Two years ago, on Valentine’s Day 2019, the Secret Tribute: Hunt for the 13th Casque was released. This armchair treasure hunt, created by John Michaels and Kit Palencar, is free to all. All the Clues needed to discover the location of the buried key to claim the treasure can be found within an Image and Verse.
The hunt continues to challenge searchers. In the first month numerous ideas and thoughts for a location were being tossed about. And then, a few months into the hunt, one of the main features within the image was matched to The Heigold House in Louisville, Kentucky. This then led to other image matches found within Cherokee Park, which is close to the Heigold House.
The search seemed to have been narrowed in on.
Nonetheless, even with these discoveries, no one has been able to pinpoint the exact spot of the buried treasure and dig it up. Is it buried somewhere in Cherokee Park? Many think it might be because of all the discoveries suggesting it, but no one can be sure.
Sound familiar? It is a Tribute, so maybe we shouldn’t be surprised that it seems to be mimicking The Secret so very well! Many of the remaining casques of The Secret have been narrowed in on as well; but those exact spots continue to be elusive and questioned too!
There is some confusion on exactly what is buried. Initially, an ORIGINAL casque from the famous 1982 The Secret treasure hunt was buried, with key, which would be used to claim over $2,000 in gemstones. However, as time passed, John Michaels became concerned for this historic and very collectible casque being damaged. He decided to return to the site, and replace it with another container. So while the original Secret Casque is not ‘buried’, and is now kept safe from harm, it can still be claimed and will go to the winner of the hunt, along with the jewels.
This original casque alone is priceless! Most likely worth more than the $2,000 in gemstones. The Secret by Bryon Preiss is one of the main armchair treasure hunts of our time. Twelve casques were buried, of which only 3 have ever been found. The other 9 remain yet to be discovered. Countless searchers continue to theorize on where they might be found.
The Tribute has been so well put together by John and Kit, that it is just like the first 12! As intended. The 13th casque seems to be just as difficult to precisely locate as the others! Will The Tribute have a 3rd anniversary? A 5th? What about a 25th? Or a 40th, like some of The Secret casques will soon have?
While many armchair treasure hunts come and go, it is nice to have one that lasts and challenges minds.
Happy Anniversary to the Tribute! Go to the MW Forum for more discussion of clues.
Recap on key features and why thought to be Cherokee Park:
Other articles:
Six Questions with Rich Blandford: In Search of the Casque