Treasure: In Search of the Golden Horse is a treasure hunting puzzle published in 1984 by an Intravision production company. It was conceived as a story-based contest by filmmaker Sheldon Renan similar in concept to that of Kit Williams' Masquerade book . The puzzles are presented in two formats, one in an elaborate book illustrated by Jean-Francois Podevin and published by Warner Books, and another an instant-to-video movie filmed by Renan and starring Doryan Dean with Elisha Cook, Jr. in supporting roles. The voice narration was provided by actor Richard Lynch with music by composer Jesse Frederick. The film was first aired on cable television and later sold with VHS, Capacitance Electronic Disc, and Laserdisc format by Vestron Video.
Designed and promoted as a contest, the puzzle asks for treasure seekers to break the stew contained in the story to find the location of a one kilogram gold horse statue buried in public land somewhere within the continent of the United States. The puzzle itself was designed by Paul Hoffman under the pseudonym "Dr. Crypton". The first person who solved the puzzle and dug a horse before the May 26, 1989 deadline would keep the horse and an additional $ 500,000 USD locked in a safe to be opened with a lock hidden inside the statue. The solution is designed to be obtained either by reading a book or watching a video, as all the puzzle formats are considered to be mutually exclusive, despite sharing certain similarities. The contest rules are overseen by an independent advertising agency, D.L. Blair.
Video Treasure: In Search of the Golden Horse
Solution
Although contest promoters claim that poached can be solved within the prescribed timeframe, this does not prove to be the case. The deadline passed without a solution, and the prize was later donated to charity Big Brothers Big Sisters of America. Although the puzzle deadline has passed, neither Paul Hoffman nor the promoters of the contest have not published a solution, and many fans continue their efforts to solve it. Seven months later, Nick Boone and Anthony Castaneda, upon arriving at what is now called the "Captain Nemo" solution for the book, went to Tennessee Pass in Colorado and dug a bottle on the National Forest Service land near the 10th Mountain Division ) military warning. The bottle contains a message of congratulations. Until now, other visitors to the area have not been successful in extracting additional artefacts from the contest.
Controversy surrounds the Boone/Castaneda solution, in part because some of the conclusions reached in their solutions are considered to be against logic or not clearly defined by anything in the puzzle material. Certain comments made by promoters referring to changes to actual burial sites during the production of the contest have led many fans to believe that the change caused the puzzle to be unbreakable, and Boone & Castaneda is guided by the promoter and the results are published to bring closure to the search. The trial process by some contest participants proved fruitless.
Although the contest is formally concluded, the website continues to appear proposing new solutions to the puzzle or its elements. To date, no complete solution has been independently verified, and the promoters have retained the "Captain Nemo" solution as the official conclusion. Some forums exist where fans continue to discuss aspects of the puzzle. Based on comments made by the promoter, rumors continue to circulate among the puzzle-tackling communities of the second silver horse buried together with the unproduced ColecoVision game. No supporting information appears.
Maps Treasure: In Search of the Golden Horse
See also
- Faceless Hour
- Money Hack: Mystery of Missing Link
- Masquerade (book)
- Paul Hoffman (science writer)
External links
- Videodisc CED List for TREASURE
- New York Times Article on hunting conclusions
- New York Times Article about hunting failure
- Pittsburg Post-Gazette Article on hunting conclusions Register
- rec-puzzles.org
- Captain Nemo Solutions
Source of the article : Wikipedia
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