Here’s what we know so far about, ‘On the Trail of the Golden Owl: The Bird of Prey’.
This new treasure hunt will launch in autumn 2025 and is aimed at an international audience. There will be clue books in both French and English. The prize has been designed by famous French jeweller Christofle, and has an estimated value of between €250,000 and €300,000.
Michel Becker said, “Golden Owl 2″ will begin “exactly where the first one was buried.” So should this be assumed to be Dabo in France?
It seems the clues to the new hunt will lead all over the world. Does this imply that like the first owl treasure hunt we draw lines on the map?
An article in a French paper said the hunt is designed by Michel Becker, along with, ‘Aurore Beuron, a 28-year-old engineer and treasure hunting enthusiast, and David Pattyn, a computer scientist-developer who has been designing riddles for quite some time.’
We can assume that picture clues will be an important part of the hunt. It’s my understanding that the design will be similar to the first hunt with perhaps 11 or 12 short clue texts and pictures. Becker suggested the hunt will last, “between 3 and 6 years.” He added, “but I could be wrong.” I guess there’s always a possibility of a 31 year long hunt!
The first clue, labelled ‘0’ was shown at the end of the ‘Discovery of the Golden Owl’ film. It has been circulating online, and is copied here. However, we have been told that this is an early version that is likely to change. Don’t spend too long solving it just yet!
The first clue is officially released in the Golden Owl, ‘Book of Solutions’ out in June 2025.
The image appears to show three stones. This echoes the three Borne Saint-Martin stones that were the ‘sentinels’ of the first treasure hunt.
The text says:
Énigme 0
LA MÉTRIQUE MESURE CE QUE TON PIED SAIT SCANDER
La lumière sourd de la chambre du roi
Visibles sous trois angles, tels des oiseaux tournoyant en orbe autour de leur proie,
ces sentinelles sont prêtes à fondre sur elle.
In English, this translates as:
Riddle 0
The meter measures what your foot knows how to scan
The light seeps from the king’s chamber
Visible from three angles, like birds circling in orbit around their prey,
these sentinels are ready to swoop down upon it.
There are numbers in a grid in the background. Do these have some connection to the numbers used in the solution to the first owl hunt?
So much to think about! I’m excited to see how this new hunt plays out.
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