double and triple checking that the fence corner might not be the spot.  My latest image choice shares a much more accurate spot consistent with an equilateral triangle.  If it is at the fence post than “eye-saw-sol-ease” it is…ooh, that’s a nasty little phonic-pun.

Using somethings shadow to pinpoint a dig location is a little ridiculous I think.  That means that there would be only ONE day per year to dig the thing up.  Not buying it.

fox

Using somethings shadow to pinpoint a dig location is a little ridiculous I think.  That means that there would be only ONE day per year to dig the thing up.  Not buying it.

Good point, but it isn’t necessarily the pinpoint mechanism.  I think it is designed to narrow it down to that fence corner.  We can use any day of May in any year and have a twenty foot (im estimating) diameter circle based on the 4pm sun position.  Also, it’s not based on having to be there at the time the shadow is there, it requires only a farmers almanac a pencil, and a compass would be most helpful, then you can go there any day any time.
Its the fence corner.  This is looking a lot like the Chicago dig at this point…ten by thirteen sound familiar?
But look at this site…it has just two short tour windows a year, mid spring and fall and it is one heck of a gnarly looking area.  Not looking fun.

Why do you think the sun’s shadow has anything to do with it at all?

bigmattyh

Why do you think the sun’s shadow has anything to do with it at all?

The outline of a tower structure over the Charleston map and the sphere shape to the upper left of that.

So sphere = sun?

Unknown

Unknown:
The first known observance of a Memorial Day-type observance was in Charleston, South Carolina on May 1, 1865; freedmen (freed slaves) commemorated and celebrated at the Washington Race Course, today the location of Hampton Park. 257 Union soldiers had been buried there, and the freedmen labeled the gravesite “Martyrs of the Race Course”.

Yes, it’s really a guess or gut feeling on this one, but the logistics and end product really look good.
I just completed the math on the problem of how much variation you get depending on if you choose May 1st or May 31st and it ends up being about a 25 foot diameter circle.  There has to be some accounting for error at 200ft distance, which is why the fence corner works so well.  Also, someone might’ve used any old day in May, but I chose May 1st because of it’s historical importance to Charleston being the original Memorial Day date.
From wikipedia “Memorial Day”
I just double checked my work and ended up using some more precise numbers and correctly used the 264.9 degree angle.  This is Wikimapia telling me the distance, I’d rather do this on the ground with a compass.  Here is 220 feet this time.  It has to be there, or it’s by the corner of where signs of a fence were.

Required reading for *every* armchair treasure hunter:
1. Masquerade (Kit Williams)
2. Masquerade: The complete Book With the Answer Explained (Kit Williams)
3. Quest for the Golden Hare (Bamber Gascoigne)
In that order.