Hunters believe that a treasure is hiding in Montreal and try to find it
A treasure hunter thinks that one of the chests is hidden under the floor of Parc Jean-Drapeau. Impossible to say precisely where it could be hidden.
There is a treasure hidden somewhere in Montreal for over 40 years and treasure hunters are still trying to find it. American author Byron Preiss is said to have hidden treasures in 12 North American cities, and to find them, you must locate and decode the clues hidden in the 12 poems and 12 images in his book The Secret , published in 1982.
Three treasures, in the form of plexiglass chests containing a ceramic key, have already been found in the American cities of Boston, Cleveland and Chicago. Once obtained, the ceramic key can then be exchanged at the publishing house that published Preiss’s work for a gemstone.
A treasure hunter from Laval, Luc Brunelle, is convinced that one of the 12 cities is Montreal, and that the treasure is hidden in Parc Jean-Drapeau, reports Le Devoir. As proof, he mentions in particular the checkerboard patterns, reminiscent of F1 flags, which appear on the clothes of the character in table 9 of Byron Preiss’s work and the shape of his cap, resembling the layout of the Circuit Gilles- Villeneuve. For Mr. Brunelle, these elements are clues that the treasure would be buried in Parc Jean-Drapeau.
The character depicted in the ninth painting of Preiss’s work. His cap, placed upside down, would represent the route of the Gilles-Villeneuve circuit. Photo: Screenshot, The Secret – A treasure hunt
He attempts to connect the ninth tableau to the fifth poem, in which Byron Preiss refers to an arc of light, granite walls, and a wingless bird. These clues could evoke the Circuit Gilles-Villeneuve and F1 cars.
Others believe that the treasure is rather hidden in the Parc du Mont-Royal, while others lean towards Côte-Saint -Luc since the ninth painting of the work would be a self-portrait of the painter Rembrandt, the name of a municipal park.
However, it is prohibited in Montreal to excavate in a park without obtaining a permit from the City. People who would like to go in search of treasure in the city must obtain authorization beforehand.
For the curious, a web page is entirely devoted to treasure hunting inspired by the work of Byron Preiss. The ninth painting appears greatly influenced by Montreal, which suggests that a treasure is hidden here.
