Modern Mysteries

World's longest ever treasure hunt ends after more than 31 years

By T.K. Randall
October 5, 2024

Image: Mont Saint-Michel
Credit: Eric G. Olson / CC BY-SA 2.5 (adapted) 31 years ago, French author Regis Hauser buried the prize as a way to help promote his new book - On The Trail of the Golden Owl - which he published at the time under the pseudonym Max Valentin.

The idea was that puzzles found within the book would lead to the location of the hidden golden owl.

At the time, Hauser believed that someone would find the prize pretty quickly, noting that the puzzles weren't actually that difficult and that "if all the searchers put all their knowledge together, the owl would be found in... two hours."

Incredibly, however, the mystery proved so difficult to solve that the hunt for the golden owl would take over 30 years - outliving Hauser himself who died back in 2009.

Because he took the precise location of the owl to his grave, it wasn't until a legal battle ensued between the treasure hunt's co-creater Michel Becker and Hauser's heirs that the answers to the riddles in the book were finally obtained, leading to a resurgence of interest in the mystery.Eventually, after 31 years, 5 months and 9 days, someone finally found the location of the owl.

"We can confirm that the Golden Owl was unearthed last night, simultaneously with a solution upload that was sent to the online verification system," Becker wrote.

"There is therefore no need for you to go digging at the location you assume to be the hiding spot."

For the winner, the effort will certainly have been worth it as the owl, which has diamonds in its head, is believed to be worth around $165,000 USD.

Whether they will actually sell it for the money or keep the owl as a prize, however, remains to be seen.


Source: Gizmodo

Tags: Treasure