What does a cursed clock, twelve jeweled numbers hidden across the United States, and a puzzle book all have in common? They are all a part of the very same 2010 armchair treasure hunt book called The Clock Without a Face, written by Eli Horowitz and Mac Barnett with illustrations by Scott Teplin.

The basic plot of the book revolves around the theft of twelve jeweled numbers from the face of “the Emerald Khroniker”: a cursed clock that adorned a multi-floor apartment building. Clues to the thief’s identity and the whereabouts of the numbers are sprinkled throughout the text and in the accompanying pictures.

The Clock Without a Face has been described as “a treasure hunt, that is bright, with detailed illustrations that are fun to sift through and have an almost endless potential for clues, but the final solutions are ambiguous and unsatisfying.” There is a lot to unpack from this hunt so let’s start with a little more of a broader outline of the book.

The puzzle takes place with a couple of narrators, a detective named Roy Dodge and his assistant Gus Twintig. The detectives have been summoned to interview the dozen residents of the apartment building at 23 Glyph Street and investigate the theft of the 12 emerald-encrusted numbers from The Emerald Khroniker, the cursed clock that is on top of the building.

Each of the twelve numbers that were hidden around the country were handcrafted by the New York jewelry designer Anna Sheffield and each was made with real emeralds on a solid backing. Each of the numbers had a different implied backstory.

One was purported to be from the quiet halls of a Tibetan monastery, one was said to be lifted from the buckle of an unknown pirate’s shoe. Yet another was allegedly made from the bottle of a Venetian glass blower.

There were two main components of the book that the reader was tasked with ‘finding’. The first, or as many have said, the easy part are the missing objects from each floor. The residents of each of the floors 1 through 12 claim to have been robbed by a pair of men dressed as gorillas and each of them has had a special object stolen from their floor. These objects were actually hidden on one of the other floor images. Finding the hidden objects was not part of the actual treasure hunt and it did not lead you to any of the buried treasure, but it was a lot of fun, almost like a mini treasure hunt inside a bigger treasure hunt.

Part two of the puzzle book was where the real world treasure hunt began. For this part there were two important clues that helped determine the nature of the puzzle, the most important being the Fifth floor image. In this image there is a meta-copy of the Clock Without a Face book on the kitchen table and in the text that accompanies this image, the two ladies whose apartment it is say that they’ve got the state and the mile, but can’t figure out the highway. This was the key to solving the whole puzzle.

Every page of the book contained three hidden pieces of information, one, a US state, two, a number for an Interstate Highway, and three, a distance in miles along that highway. Finding these three hidden pieces of information on each page was tough and laborious. Some of them were easy, while some of them were so cryptic that working them out whilst knowing the answer was impossible.

The second clue needed to solve the puzzle was drawn on the blackboard on the Floor 1 image. The tree in the picture has the pentagonal outline of the Clock Without a Face book drawn on it, and an object buried in the ground beneath it. This was a clue that, in the real world, metal plaques were placed on trees at the location of each buried number, and this meant that treasure-seekers didn’t need to dig up an entire Interstate rest-stop to find the prize.

The Clock Without a Face was a successful armchair treasure hunt, however, some of the puzzles even now have not been completely solved. Ultimately it took almost two years of solving and searching with many different people for all of the twelve missing numbers to be found. The Clock Without a Face was written in a time before some of the big treasure hunting forums like Tweleve.com and Mysterious Writings, and the prizes, though numerous were not substantial and because all the numbers were found, the book never took on the cult-like status of Masquerade or the Secret.

Eli Horowitz and Mac Barnett unfortunately did not collaborate on any other treasure hunts, however, they did both go on to accomplish other things. Eli became the co-creator of both the podcast and television series Homecoming as well as many other projects. Max Barnett went on to create many successful children’s books such as The Terrible Two series and Mac Barnett Kid Spy series, and Scott Teplin has also continued to illustrate and create many amazing pieces of art, much of which feature very similar artwork to that in The Clock Without a Face such as the book Alphabet City.

Sources & References

Robert, a guest writer for Areas Grey, has had treasure hunting coursing through his veins from a young age. A fascination with pirates, shipwrecks and lost treasures inspired him to study Marine Archaeology at QUT, working aboard cruise ships many years, then creating and hosting Live from the CodeBar: a podcast about treasure hunting.

Robert is also a member of Fourtune; the most successful armchair treasure hunting team to date which have solved: ‘The Lost Skull’, ‘It’s In LA’, ‘The Letters of St Germain’, ‘Hidden Treasures Treasure Hunt’, and more recently ‘The Bossall Treasure’ which had gone unsolved for almost 10 years!

The Deadman’s Tale Treasure Quest has been designed with the intention of delivering an immersive experience to players with a feel of a murder mystery, escape room, or other role playing games all rolled into an armchair treasure hunt inspired by The Secret, Sur la trace de la chouette d’or (The Golden Owl), Masquerade, and other great armchair treasure hunts.

Players will join the Treasure Quest playing the role of a treasure hunter who has stumbled across an encoded message. Solving this first clue and the many that follow will lead players on an epic quest in search of a grand treasure!

Additionally, the winner of the Deadman’s Tale Treasure Quest will also be awarded a certificate of authenticity from Areas Grey validating their claim to the treasure.

And that’s not all, the winner will also receive the brown vintage leather bound journal with old fashioned deckle edge paper used for the Deadman’s Tale puzzle book (pages inside are blank – puzzles were generated digitally for accuracy of the treasure hunt). Created by Wanderings Journals and Journeys. This journal has been made into a one of a kind with the embossed Areas Grey logo on the front cover. [Valued at £50+]

Welcome to the immersive experience of Areas Grey’s Treasure Quests. This is the first of the Treasure Quests where you can help track down a long lost treasure starting with the cryptic document sent to you from a fellow treasure hunter. This document is a teaser clue that when decoded will provide vital details for you to continue your journey and claim the prize at the end of the quest.

Beware, while this Treasure Quest is almost entirely an armchair treasure hunt, meaning that it can be solved from home. The last stage of the Treasure Quest will require BOTG (Boots On The Ground). Everything up until the last stage of this quest can be solved from home with the use of general tools people have available to them e.g. the internet.

IV. THE NEXT STAGES

When you solve your first clue, you’ll be able to move onto the next stage. A collection of puzzles and clues await you provided you’re wise enough to solve them. It will be up to you how you proceed with these puzzles but you’ll need to solve all of them to claim the prize. Don’t worry, the clues have been created with varying levels of difficulty to entertain all levels of players and keep the game moving and prevent you from getting stuck.

Where Do The Treasures Come From?

What Are The Clues?

How Do I Join A Quest?

How Do I Get The Treasure?

How Do I Know The Treasure Is Real?

The prize of the Treasure Quest is a collection of unique one of a kind handcrafted items unique to the Treasure Quest experience. For example, in the Deadman’s Tale Treasure Quest the first person to solve all of the clues and find the final point of the game will be awarded with:

A one of a kind golden brass token created in the United Kingdom by Michael Kelly of OutpostWorkshop.co.uk
A handcrafted treasure chest made in Turkey by Koray Koral of I Carve You Crave. The chest is customised with satin inlay and hidden display stand to show off the token.
A certificate of authenticity, certifying the winner’s claim to the prize.
The brown leather vintage journal used for the Deadman’s Tale puzzles and narrative, created by Wanderings Journals and Journeys and customised with an embossed Areas Grey Logo.

The Treasure Quest will be carefully constructed and be comprised of a number of clues leading the person who can solve them all to the final point.

The clues will be in many different forms using codes, ciphers, puzzles, visual indications, and more. Each will require varying levels of skills and for some you may have to get crafty. A computer with internet access will be required and you may have to do some real research in order to solve some of the more difficult clues. .

Each clue has been carefully researched, designed, and tested to ensure that they are solvable and challenging enough but not impossible to remain entertaining to players with all skill and experience levels. This doesn’t mean you should expect the Treasure Quests to be a cake walk. It is a competition after all, and that means you’ll need to put some serious thought, time, and effort into solving the clues and be ready to step outside of your comfort zones if you want to earn the valuable prize at the end of the Quest.

When a Treasure Quest becomes available a notice will be sent out across Areas Grey’s social media accounts, as well as prominently displayed in the featured posts sections of the site such as the blog page. Make sure to follow us on social media to stay up to date with the latest Treasure Quests news.

Once available you will be able to visit the page of the Treasure Quest where you will find an introduction to the Quest which will give you more information such as the method of play. If you then wish to join the Quest you will have the option from the intro page to buy an Access Pass to the Treasure Quest.

An Access Pass will grant you access to the game, all clues as well as access to a dedicated private Facebook Group and Discord server exclusive to Treasure Quest players where they can discuss the game.

Once an Access Pass has been acquired you’ll have full access to the game and it’s clues. It will be then up to you or your team to put your knowledge and skills to the test and solve the cryptic puzzles revealing the final location.

Only when you have solved all of the clues and found the end point of the game will you be able to claim the prize of the Treasure Quest.

Beware, the end of the game may hold a Boots On The Ground (BOTG) element to fully complete the game. If this is the case this will be covered in the introduction page of the Treasure Quest before an Access Pass is purchased.

Seeing is believing.

Photographic evidence of the Treasure will be provided during the build up to and launch of the Treasure Quest. For those who still refuse to believe that the Treasure is really up for grabs. We understand that seeing is believing. All we can say for now is that the treasure will really be out there ready to be won by the first to solve the clues. When this happens the solutions to the clues will be revealed along with documentation and evidence of the winner receiving their prize.

Provided the Treasure Quests are popular and the demand is high enough more Treasure Quests will follow with more prizes to be won by members of the community who are able to solve the games first.

You will just have to have a little faith in order to find the Treasure at the end of the Quest.

All doubts will fall away when you have solved all of the clues and uncover the treasure for yourself.

Treasure Quest Terms and Conditions

AREAS GREY

TERMS OF PARTICIPATION

[email protected]

By participating in the Areas Grey Treasure Quest you agree to the following conditions:

Glossary:

THE GAME:

The game is an armchair treasure hunt, with purchase obligation, which is presented in the form of a digital puzzle book which includes a series of puzzles. The answers to these puzzles take the participants to a location somewhere around the world. At this location will be a countermark or cache. The first player to locate this cache or countermark will be declared the winner(s).

Hereinafter: The GAME

THE TREASURE:

The treasure is the prize of the GAME for the winner(s). The treasure is different for each treasure quest and will be determined at the time of creation and organisation of the GAME. Each treasure will be crafted by a local artist who is commissioned for the work prior to commencement of the GAME.

The exact details of the treasure, it’s measurements and value will be added to each separate GAME’s main page found on areasgrey.com

Hereinafter: The TREASURE

THE BOOK:

A digital book containing the puzzles consisting of text and illustrations, the answers to which lead to the cache or countermark. The primary purpose of the book is to present the TREASURE and to tell its story. It is complemented by a fictional tale to compliment the puzzles and which amounts to a full book.

Hereinafter : The BOOK

THE COUNTERMARK:

In some GAME’s there may be a countermark or cache which will enable participants to have access to or claim the TREASURE. The countermark or cache if used will provide all the instructions for the winner to claim the treasure.

Hereinafter: The COUNTERMARK

THE MAP:

In some GAMES a map may be an additional element of the GAME enabling participants to join in. The map if used would be indispensable to take part in the GAME. The map if used in the GAME will have been specifically created to complement the BOOK or other elements of the GAME. The map if used will be available to be ordered online from the www.areasgrey.com website or will be provided as a part of the GAME.

Hereinafter: The MAP

ADDITIONAL ELEMENTS:

Apart from the BOOK and the MAP, other additional elements may act as a component of the GAME enabling participants to join in. Any additional elements will be indispensable to take part in the GAME. Any additional elements essential for participation in the GAME will be identified prior to the start of the GAME. All additional elements essential to the GAME will be made available to be ordered and if applicable downloaded from the store at the https://www.areasgrey.com website.

Hereinafter: the ADDITIONAL ELEMENTS

PARTICIPANT NUMBER:

Each participant, as they buy the primary access product for the GAME on the website https://www.areasgrey.com, will find attributed to themselves a secret participant number. For security reasons, these participant numbers are accessible only to the organisers and any approved legal representative of the present regulations. In any case, in order to be able to participate validly, one must be a registered holder of that personal participant number for each treasure quest GAME.

Hereinafter: The USER ID

THE WINNER:

The winner is the validly registered participant who is the first to find the cache or if a countermark was used; found the COUNTERMARK and who follows the procedure outlined in the parchment scroll hidden along with the COUNTERMARK to qualify as the winner.

Each winner may be a unique validly registered individual or a team made up of several people at least one of whom is validly registered.

Hereinafter: The WINNER

ARTICLE 1 – SUBJECT OF THE COMPETITION

The GAME is organised by Areas Grey Ltd, with registered office at 1 Hebb View, Bradford, West Yorkshire, BD6 3DL United Kingdom. The idea is for the participants to solve the puzzles and to discover the clues which will enable them to uncover the location of the caches or countermarks of the games, and/or where the COUNTERMARK is hidden. They will in some cases need to dig up whatever is buried in the caches. The launch date of the GAME is fixed and specified in the GAME product page and the unique GAME main page found at Areasgrey.com.

Participation in the GAME requires the prior purchase of the BOOK, the MAP and any ADDITIONAL ELEMENTS stated as essential before the GAME is initiated. These must be purchased from the website dedicated to the GAME, i.e. https://www.areasgrey.com

The TREASURE’s value will differ for each GAME and be declared before the start of each GAME. The determined value of the TREASURE will be the sum it cost to produce. Any additional value added to the item due to collectibility will be the responsibility of the WINNER to determine.

The WINNER or every WINNER is a participant who was lawfully registered on the website and who is the first to find the TREASURE or COUNTERMARK, and if there are further instructions; who followed the procedure inscribed within the COUNTERMARK to qualify as the GAME’s winner.

ARTICLE 2 – ACCEPTANCE OF THE COMPETITION RULES

By joining the GAME, each participant hereby expressly and irrevocably accepts all clauses in the present regulations and the competition rules they imply. This acceptance shall be confirmed by the participant’s registration on the https://www.areasgrey.com website.

ARTICLE 3 – TERMS OF ENTRY

In order to lawfully participate in the GAME, the entrant must be a natural person, be of legal age in the State where they have their registered address if so required by applicable laws and regulations, be registered in a State whose laws and regulations do not prohibit them to take part in this type of competitions, be in possession of the BOOK, the MAP and/or any other ADDITIONAL ELEMENTS pre-defined as essential on the main page for the GAME which can be found at https://www.areasgrey.com, and who duly understands and accepts the present terms of entry and signs in to the above website before starting the game.

There is no set time limit for the GAME which will continue until the TREASURE or if applicable, the COUNTERMARK is found.

The following are excluded from taking part in the GAME: the authors as well as their family members, the employees and managerial staff of Areas Grey Ltd, as well as all and any other people who have contributed to working on the development of the GAME or who may be privy to confidential information about the GAME.

Upon registering, each participant is to enter his username before being assigned a unique password as part of the GAME. This username and this password give access to the part of the website that is dedicated to the BOOK. The participant hereby undertakes to keep the password and the username confidential.

ARTICLE 4 – PRACTICAL ARRANGEMENTS

The GAME requires participants to solve a set of puzzles as set out in the texts and visuals of each version of the GAME. In some versions of the GAME the only way to solve the puzzles is with the aid of the MAP and/or the ADDITIONAL ELEMENTS which may be sold separately from the BOOK.

In the event that there are a team of WINNERS. These WINNERS will need to agree amongst themselves whether they wish to keep the TREASURE, with each in turn having possession thereof, or more likely, whether they wish to sell and evenly divide the proceeds of such a sale between them. The TREASURE of some GAMES may be essential to future versions of the GAME. Because of the TREASURE’s highly symbolic value, it may be that Areas Grey Ltd receives offers to buy the TREASURE which shall be passed on to the WINNER at the appropriate time, or which may be published on the Areas Grey Ltd websites.

For each version of the GAME, additional clues may be provided to the participants using social media or other messaging platforms such as the Discord messaging platform, which is also where questions may be asked of the authors under the dedicated tab of each of the GAME pages which will be set up for https://www.areasgrey.com.

Participants can join the GAME from any location. No physical travel whatsoever is involved in solving the GAME and locating the very precise geographical location or end zone of the cache which will have been clearly identified by solving all the puzzles. At which point a boots on the ground (BOTG) effort will in some GAMEs be needed to be make a claim to the TREASURE. In other GAMEs, participants will be able to submit the very precise geographical location or end zone of the cache clearly identified by solving all the puzzles to a designated email address for the game organizers. In other GAMEs, participants will be able to choose between the above two method of claiming the prize. Which method of play is in use for the GAME will be determined and included in the GAME description and available before purchase is made.

All legally available resources may be used to solve the puzzles. However, all hacking attempts or attempts to log into the computers or servers which the hunters are not authorised to access, all use of illegal means or the misuse of resources made available to the participants shall result in immediate disqualification.

The discovery of the TREASURE or COUNTERMARK, further to validation by Areas Grey Ltd, shall end that version of the GAME. When the discovered COUNTERMARK or TREASURE has been validated by Areas Grey Ltd, this shall end the game, with the WINNER, who may be one person or several people as a part of a team, shall be required to take possession of the TREASURE.

The WINNER shall be confirmed by letter, telephone or e-mail within 14 days upon completion of the identification procedure in respect of the WINNER. As part of said identification procedure, Areas Grey Ltd shall have the identity details entered as part of their registration, duly established and validated.

The WINNER shall be required to be in possession of the BOOK, and if applicable, the MAP, and ADDITIONAL ELEMENTS, the COUNTERMARK, and any further instructions that comes with it. They shall be required to explain in detail, with the relevant supporting documents as applicable, how they managed to solve each of the puzzles. For this reason, the participant should keep their solutions to each of the puzzles.

By taking part in the competition, the WINNER agrees to and accepts to have their photo taken and to be interviewed, as well as for these photos and interviews to be used by the Areas Grey Ltd, including for marketing purposes, without the right to claim payment, consideration or compensation in return in any shape or form.

On no account shall the WINNER be in a position to demand that Areas Grey Ltd agree to trade in their TREASURE against its monetary value.

The WINNER who discovered the TERASURE or COUNTERMARK shall have full title of ownership thereof. They shall be free to sell or transfer their TREASURE and/or COUNTERMARK to, or swap it with a natural person or legal entity of their choice after declaration of the WINNER and all legal transfer of ownership of the TREASURE from Areas Grey Ltd to the WINNER is completed.

The transfer of a TREASURE or the COUNTERMARK shall not discharge the WINNER from their obligations with Areas Grey Ltd, with particular reference to the image rights signed over to the company as specified in paragraph 9 of the present article. The new owner shall have the same obligations as the WINNER in respect of this image rights, including the taking of photographs, the interviews and films. The WINNER shall be required to inform the new owner of their obligations and to inform Areas Grey Ltd of the identity and the contact details of the new owner.

In the event of fraud, cheating, irregularities, unlawful actions, breaches of the confidentiality clause, Areas Grey Ltd reserves the right not to award the TREASURE or to withdraw the TREASURE from the WINNER who, in that case, shall be required to reimburse all costs which they may already have been paid.

All validly registered participants in the GAME shall be informed of the existence of one or more WINNERS and the fact that the GAME has ended. This information is to be published on the https://www.areasgrey.com and social media platforms associated with Areas Grey Ltd websites.

ARTICLE 5 – CONFIDENTIALITY

The winner hereby undertakes, and warrants performance thereof by their fellow team members, to uphold the utmost confidentiality regarding their victory, the solutions of the puzzles, the locations of the clues found and all and any other elements relating to the GAME until after Areas Grey Ltd has carried out the relevant checks and releases them from their duty of confidentiality

Where the WINNER or one of their fellow team members breaches their duty of confidentiality, the WINNER shall be required to pay Areas Grey Ltd – in addition to being disqualified and the possible loss of their TREASURE – a flat rate sum in damages in the amount of £10,000, unless where Areas Grey Ltd is able to prove greater prejudice.

ARTICLE 6 – LIABILITY OF AREAS GREY LTD.

Areas Grey Ltd makes every effort to ensure the proper conduct of the treasure hunt, which is qualified as a best-efforts obligation. However, if a participant comes across what they believe may be an error, they should contact Areas Grey Ltd by sending an e-mail of at least 50 words, stating their name, e-mail address and telephone number to the [email protected] e-mail address.

Areas Grey Ltd waives all and any liability for all and any loss or harm which might be incurred by the hunters by reason of or as part of their participation in the treasure hunt. Areas Grey Ltd declines all and any liability for errors in connection with the clues committed by the hunters, any downloading process problems, incomplete transmissions, system or program errors, delays or breakdowns, damage caused to computers, pointlessly incurred costs or other such situations.

Red herrings are an integral part of the GAME for which the designers and organisers cannot be blamed.

This exemption from liability in relation to; in regard to the hunters equally applies to any Areas Grey Ltd’s partners and sub-contractors.

Where the treasure hunt is played as part of a team, the TREASURE shall be attributed to the validly registered participant who identified themselves as the WINNER. If a team of participants was involved in finding the TREASURE and acknowledgment would like to be made as such then arrangements can be made by discussing as such at the time of being confirmed the WINNER. Areas Grey Ltd declines all and any liability and rules out any intervention on its part regarding the sharing the TREASURE between multiple fellow team members, as applicable. Areas Grey Ltd reminds participants that the TREASURE could be made up of a single item. Areas Grey Ltd equally declines all and any liability regarding the use and the possession of the TREASURE and any duties or taxes which may be payable by the winner in his country of residence.

ARTICLE 7 – SUSPENSION, MODIFICATION OR CANCELLATION OF THE COMPETITION

Areas Grey Ltd makes every effort to ensure the proper conduct of the GAME and offers assurances that the TREASURE that is the prize of the treasure hunt shall be kept available for the WINNER until the end of the GAME. Where applicable the TREASURE may be publicly displayed at any location where appropriate security measures are in place.

However, Areas Grey Ltd at all times reserves the right to suspend, modify, delay or end the GAME and/or not to award the TREASURE, in particular where clues or puzzles need to be corrected, where the solutions are made public or are otherwise disclosed, where the competition, the management or the security thereof are compromised or contaminated because of a virus, an internet bot, an instance of force of nature or any other event or cause beyond the control of Areas Grey Ltd.

In the unlikely event that Areas Grey Ltd were to be replaced by a different organiser, the present regulations shall continue to apply, whereby an amendment to the regulations shall be established by the custodian of said regulations, specifying the identity of the new organiser.

ARTICLE 8 – CONTACT

Every validly registered participant may contact Areas Grey Ltd for issues that are nothing to do with the puzzles of the competition, by sending a detailed e-mail, stating their name, e-mail address and if necessary, telephone number to the [email protected] e-mail address. In light of the substantial volume of e-mails received, we may not be able to reply to all mails unless where an answer is considered imperative, at our own discretion.

On no account shall Areas Grey Ltd give preferential treatment to a participant or confirm the solution of a puzzle.

Where you send us an e-mail, texts, images, audio or any other content via our website, you are giving Areas Grey Ltd the right to store and use this content on a permanent basis, whether on one of the company’s websites or on any other websites or media, without the right to claim payment, consideration or compensation in return in any shape or form.

ARTICLE 9 – CONTENT FORUM

A forum on the Discord messaging platform enables the participants who so wish to share ideas and information. The information posted on the forum shall be seen by other people. It must within the law, truthful and appropriate. Any use of the website which fails to comply with these requirements is strictly banned.

Areas Grey Ltd reserves the right, at its sole discretion, to refuse, delete, moderate or to change all and any content posted on or available on the user forums or anywhere else on the website. Areas Grey Ltd shall be within its rights to edit all public posts from users. On no account shall Areas Grey Ltd accept liability for the statements of third parties for which the latter alone are liable.

ARTICLE 10 – PERSONAL DATA PROTECTION

We process the personal data of all participant only within the context of the treasure hunt or in order to reply to participants’ requests. We keep said data on file at least until the treasure is discovered. We have put in place appropriate technical and organisational security measures to prevent the destruction, loss, falsification or modification of the data. The participant has right of access and the right to have his personal data rectified, as well as the right to have the processing of his personal data restricted and the right to have his personal data erased, in compliance with the terms set out in the GDPR. In addition, they have the right to object to have their personal data being used for direct marketing purposes.

These rights may be exercised free of charge by simple request sent by e-mail to Areas Grey Ltd at [email protected]. This request mail must be accompanied by a front and back scan of the requester’s identity card or passport.

The WINNER waives the confidentiality of their personal identity.

Consulting Areas Grey Ltd’s websites may mean that cookies are installed onto your computer. These cookies are intended to facilitate your visit. You are free to decline to have these cookies installed onto your computer. However, please be aware that any such refusal may prevent you from accessing some of the services of Areas Grey Ltd’s websites.

ARTICLE 11 – SPECIFICATIONS REGARDING THE HIDING LOCATIONS OF THE TREASURES AND/OR COUNTERMARKS

Areas Grey Ltd hereby expressly states that at the time when the game gets under way, the caches are hidden on publicly accessible land somewhere around the world. It waives all liability for any trespassing on and any depredation of private properties and for any situation where private individuals and legal entities are aggrieved as a result of non-compliance with specific clauses in the present article.

As a general rule, any loss or harm incurred by third parties as a result of the non-compliance with these clauses shall invoke only the liability of the parties responsible for such loss or harm. The latter hereby waive all and any kind of action against Areas Grey Ltd, the sellers and distributors of the BOOK, the MAP and/or any ADDITIONAL ELEMENTS, the points of sale and websites where these are sold, as well as against the authors thereof, for any reason whatsoever.

ARTICLE 12 – DEPOSITION OF COMPETITION REGULATIONS – COURTS OF COMPETENT JURISDICTION

A copy of the regulations may be obtained by sending a written request to that effect to Areas Grey Ltd, including a self-addressed, stamped envelope. These regulations are also available to be consulted at and downloaded from the https://www.areasgrey.com website.

In the event of doubt or dispute as to the validity of the registration of a participant in the game, a neutral party will check the secret registration number to confirm or deny its validity.

All disputes or disagreements relating to the interpretation or the application of the present regulations shall be heard by the courts of competent jurisdiction that come under the territorial jurisdiction of a Court of Appeal.

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	USA: Amazon.com
	UK: Amazon.co.uk
	France: Amazon.fr
	Germany: Amazon.de
	Spain: Amazon.es
	Italy: Amazon.it

	USA: Amazon.com
	UK: Amazon.co.uk
	France: Amazon.fr
	Germany: Amazon.de
	Spain: Amazon.es
	Italy: Amazon.it

THE CLOCK WITHOUT A FACE

An Armchair Treasure Hunt

Overview

What does a cursed clock, twelve jeweled numbers hidden across the United States, and a puzzle book all have in common? They are all a part of the very same 2010 armchair treasure hunt book called The Clock Without a Face, written by Eli Horowitz and Mac Barnett with illustrations by Scott Teplin.

By the end of the book the identity of the thief is finally revealed, however, the location of the clock’s missing numbers is not and readers were therefore encouraged to solve the clues found throughout the book and use these clues to search for the numbers in the real world.

– – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – –

The Legend

As you proceed through the book, floor by floor, you, the reader, are supposed to pick up clues that lead to the real life buried numbers. Each two page spread has a part of the story on one side, and a cutaway image showing the current floor and apartment on the other.

The drawings are intricate and are very well done with lots of detail that can be used to help solve the puzzle!

– – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – –

The Treasure

Each of the twelve numbers that were hidden around the country were handcrafted by the New York jewelry designer Anna Sheffield and each was made with real emeralds on a solid backing. Each of the numbers had a different implied backstory.

One was purported to be from the quiet halls of a Tibetan monastery, one was said to be lifted from the buckle of an unknown pirate’s shoe. Yet another was allegedly made from the bottle of a Venetian glass blower.

No value was ever placed on the numbers by either the designer or the authors, instead the true value was how rare each number was, as well as the story of how each was found.

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The Clues

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Conclusion

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Written By

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ROBERT JENNER

Guest Writer

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CodeBar Podcast

Join Robert, host of the CodeBar Live podcast and journey into the greatest treasure legends, armchair treasure hunts, codes, ciphers, puzzles, escape rooms, ARG’s, puzzle boxes & more!

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Subscribe

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LET’S CONNECT AND FIND SOME TREASURE!

It’s always a pleasure to hear from a fellow treasure hunter, get in touch using the form below.

Whether you’re looking for someone to help with a treasure hunt, if you’ve got a story to tell, some vital information to share, feedback for Areas Grey, or if you just want to say “hi”, all emails are welcome!

GET IN TOUCH

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GET IN TOUCH

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“The Clock Without a Face is the realization of every (inner) child’s wildest dreams: a full color, illustrated mystery book packed full of clues that lead to real treasure.”

– Bonnie Chan, Flavorpill, 2010

Overview

Players will join the Treasure Quest playing the role of a treasure hunter who has stumbled across an encoded message. Solving this first clue and the many that follow will lead players on an epic quest in search of a grand treasure!

DEADMAN’S TALE

Treasure Quest #1

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The Prize

DEADMAN’S TALE PRIZE TOKEN

Crafted by Michael Kelly of OutpostWorkshop.co.uk

For the lucky player who is the first to solve all of the puzzles and locate the final point of the game a great treasure will be theirs to claim.

A one of a kind golden brass token measuring 90mm diameter, 7.5mm thick, and weighing 300g crafted in the United Kingdom by Michael Kelly of OutpostWorkshop.co.uk [valued at approximately £300+]

DEADMAN’S TALE JOURNAL

Brown leather vintage style journal created by Wanderings Journals and Journeys and customized by Areas Grey.

DEADMAN’S TALE CHEST & TOKEN

Decorative Handcrafted Chest created by Koray Koral of I Carve You Crave and customised by Areas Grey shown containing the Deadman’s Tale Token in hidden display stand.

Additionally, the winner of the Deadman’s Tale Treasure Quest will also be awarded a certificate of authenticity from Areas Grey validating their claim to the treasure.

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How To Win

DEADMAN’S TALE

Treasure Quest #1

I. ACCESS PASS

You or your team must first make a one-time purchase for an Access Pass from Areas Grey in order to participate in the Deadman’s Tale Treasure Quest. The link to make your purchase and begin your quest can be found below.

II. CONFIRMATION EMAIL

Once you’ve made your Access Pass purchase you’ll soon receive a confirmation email confirming your access to a private Facebook group and Discord server exclusive to Deadman’s Tale members. You’ll also receive a link for where to begin your quest!

DEADMAN’S TALE INITIAL CLUE

A printed version of the first clue of Deadman’s Tale Treasure Quest

DEADMAN’S TALE NARRATIVE

With the power of a digital flip book players can flip through the narrative and discover the puzzles with ease

III. THE FIRST CLUE

You’ll have to get creative with this first clue if you want to succeed! But, it’s essential to continue your journey onto the next stage. By solving the first clue you’ll be able to decode the password that will grant you access to the next stage of the game.

IV. THE NEXT STAGES

V. FIND THE TREASURE – END THE GAME

All of the puzzles in the game are solvable from the comfort of your own home, provided you have a computer and an internet connection. If you are clever enough to solve all of the puzzles you’ll find a very precise place in the United Kingdom has been revealed.

Good luck Treasure Hunters!

THOSE WHO DARE, WIN.

You’ll have to be brave to find the treasure and end the game but those who dare, win.

Are you up to the challenge?

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Begin Your Quest

It’ll take imagination, creativity and you’ll have to get crafty to make it anywhere in this hunt. Do you have what it takes to solve the clues and claim the prize?

If so, use the link below to get your access pass and begin your quest for the Deadman’s Tale treasure.

Access Pass

Purchase your Access Pass using the link below to begin your journey on this epic Treasure Quest.