A practice ticket, a guitar case filled with shovels, and a head filled with work and prose -- these items outlined Jeff Lewis’s hunt for buried treasure in Montreal.
The Saint John, NB man believes Montrealers are strolling on the prize every single day.
“I imagine it’s proper right here on this park,” he informed CTV whereas standing in Percy Walters Park, holding a duplicate of the treasure in his fingers.
The reproduction is of a ghoulish-looking casque. Inside, a key, exchangeable for a gemstone value a few $1,000 dollars from an property belonging to an writer’s household.
The writer, Byron Value, wrote an enormously standard guide (by treasure searching requirements) known as “The Secret” in 1982.
It’s a fantasy guide in regards to the immigrant expertise in North America, full of 12 work, and 12 corresponding poems.
Should you can put the suitable poem to the suitable portray, the 2 can be utilized to search out considered one of twelve buried keys.
Up to now, simply three have been positioned.
Rebecca Verdon holds a tough copy of the 1982 guide “The Secret” at Percy Walters Park in Montreal on Might 23, 2022. Many imagine this portray maintain clues to discovering the buried key someplace in Montreal. (Luca Caruso-Moro, CTV Information)
The primary was found in Chicago in 1983 by a trio of teenagers. A kind of teenagers, Eric Gasiorowski, informed the Chicago Tribune the gemstone was stolen within the early 2000s.
The following one was unearthed in Cleveland by a budding lawyer named Brian Zinn who unearthed it throughout a marriage reception in 2004.
Byron, who reportedly anticipated all of his treasures to be discovered inside a matter of years, wouldn’t dwell lengthy sufficient to know simply how lengthy his riddles have endured.
He handed away in a automotive accident in 2005 whereas dwelling in New York. He was 52.
The final of three discovered treasures wouldn’t be discovered till 2019 in Boston by Joshua Gates throughout an episode of Discovery’s “Expedition Unknown.”
Hoping to hitch that lineup of victorious hunters, Lewis strolled into the park, main a gang of fellow searchers into an undisclosed exact location.
“I all the time needed to be a treasure hunter exploring new stuff,” stated nine-year-old Joshua Sommerstein, one of many youthful members of the group, which included his brother and oldsters.
Lewis started by sticking a protracted orange probe into the bottom, feeling for the flat plastic field holding the casque.
Lewis had been pondering of the place the important thing may very well be for a couple of years earlier than arriving on the website. He says he’s felt like he’s had the reply for no less than two years, however the Atlantic bubble saved him from venturing too removed from dwelling.
It’s usually agreed amongst numerous message board customers that the secret is someplace in Montreal.
One key level is an insignia with regards to the portrait’s chest – what seems to be a canine chewing on a deer’s leg.
A particularly related picture may be seen on the base of a lamp publish on the close by George Stephen Home, the previous dwelling of a Scottish-born businessman who immigrated to Montreal in 1850 and made his fortune within the textile business.
Left: a lamp publish stationed on the George Stephen Home. Proper: a better have a look at a piece of Picture 9 from Byron Value’s 1982 guide “The Secret.” (Angela MacKenzie, Luca Caruso-Moro, CTV Information)
A full breakdown of every of the clues may be discovered right here.
A while handed -- extra probing. A person approached them asking in the event that they had been in search of The Secret, and informed them he himself had spent an entire earlier summer time probing the identical space. He wished them luck, and left.
Extra probing, then, discovery.
Lewis had struck the identical depth a number of occasions in the identical patch of dust.
“We heard one thing!” exclaimed Sommerstein, as he and his brother jumped repeatedly, putting the orange stick down into the dust to make a “faucet faucet faucet” on no matter was buried there.
He and Joshua’s father, Keith Sommerstein, turned to their guitar case of digging gear. The probe had already been used, what remained had been shovels of various sizes. Lewis selected a modest spade.
With one knee down, he began to dig.
The group watched, however after digging a few foot deep, Lewis determined to cease.
“Nothing there,” he stated. “Most likely only a rock.”
Only a rock.
He stuffed within the gap, and determined to name it for the day.
“We’ve been right here over two hours probing. The one place that appeared promising was that spot there, however once more, didn’t hit something,” he stated.
“Hey, till the treasure’s discovered, all people’s proper. I’m not going to say I’m fallacious till it’s discovered,” he added. The remainder of the crew didn’t appear too postpone both. It appears the treasure was the journey itself, because it had been.
Rebecca Verdon and Keith Sommerstein, Joshua’s dad and mom, informed CTV the guide has allowed them to rediscover town whereas exploring it with their youngsters in search of clues.
“Its actually only a cool solution to stroll round and to see issues with a special set of eyes,” stated Verdon.
“Like, the entire sudden you uncover issues that you just didn’t know had been round you though you’ve handed that avenue a number of occasions.”
Responding to questions on whether or not he felt disenchanted, Jeff Sommerstein stated he was not.
“No, as a result of its been so lengthy that we’d been wanting, and we all the time know that it may be the following time that we discover it,” he stated. “Possibly subsequent time we’ll go to Westmount.”
“I imply, we didn’t discover something,” stated Sommerstein junior, “however I did play so much with the canines. So, I’m nonetheless glad.”
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