Fri Jan 21, 2005 3:45 pm
http://www.encyclopedia.com/html/X/X-manzanit.asp
Fri Jan 21, 2005 4:13 pm
Welcome aboard and no apologies necessary. Getting right to the point, you might be interested in studying the threads entitled “Verse 5”, and “Image 1”.
Verse 5 contains the line to which you refer, and Image 1 is strongly believed to link to SF, particularly Golden Gate Park.
So, jump in, read all (yep) of the threads, and have a good time.
Pine Tree
Fri Jul 15, 2005 9:45 pm
Unknown
Unknown:
Fortunately, my local county provides access to the historical Chicago Tribune (up thru 1984).
Drew said:
I found and posted the article June 27, in the “Image 5” thread.
Here
MP
Fri Jun 24, 2005 1:27 am
Fri Jun 24, 2005 2:07 pm
Fri Jun 24, 2005 2:18 pm
as soon as they could get access to it.
But thats just a memory – I’ve got no source I can point to.
Fri Jun 24, 2005 4:08 am
wilhouse
Fri May 14, 2004 1:04 am
Mark
Fri May 14, 2004 1:33 am
Perhaps the pictures are more literal than we all first thought. Can we get more from the chicago find?
wilhouse
Fri May 21, 2004 4:47 pm
Have you received your jewel yet? If so, what does it look like? Are you going to post a copy of the newspaper article when it comes out?
Fri May 21, 2004 6:22 pm
Fri May 28, 2004 6:48 pm
Fri Nov 19, 2004 7:29 pm
Fri Nov 19, 2004 8:53 am
thanks for the headsup….
Fri Sep 24, 2004 10:53 pm
cant wait to see the pix…
Fri Sep 24, 2004 4:53 pm
It was very funny, since on the way over to NYC, Andy and I were imagining what his office would be like. I thought he would have a big office with papers all over the place. Andy thought that it would be a scene out of Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory, with a room containing half a clock, half a hat, etc. When we walked out of the elevator, we were standing in what was probably a security room, which was all silver — the ceiling, the walls, the floor — I felt like I really was in the chocolate factory! We were ushered into his office — he has about 10 assistants — and there were tens of thousands of books scattered around. He was definitely a very busy man.
I had brought the casque with me, along with the book (Andy brought his book too), and B.Preiss was very pleased to see them. He told us quite a few interesting things over the next 4 hours (!), regarding the casques, the clues, etc., which I will detail below. As for what we actually did, we drove to a bank uptown in his neat little convertible, talking all the way, and went down into the vault.
There was some delay regarding paperwork, since he hadn’t been to the vault in a long time, but he eventually got the safe deposit box out and went into a private booth to look through it. He apparently uses the box for other things, in addition to The Secret. After a few minutes, he finally announced that he has my jewel, and I heard him close the box. I have to tell you that at that moment, I felt the same way that I had felt right before we were about to unearth the casque — it was very exciting. Andy and I were looking at each other, and felt like kids again. I also felt that all of you were in there with us, supporting me, and waiting for the jewel.
He came out of the booth, and handed me the jewel (wrapped in paper and cotton) — very sparkly — I found out later it weighs 2.5 carats. I shook his hand, Andy took a picture of us in the vault with the jewel, and he congratulated me again.
After the bank, we went back near his office for a late lunch, where we talked some more and he inscribed both of our books. At one point, he even took a picture of us with his cellphone, and sent it to his wife (who he was dating in 1982, and who helped him with publicity on the West coast).
Andy and I had enough time afterwards to travel out to Brooklyn, to see if we could find another casque. All in all, it was a thrilling day, which finally brought my 22-year hunt to a close. Something to remember for a lifetime.
(cont’d)
Fri Sep 24, 2004 5:24 pm
Andy and I absorbed a lot of information that B.Preiss had told us about The Secret. I hope I can recall all of it for you here:
1. The Chicago casque was found by 2 young stockbrokers, who lived in Chicago, and had recognized some of the sites and verse references right away. However, at the time, there was some type of renovation occurring, in which a large marble or concrete object had been placed over the burial site. So, they took a picture of it, and sent it to B.Preiss, who acknowledged that as soon as the renovation was finished, the treasure was theirs. He doesn’t recall meeting them, doesn’t have a copy of any newspaper article, but does recall that an article was run in one of the major Chicago newspapers at the time. Flipping through the book, B.Preiss told us that “M and B” stand for Mozart and Beethoven. “Ten by thirteen” refers to feet. “Brush” refers to the Art Museum.
2. I thought that most of the colors on my casque had been washed away, except for 1 creature that I thought looked like an imp. However, none of the 12 casques were fully painted. They were left unpainted, except each one had a different figure painted (there are 12 figures on the casque). My figure is actually the front of a centaur, which is of course contained in the Cleveland pic. B.Preiss did not recall what had been painted underneath the cover (which is in many pieces), but he believes that it may have said “The Secret.” Each key looks the same, but they are different colors (mine is orange).
3. B.Preiss had buried all of the casques over the course of only several days — carrying all of them in a large duffle bag, and armed with a shovel. He researched the sites generally from New York, but then researched each site locally once he got there. He took pics of all of the sites. After they were all buried, he created the puzzles and had John Palencar paint the pics (B.Preiss worked with him to guide J.Palencar as to what to put into the pics). After that, he purchased the jewels, all from 1 jeweler.
4. From the Cleveland pic, he said that we got all of the clues. “Birch” referred to a birch tree that had been there. “Couplet” had referred to a nearby poem (although Andy and I do not recall any nearby). “Free speech” refers to Socrates.
5. B.Preiss was a very good poker player, and was not giving out any hints about any of the other locations. However, he did confirm my theory that the countries of origin of the faeries do connect with the sites. He also said that the pages following the verses (which make up the bulk of the book) have NO connection with the puzzles, and contain no additional clues.
6. This last part will sadden quite a few of you. Mr. Preiss would like it to be known that he will no longer respond to emails regarding proposed solutions (or asking for hints) — and that he will only respond to actual pictures of casques. I am sad to report that he is a busy businessman, and this is not very important to him any more. I would like to point out, however, that although getting the jewel and meeting B.Preiss was nice, the best part of my adventure was solving the puzzle, traveling to Cleveland, and finding the treasure. You should keep in mind that you are doing this to achieve a personal satisfaction — solving a 22-year-old conundrum — and not just to get a jewel. The journey is more fun than the destination.
I hope I remembered everything — if I think of anything else, I’ll let you know. Good luck in your quests.
Fri Sep 24, 2004 8:42 pm
But from your message above, it appears that I have to get out a sledgehammer…
wilhouse
Mon Aug 02, 2004 9:54 am
Mon Jul 19, 2004 5:16 pm
Mon Jul 19, 2004 8:17 pm
Mon Jun 14, 2004 11:15 pm
http://www.angelfire.com/dragon/egbert/secret.html
Mon Jun 14, 2004 11:38 pm
Here is the PD article:
http://www.cleveland.com/sundaymag/plai … 842130.xml
Mon Jun 14, 2004 11:46 pm
hey I even got a mention!
now Im inspired to go dig some more….
Mon May 10, 2004 5:43 pm
Mon May 10, 2004 6:19 pm
Speech! Speech! Speech!
Mon May 10, 2004 8:19 pm
Mon May 10, 2004 8:32 pm
How did you go about getting approval to dig? It looks like you had to take up stones (or thought you had to take up stones) to get to the casque!
Mon May 10, 2004 8:33 pm
Mon May 10, 2004 8:52 pm
!!!!
I cant believe after all the years casque #2 has finally been located. That is FANTASTIC. Do not feel you have to abandon the boards because you found a casque…no way, no how. Well guys, this confirms it……we ARE making progress. Cant wait to see more pics and hear the details Eg.
2 down, 10 to go………..
Mon May 10, 2004 9:06 pm
Chris.
Mon May 10, 2004 9:35 pm
Mon Nov 15, 2004 12:09 am
Mon Nov 15, 2004 7:56 pm
Also, by way of celebration, I finally got my very own copy of The Secret from Alibris. About $40 plus shipping, and they had a few others.
Pine
Mon Sep 27, 2004 11:10 pm
Unknown
Unknown:
Remember we are looking for needles in haystacks not haystacks with needles in them.
I couldnt have said it better Fenix. We may have found 1 or more haystacks….so…if that is the case, we need to focus more on the P’s & V’s and zoom in on the site.
Sandpiper, I think it may have been mentioned before but… how about finding someone on these boards near your site theory & have them take a look for you? Maybe it is time to spill your ideas (as have all on these boards) so another casque can be found. Who knows, maybe your idea has come up before by others here and have turned out to be way off….
Sat May 15, 2004 10:44 am
Two down…10 to go…!
Dan
Sat Nov 20, 2004 5:37 am
Sat Sep 25, 2004 11:43 pm
Sat Sep 25, 2004 12:02 am
here is his email, verbatim.
wilhouse
<-----Original Message----->
From:
[email protected]
Sent: 9/24/2004 2:33:40 PM
To:
[email protected]
Subject: Re: Secret, Houston, One Last Try
I am sorry. As I told Egbert, in light of the volume of inquiries about the secret after his discovery, I can only accept the actual treasure box for redemption. This is 22-years old and I do not have the time to answer all of the emails and queries, even accompanied by photos.
With much apologies, Byron
Sat Sep 25, 2004 2:48 pm
Of course, unburied treasure would be swell too.
Sat Sep 25, 2004 7:35 am
Unknown
Unknown:
I would like to point out, however, that although getting the jewel and meeting B.Preiss was nice, the best part of my adventure was solving the puzzle, traveling to Cleveland, and finding the treasure. You should keep in mind that you are doing this to achieve a personal satisfaction — solving a 22-year-old conundrum — and not just to get a jewel. The journey is more fun than the destination.
I am glad. Im glad that Eg got his jewel. I’m glad we finally have a modern guideline set by the man himself. Dig up a casque–get a jewel. Otherwise, keep digging. I am made glad by Egs words at the end of his report to us:
I am glad.
Sat Sep 25, 2004 7:58 pm
wilhouse
Sat Sep 25, 2004 8:02 pm
Sun Sep 26, 2004 2:15 am
wilhouse
Sun Sep 26, 2004 5:41 pm
Sun Sep 26, 2004 6:43 pm
wilhouse
Thu Jul 29, 2004 1:31 am
Thu Jun 03, 2004 11:41 am
EDIT:http://www.quest4treasure.co.uk/yabb/cgi-bin/yabb/YaBB.cgi?board=Secret&action=display#=1050108952
Great job! 🙂
Thu Jun 23, 2005 11:07 pm
I wonder… does that imply that the Chicago casque is still buried, even though the emerald is no longer available? Or was the casque dug up after the renovations were over? Does anyone know
for sure
?
Thu Jun 30, 2005 4:59 pm
I would still love to see the article, though — I am amazed that the finders did not find this bulletin board.
Thu May 13, 2004 3:17 am
Tue Jul 12, 2005 9:22 pm
forest_blight
I will mount a search soon for the article in the Chicago Tribune (UNC has microfilms). If it’s the Sun-Times, I don’t think I will be able to find it. Does 1982-1984 sound like a reasonable range to search?
Chicago Tribune, August 9, 1983, page B1
Fortunately, my local county provides access to the historical Chicago Tribune (up thru 1984).
Drew
Tue Jul 27, 2004 3:55 pm
On your link, Loph, it says that the Cleveland photos are no longer there.
Tue Jul 27, 2004 7:19 am
Also, theres a pic of me doing my best Egbert impression with my arms stretched out. im really starting to get a feel for where these things are going to be buried, now that ive visited the sites of both discovered casques. i was really disappointed by how poorly kept the gardens where, werent you Egbert?? i was thinking there would be beautiful flowers and what not, but nothing. another thing that struck me as kind of funny, was that if you were looking at the picture where you can see the pillars and the wall, if you turn around 180 degrees, its a normal residential neighborhood. so i thought it would have been funny if someone that lived right across the street had figured this pic out and just hopped across the road to dig it up. anyway, hope you enjoy the pics. keep us posted Egbert on the status of that jewel. later all
link for the pics: http://community.webshots.com/user/loph78
Tue Jun 15, 2004 11:21 pm
Tue Jun 15, 2004 1:33 am
Tue Jun 15, 2004 1:37 am
wilhouse
Tue Jun 15, 2004 3:38 pm
One thing which appears to have been left out is how invaluable my friend Andy was on the quest. Although he was portrayed like my “sidekick” in the story, he actually was very much into solving the puzzle. He was the first one who figured out the “7 steps up you can hop,” and we talked a lot about The Secret in the car before we got there. I am hoping he posts on the board, because he has a lot of other good ideas about some of the other treasures. I thought I was finished after I found this casque, but Andy is not making it easy on me!
I think I have treasure-hunting in my blood!
I heard through the reporter that Byron Preiss confirmed that “we got all the clues,” so that must include the latitude and longitude. Byron Preiss was going from memory, however, since the solutions are locked in the vault with the jewels.
Come on Andy — post something!
Tue Jun 15, 2004 4:45 am
Wonderful article! And thank you for your very gracious and generous mention of all involved. You are truly a gentleman.
I hope everyone on this board can get together for a celebration in the future. Perhaps we can do so two months from now, after all the treasures have been found.
–Johann
Tue Jun 15, 2004 4:46 pm
I’m new to the board. I bought the Secret right around the time I started High school.(mid 80’s). To be honest I did not think that the treasure hunt was real. I mean if you look in the back of the book at the forms, there’s a form for sightings of the fair people. Its a great little book, and the puzzles are very challenging. Imagine my surprise when I opened my Sunday PD “oh, hey I have that book….WHAT, the treasure hunt is REAL!!! AND WAS FOUND IN MY TOWN!! 😮
Of course I went digging to find my copy of the book, and I’m very syked to join in on the quest(s).
A big congrats to Egbert for a job well done!!
Tue Jun 15, 2004 5:46 pm
[email protected]
Thanks!
Tue Jun 15, 2004 6:27 pm
Tue Jun 15, 2004 8:48 pm
Tue Jun 15, 2004 9:06 pm
Tue May 11, 2004 11:46 pm
any comments?
wilhouse
Tue May 11, 2004 12:07 am
wilhouse.
Tue May 11, 2004 1:18 am
! Just awesome. Hopefully we’ll have another one down next week, when i go to Boston. This just gave me a huge serge of confidence. If anyone has any more ideas on the Boston one, im all ears. Something strange that i did see in the pics that were posted, on one of the stone plates, that had all the greek names, i saw Xenophon and Thucydides. Doubt theres a connection, but just strange none the less. Again, GREAT work, and lets get another one next week
!
Todd
Tue May 11, 2004 1:37 am
wilhouse
Tue May 11, 2004 1:53 am
wilhouse
Tue May 11, 2004 2:14 am
I was in Michigan for four days at a conference and was unable to check the board until now. The word “Congratulations” seems so inadequate after a success 25 years in the making. This is exciting!
And, your desire to help the rest of us shows you to truly be a gentleman.
Fantastic work!
–Johann
Tue May 11, 2004 4:11 am
How does finding a casque mean you get the painting?
Tue May 11, 2004 6:13 am
I thought I read that you get the painting, but I guess not.
wilhouse.
Tue Sep 28, 2004 11:04 am
– city hall tower roofs, viewed from a certain direction
– “Mill-Walk-Key”
– by elimination we determined that this is the picture for the German fairies jewel, the Amethyst, and Milwaukee has a large German immigrant population
What could be the “wingless bird ascended” of verse 5?
an ostrich, emu, kiwi? or a rocket? i like your helicopter explanation because of Leonardo’s “ancient dreams of flight”!
Tue Sep 28, 2004 12:49 am
I propose that the P/V sets have a structure something like this:
Level 1: Something in the picture gets you to the city. Maybe it’s lat/long, maybe it’s the name (MillWalkKey).
Level 2: There’s a “landmark” in the picture that confirms the city. This landmark is something pretty permanent, like a statue, prominent building, or geologic feature.
Level 3: Information in the verse acts to narrow your search to a particular part of the city.
Level 4: Information in the verse “walks” you through a few locally identifiable items (text on monuments, et cetera) or pathways to get you very close to the casque site.
Level 5: Something in the picture is the final landmark. Perhaps it is even specific enough that you should be able to lay your hand on this landmark when standing atop the casque, like the Greek wall in Cleveland or the fence post in Chicago (both of which were depicted somewhat abstractly, and within archways, by the way).
Level 6: Something in the verse may add the final specificity to the dig site in relation to the final landmark (stone counts in Cleveland, for instance).
Mixed within these rough levels are probably more, and there may certainly be construction differences between the pictures, but I’m proposing this as a framework to build on as we pry the P/V clues apart If any of you think it’s worth it, maybe we could start trying to fill in the blanks for each casque.
Clearly we are going down lots of promising paths already, but if there indeed is a framework, we may be well served to try to look for particular pieces of information.
Pine Tree
Tue Sep 28, 2004 2:28 am
I think that in some cases, the verse is specific (Eg’s “hop up”), in some cases cryptic (verse 1, small, split, three winged and slight).
You would think that the combination would be specific, but 22 years later, who knows.
wilhouse
Tue Sep 28, 2004 3:49 am
Verse 5 – Image 10
Now this may be way off base but I have done quite a bit of investigation into this so please hear me out…
In image 10 we see the following…
1. A lady juggling what appears to be 2 red balls ( symbolizing cherry tomatos )?… a key ( to a cell ) … a walking stick ( or maybe a putter ) and flower ( looks just like a California Poppy ( same amount of leaves and center and color ) ) a waterwheel ( or a movie reel ) and a gem ( that of which is purplelish blue in color. Benitoite is one of the only gems I can find that resembles this color, and it too is California’s state gem. In the distance we see a building with two towers or an island with two towers. Now… I have seen that people are looking at the woman’s neckline in reference to something like a lake or waterway… but do this… flip the image vertically… and look at the woman’s hair near the blue hood surrounding her head… looks just like California doesn’t it?
Noting that in all of the solved Verses and Picture combonations thus far ( only 2 ), the picture of the state it resided in was in the picture. I put this theory into action and found this state in this picture as well as another one I will discuss in my next discussion.
Verse 5
Lane
Two twenty two
You’ll see an arc of lights
Weight and roots extended
Together saved the site
Of granite walls
Wind swept halls
Citadel in the night
A wingless bird ascended
Born of ancient dreams of flight
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.
Lane – this I have yet to figure out where it fits but am still working on it
Two twenty two or ( 222 ) now this gets a little interesting… if you do a search on the internet for lane 222 in California with Alcatraz you will get a result that says the lowest number of inmates ever at Alcatraz was 222.
You’ll see an arc of lights… the San Fransico Golden Gate Bridge is lit up with lights at night which are in an arc formation from tower to tower and you would only see this at night being when I presume Mr. Priess buried his casques to not be seen.
Weight and roots extended, together saved this site… Alcatras is one of the only landmarks in California to have survied countless earthquakes and still remains intact to this day and it is a rock with roots of plants holding it all together.
Of granite walls, Wind swept halls, Citadel in the night… Yes… Alcatraz was made of granite and yes… nobody is there the really keep it clean anymore… except the wind sweeping the halls… also noted that Alcatraz was orignally a Citadel… not a prison. When it was a Citadel… they put a lighthouse on it to warn ships comming into the harbor… but with California’s great fog they could not see the light so a BELL tower was built to ring to warn on comming ships. It later collapsed and was never rebuilt. Note the bell in her right hand!
A wingless bird ascended, Born of ancient dreams of flight… Leonardo Da Vinci drew up the plans for a helecopter 500 years or so before it was ever built… kinda ancient there eh? It is considered to be a wingless bird… and go figure Alcatraz has a Helicopter Pad.
Beneath the only standing member, Of a forest… now this one is kinda weird for there was a park built on the island for the inmates wives and kids to play and relax in while waiting to be taken back to the mainland and it would appear that there are only a few trees there…. but was there only one main tree and several other small trees that grew? Or was if originally covered with trees and they chopped them all down to build a citadel and then a couple or one grew back? Note there is what appears to be bushes or something on the island in the picture on the end of the island!
White stone closest at twelve paces… the buildings on Alcatraz are made of a white stone.
GET PERMISSION TO DIG IT OUT… you can only go to Alcatraz on tours now… and note… researching the internet it is about a 3 week wait to get a ticket to get out there! There is a limit where you can go on the island and it is a National Park so you would need permission if you wanted to start digging there.
This is my research and I of course am very open to discussion about it… I do have to say that I also do agree with parts of the Millwalkee theory for image 10… but am more inclined to the Alcatraz theory. I will put my other picture verse combonation up in the near future.
Tue Sep 28, 2004 5:25 pm
Sandpiper–thanks for sharing your theory with us. I thought this verse might be related to South Carolina–because that Citadel also withstood an earthquake–but you have given us something else to think about.
Tue Sep 28, 2004 9:28 pm
Pine Tree, I think you are right on the money with your puzzle construction. Until another P/V is solved with BP tossing in another type puzzle, it seems logical to follow your list for now.
Wed Jun 16, 2004 2:12 am
I got a mention!!!
Super cool!!!!!
Thanks
Mark
Wed Jun 16, 2004 6:37 pm
As some of you will appreciate, I was sure that the picture indicated Philadelphia. Having been proven wrong, I’m looking at all the other pictures with new eyes.
Wed May 12, 2004 11:51 am
Wed May 12, 2004 12:01 am
The wall is prominently featured in the painting.
directly above the wall fountain and the pillars.
Wed May 12, 2004 1:38 am
wilhouse
Wed May 12, 2004 5:07 pm
Unknown
Unknown:
I guess when I look at that picture, it doesn’t look like the wall with the concourses and bricks. but it doesn’t look like the wall around the fountain either.
wilhouse
Maybe your just not looking at what I’m looking at.
here- picture 4 with real locations overlayed…
http://www.papermodeler.com/images/pix4.jpg
Wed May 12, 2004 5:35 pm
wilhouse
Wed May 12, 2004 7:50 am
Time to start reanalyzing the P’s
Wed Nov 10, 2004 5:47 pm
http://www.treasurestroves.com/
Mark Parry may want to start a new thread on this.
Wed Nov 10, 2004 8:28 pm
http://www.atreasurestrove.com/
Treasures Troves plural, A Treasure’s Trove singular, what shall we call the new forum — cuz you KNOW we’ll need one
I’m recruiting my old Merlin Mystery pals for this one
Wed Sep 29, 2004 12:25 am
Maybe this form doesn’t work for all of the P/V sets, but it seems to work with Chicago and Cleveland, and so it’s reasonable to assume that it would work for at least some of the others.
Anyway, if it’s real, this gives us tangible objects to look for.
In the case of the site landmark, this would actually be an object that you can literally touch when your feet are atop the casque.
But I’ve gotta say that P8 (Houston) is frustrating me on this, because the area that I’ve proposed to wilhouse for one of his future digs seems to lack anything that fits my “landmark” descriptions…
Pine Tree
Wed Sep 29, 2004 12:37 am
perhaps thats what the thing under the table is…