July 24
Summer Solstice 2010
Puzzle Solution
July 24
The words on the poster say: Corvus flies over the triangle  From the tower to the end

The raven holds a shape in it's beak. (image 1) This is the weathervane at the J C Raulston Arboretum, located on the bathroom structure that is shaped like a tower .

The roman numerals (image2) simply translate to the word 'necessary', which is the name of the  bathroom building at the arboretum.  The image above is of a tile on the porch floor of this building.  Also at the arboretum is a glass pyramid, or triangle.  (In a garden flies A bird of black Follow him To find the plaque)

If one begins at the tile in the necessary (tower), and draws a straight line (as the crow flies) over the triangular glass structure (triangle), it leads the seeker onto the rooftop garden, where the path ends on a covered veranda.  (Follow the flying bird
From the starting square Do not cross the desert The end is in the air.)The next clue is on a brass plaque on a crossbeam overhead.  It is very difficult to see during the afternoon, due to the setting sun, but quite visible in the morning.

The plaque says "Where the Lone Defender Waits".  This refers to  Lt. Walsh, the only confederate soldier killed in defense of Raleigh during the civil war.  He is buried in the Oakwood cemetery. 

A brass plaque concealed in flowers at the gravesite contains the message 'A rebel's true spirit pledging a cause eternally -S. Ford' This statement is an acrostic sentence that spells 'Artspace'.  S. Ford is a confirming clue, because the building now occupied by Artspace was formerly Sanders Ford, and the words are still painted on the side of the building.

At Artspace, the seeker finds a print hanging in the hall that contains an encoded message.  The message is written in a cipher that can be decoded using the same method outlined by Edger Allen Poe (suggested by the raven imagery), in his story "The Gold Bug". (image 4)

Using letter frequency analysis, the 'codex' can be deciphered to give directions from a 'point of beginning'.  The beginning point is indicated by the image of the eye in the pyramid (image 5) suggesting the masonic organization.  The glyphs and numbers within the pyramid image decode to 41 and secnav, a naval acronym for Secretary of the Navy.  The 41st Secretary of the Navy was Josephus Daniels, and his home is now the Masonic Temple on Glenwood Avenue.  The decoded map begins at this location, and leads the seeker through the neighborhood to an underground location, which will remain known only to the players that found it. (image 6) (Courage necessary for the end)

The next clue is written in an archaic alphabet reportedly given by angels to the famous mathematician and occult philosopher of the court of Queen Elizabeth I, Dr. John Dee.  His personal symbol, the monad hieroglyph, appears on the poster (image 7).  This translates to "Seek the Magus  Of the Marsh  In the Wood  Of the Wind".

The key was in the possession of Rodney Marsh at his Very Cool establishment, Marsh Woodwinds.  The required magic word that allowed the key to be won was 'Magus'.





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July 6
The  Winners
July 16
Congratulations Team SLX
1st Place winners - 14 days 2 hours
July 23
2nd Place -Team Bob Loblaw
23 days
July 13
3rd Place Winners: Team Lifepointe
33 days
July 7
Follow the flying bird
From the starting square
Do not cross the desert
The end is in the air.
July 1


The wise man in his tower
Seeking wisdom from the stars
Says travel through the flowers
Toward the setting point of Mars.
June 28
In a garden flies
A bird of black
Follow him
To find the plaque. 


The Solstice Prize
Sandra McEwen's Enamel Pendant
"The Solstice"
Solstice 2010


Summer Solstice Treasure Hunt 2010

When and Where: This Treasure Hunt opens on the Summer Solstice at exactly 7:28 am on June 21, at Five Point's favorite cafe, The Third Place.  The maps will be available then, and I will be there from 7am to 8:30 am to give out free small Summer Solstice Treasure maps and sell the larger Treasure Hunt posters.

Cost: The Summer Solstice Treasure Hunt is free and anyone can play for pleasure.  I hide a silver key in Raleigh, and if you find it you win and keep the key as a prize.   If you purchase a poster (cost: $8.27, includes mailing) and find the key, you can exchange the key for the Grand Prize, the Solstice Pendant . If the First Finder hasn't purchased a poster, no one wins the Grand Prize.

Second and Third Place winners will get a silver key pendant.  There is no purchase necessary to win the little pendant.

The Grand Prize:  The Solstice Pendant is a lovely piece of art jewelry in silver and enamel made by local jewelry artist Sandra McEwen.  You can see her work at www.sandramcewen.com. 

How to play:  The Summer Solstice poster is an image that I have drawn that gives  clues to get you started on the Treasure Hunt to find the hidden silver key.  You can view the image on the web,  on the free small map, or on the posters that I sell.  The posters are 7.5 inches by 16.5 inches. The free maps will be available at the Third Place and  Ornamentea on West Street in downtown Raleigh for the duration of the Treasure Hunt.

Posters:  The Summer Solstice Treasure Hunt poster can be purchased from me the morning of the summer solstice at the Third Place coffee shop or they can be ordered from my website, RaleighTreasureHunt.com.
WKNC interview Here, half way down the page





Past Winners and Treasure Maps
March 20,2010
Spring Equinox Puzzle
March 21, 2010
Winners Spring Equinox Puzzle: 18 hours
Team Clueless
Second Place
Team Lifepointe
Third Place: Team SLX 

Here is a story about the Spring 2010 Hunt.

 Here
Winter Solstice December 21
The 2009 Fall Equinox Winners
Team SLX
2009


The Fall Equinox Treasure Map 2009
The Key Finders Lisa Lewis, Pat Hall, Matt Casey, Helen Newton, Joy Taylor
2009


Summer Solstice 2009 Map
Summer Solstice 2009



Sandra McEwen finds the key in 26 hours.  Congratulations!
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