Latest news with #GoldenOwl
Local France
22-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Local France
French second edition of 'golden owl' treasure hunt delayed
Launched in France in 1993, the last edition ended only in October 2024 when the elusive golden owl was finally found after decades of searching by thousands of sleuths from around the world. "The hunt has not been cancelled at all," Michel Becker told AFP, denying claims that had been circulating about "Golden Owl 2", which had originally been scheduled to begin in early May. "Launching a game like this, in such a negative context, is not something that we can do. We want to work in a calmer climate, so we're giving ourselves a some time to see what happens," said Becker, the game's co-inventor. The previous golden owl was found in Dabo in eastern France, according to Becker. READ MORE: Golden owls to fine wines - 5 of France's biggest treasure hunts But this outcome was immediately cast into doubt by some die-hard followers of the cult game who questioned the published solutions to the riddles. Adding to the tension, the author of a book entitled "The Golden Owl, a 30 Year Scam" was in April convicted of defamation against Michel Becker by a Strasbourg court. Faced with this "turbulent period", "the Golden Owl will see the light of day again under other skies, in other hands, dedicated to more positive passions", Becker said on Monday on the Discord social network, where clues are shared. Advertisement The exact start date for this new edition remains to be determined. A documentary film about the hunt for the golden owl hit cinemas in May while a book on the solutions is also due to be published. The golden owl was buried in April 1993 in a location that had to be identified using 11 puzzles in a book. Unearthing what was only a replica replica earned the prize of winning the owl, a valuable sculpture made of precious metals. The game's creator, Regis Hauser, known under the pseudonym Max Valentin, died in 2009. After a dispute between his heirs and Michel Becker, who had put the game on hold, it was relaunched in 2021. The actual golden owl is a 10 kilogram gold and silver sculpture encrusted with diamonds.
Economist
11-05-2025
- Politics
- Economist
Uncertainty and tension ahead of possible Ukraine peace talks
Europe | Dancing with wolves Photograph: POOL/AFP via Getty Images Editor's note (May 11th): Since this article was published, Donald Trump has urged Volodymyr Zelensky to meet Vladimir Putin in Turkey for negotiations, whether or not a ceasefire is in place. Their gambit is as much a test for Donald Trump as the Kremlin By choosing Robert Prevost the cardinals seek unity in a fractured church The Golden Owl is a parable for a changing continent Can a political culture of compromise survive the turbulence? However distasteful this might seem to them The new German chancellor may fall short of his partners' expectations
Times
04-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Times
French puzzlers gear up for second Golden Owl treasure hunt
The quest for the first Golden Owl was said to have driven its devotees to divorce, bankruptcy and madness. Now, as a second hunt is set to begin, many of the 200,000 'owlers' feel cheated. Some said they suspected that one of the world's most famous armchair treasure hunts, which lasted 31 years, had been little more than a giant publicity stunt. The original hunt was started in 1993 by Régis Hauser, a French puzzle designer, who published a book called Sur la Trace de la Chouette d'Or (On the Trail of the Golden Owl) under the pseudonym Max Valentin. The book contained 11 cryptic clues to the whereabouts of a bronze statuette of an owl that Hauser said he had buried somewhere
