The riddle of the Golden Owl, this treasure hunt launched in 1993, was solved on Thursday October 3, putting an end to 31 years of mystery. However, another treasure hunt has been launched by the game designer.
Disappointed with the end of the race for the Golden Owl? It is still possible to make up for it with another treasure hunt. While the riddle of the Golden Owl was solved on Thursday October 3, 31 years after it was launched, another game of the same genre is still in progress, launched in 2021 and called the Entente Cordiale treasure hunt . 750,000 euros await the winner.
Launched by Michel Becker, co-organizer of the Chouette d’or, this treasure hunt aims to find the box offered in 1904 by King Edward VII of England to the French president at the time Émile Loubet, at the time of the signing of the Entente Cordiale, which put an end to repeated wars between the French and British. The gold box is estimated at a value of 750,000 euros.
When Michel Becker launches the game, in 2021, he intends to benefit from the success of his first game, “On the trail of the golden owl”. Before being solved, it was the world’s oldest treasure hunt still running after its launch on May 15, 1993.
A game organized in France and the United Kingdom
The Entente Cordiale treasure hunt works on the same principle as that of the Golden Owl. Each participant must solve a series of puzzles in order to find the coveted object.
With this new game, there are some differences despite everything. This time there are 9 puzzles to solve, and no longer 11. The objective this time is to find “a key” which is “divided” into several parts which are “in France and the United Kingdom”. Research must therefore take place across two different countries and no longer just in France.
“A book containing nine illustrated riddles is published in French under the title The Treasure of the Entente Cordiale and allows you to search for the French cache. A second book, published in English under the title The Golden Treasure of the Entente Cordiale allows you to search for the English cache”, specify the creators of the game on the dedicated site.
“Clues and enigmas, different for France and the United Kingdom, have been carefully scattered throughout the pages, allowing the most attentive readers to bring together the fragments of the key in order to unlock the crystal case which contains the treasure” , they develop.
The box obtained at an auction
In 2021, Michel Becker told Ouest France that he got his hands on the gold box “during a relatively confidential auction in Monaco in 2017”.
“Its owner at the time wanted to sell it, but he couldn’t find a buyer,” assures the co-organizer of the treasure hunts, referring to an object that is “a bit kitsch”, despite its historical dimension.
“For me, it’s more of a piece that is intended to end up in a museum,” recognizes Michel Becker, while emphasizing that this game aims to “put it back in the spotlight.”
While waiting for someone to solve all the puzzles, the chest remains kept at Lingot d’Art, in Rochefort-sur-Mer, in Charente-Maritime and is visible to the public.
“Sharpening the minds” of players
Michel Becker explains to West France having used the services of a specialist in this type of treasure hunt, called Vincenzo Bianca, for this game.
“We worked together to develop the game’s plot and both know the locations,” he says. To get their hands on this treasure, Michel Becker assures that participants will have to “search the text and its vocabulary”, despite its “confusing” side.
“The idea is to sharpen the researcher’s mind,” he judges.
“A relaunch” of the game expected
On April 9, the administrators of the Facebook page dedicated to this treasure hunt indicated that while the treasure hunt was launched just three years earlier, “a major relaunch” was planned later this year. .
“New features and possibilities” are also on the program for fans of this treasure hunt.
However, no new information has been disclosed since. Enough to leave fans waiting.
