Terms and Concepts Regarding “The Secret”

This page will orient users to terms and ideas commonly associated with discussions of The Secret. Please feel free to suggest any relevant additions.

People

• Gift Giver (GG): A Facebook account reportedly utilized by multiple individuals directly involved in producing The Secret: A Treasure Hunt on some level, appearing once every December on the Facebook group page titled The Secret: A Treasure Hunt Byron Preiss to provide commentary and/or “insider” information. Neither their identity nor the basis for their claims have been disclosed.

• John Jude Palencar (JJP): The original artist responsible for the twelve treasure hunt paintings.

• Josh Gates: The host of television show Expedition: Unknown which briefly covered The Secret over three episodes, concluding with the Boston casque recovery of 2019. Mr. Gates has since distanced himself from the phenomenon following an overwhelming level of fan correspondence.

Websites

• PB Works: In the context of the online Secret community, PB Works is a foundational resource of materials and evidence with a collaborative spirit. Although most proposed solutions promoted rigidly by the site’s administration do not withstand objective scrutiny, PB Works proves extremely useful through a range of investigative applications.

• Q4T: Stands for Quest For Treasure, which was a treasure hunting forum used in the earlier days of Secret investigations.

• 12 Treasures: The most prominent and connected organization dedicated to discussion, investigation, and resource allocation. They host a Secret fan site of the same name, as well as The Secret: A Treasure Hunt Byron Preiss group page on Facebook.

Book and Hunt Concepts

• Back of the book: Refers to all material beginning on page 55. Reportedly, when the Cleveland finders collected their gemstone from Byron, he informed them that the “back of the book” contained no additional clues concerning the treasure hunt, although this fact does not discourage alternative belief for many.

• Casque: The handmade ceramic container crafted by JoEllen Trilling buried in each of the 12 Secret cities, enclosed in plexiglass and containing a “key” which is theoretically exchanged for a gemstone with the controlling party. Originally, this process was initiated with Byron Preiss himself, who tragically passed away in 2005. While some claim that Byron’s wife Sandi Mendelson is The Secret’s current ambassador and gemstone distributor, intellectual property pertaining to The Secret was sold to publisher John Colby, who by his own account is the sole authority for gemstone presentation through casque recovery.

• Fair People: Allegorical depictions of American immigrants as fictional races commonly found in fantasy novels or mythological literature, such as fairies, fays, gnomes, dwarves, djinn, etc. Beginning on page 55, more specific characterizations are presented in a playful manner with socio-political commentary at the heart of each depiction. At the time of publication, physical dolls were created and placed in a variety of public places for the purpose of observation and photographic documentation. Page 216 of The Secret provides a form for submitting sightings to the publisher, which 43 years later is no longer applicable.

• Japanese Translation (JT): A Japanese version of The Secret: A Treasure Hunt containing a section of additional clues and commentary.

• Litany of the Jewels: A section of the book found on pages 19 through 21 that accomplishes several objectives. It provides a clue for each of the 12 cases that identifies an immigration focus for that particular case and the associated gemstone, and potentially alludes cryptically to casque site conditions. For narrative and continuity purposes, the Litany of the Jewels is integrated within the story of the “Fair People”, offering a fictional explanation enrichening the mystique and aura surrounding the real world hunt.

• Wed line: A line of the verse which corresponds directly to an image. The word “wed” or “wedding” refers to an act or process of combining two separate elements which solidifies a close association. This facilitates a process by which otherwise anonymous verses and images can be successfully combined. For example, verse 12 mentions “fence and fixture”, while image 5 shows a fence post. This is identified on page 34 as a key puzzle component. At face value, some verses can be “wed” to more than one image, requiring a greater range of evidence in those instances before definitive pairings can be confidently established.

Community Philosophy

• Confirmed solution: A solution for which a casque was found. Most people believe that without Byron, only a casque “confirms” or proves an answer.

• Only a casque proves an answer: A common philosophy within Secret circles that asserts there are no clearly communicated, unquestionable solutions without the presentation of a casque.