Tired of watching The Curse of Oak Island, putting together puzzles, or choreographing your next Tik Tok dance routine? Now is the time to be the armchair detective you’ve dreamed of.
Dust off your treasure hunting skills. You don’t even have to leave your house.
What you do need is the book, The Secret: A Treasure Hunt. The brainchild of Byron Priess.
Not to be confused with the self-help book by the same name by Rhonda Byrne.
The book was out of print for a few years but is now online for a reasonable price. You can also piece together clues online in treasure junkie chat rooms.
Byron Preiss was a writer and publisher born in Brooklyn, New York. He published children’s books by celebrities like Jay Leno, Billy Crystal, and Jerry Seinfeld. He got the idea for The Secret: A Treasure Hunt after reading a popular treasure hunting book from England.
In 1982, Byron Priess published his puzzle book that combined 12 fantasy paintings created by John Palencar with 12 written verses. If you can figure out the paintings and the verses, then you might find the treasure.
The twelve treasures can be found by deciphering the clues in the painting and with the book verses. Each treasure is a hand-painted casque and a ceramic key. Each key represents a jewel that is given to whoever finds the key and casque. The value of the jewel is said to be between five hundred dollars to a thousand dollars. However, it’s not about the money.
Priess buried 12 boxes in 12 cities around North America. He went to great lengths to hide his treasures. He disguised himself while burying the boxes and then released his book with clues on how to find them. There is also a fantasy story that weaves through the book like a Renaissance Fair on acid. The story is about the Fair People who show the reader the mystery and magic of their treasures. The book can be confusing and it is easier to just stick to the pictures.
Every treasure is buried underground no more than three and a half feet. The casques are protected by clear boxes sealed to keep out the elements. There are a few tips in the back of the book which state that no treasure is buried near a dangerous place; like in a tiger’s cage in Florida. Treasure hunters are instructed to write to Priess Publications if they have any questions. There is now an email contact included in the back of the book.
The book does not tell you exactly where the locations are but most seem to be in state parks. The locations are accessible but you might feel strange carrying around equipment like a pickaxe. It might be wise to scope out the locations first.
For example: In Verse 7, the painting of a lady standing next to a rose and clock points to San Francisco, California. The window in the rock may refer to the garden of Shakespeare’s Flowers in Golden Gate Park. The outline of the woman’s shoulders and arms also points to the Garden of Shakespeare Flowers. Other clues point to a staircase and a dirt path. So far number 7 has not been located.
The Fair People have done a good job. The treasures seem impossible to find. However, three of the treasures have already been found but there are nine left. The first treasure was found in Chicago, Illinois in 1984. The second treasure was not found until 2004, in Ohio. The third treasure was found in Massachusetts in 2019. It was filmed for the show Expedition Unknown on the Discovery Channel.
Sadly, Byron Preiss died in a car accident in 2005 on Long Island, New York. He took all the remaining secrets with him. He left behind a legacy that is still going strong. His spirit lives on in his book and in the minds of the next generation of treasure hunters.