Golden Queenie Still At Large

Cluemaster guards secret whereabouts of £4,000 hidden treasure.

The sun might now have set on another successful Queenie Festival (1st – 3rd July) but the case of the Golden Queenie Conundrum is most definitely still open!

The festival organisers promised that this year’s conundrum would be the ‘toughest ever’ and it looks as though they’ve been as good as their word, for the location of the Golden Queenie – which has an estimated retail value of £4,000 – is still a mystery to the many treasure hunters on its trail.

In only its third year, the cryptic challenge, reminiscent of the Cadbury’s Golden Egg treasure hunt in the early 1980s, has become a hugely popular tradition. Taking people far and wide to local landmarks and hidden corners, it tests people’s knowledge of the Island’s geography and history, myth and language.

The conundrum clues were first released in the second week of June via the festival programme and website, and, all over the Island, people set out to find the golden shell.
Six weeks and much head scratching later, organiser Tim Croft is urging people not to give up: “We asked our Cluemaster to make the conundrum particularly fiendish this year because we know the calibre of our treasure hunters – they’re a determined, resourceful lot!

“All I can say is, keep puzzling – the prize is out there, just waiting to be claimed! Don’t be put off if you’re new to the search, you’ve got just as much chance of cracking the code as someone who’s already familiar with the clues”.
The conundrum consists of 14 riddles. Entered into a grid, the answers will yield a 13 digit code; only by texting a mobile number revealed by the 14th answer will participants receive their final instruction, leading them to the location of the treasure.

The Cluemaster, who insists on remaining anonymous, refuses to shed light on any of the cryptic clues. Pressed at length, however, he gives the following tips: “The answers may be in Manx or English, and they may be numbers or letters. When the grid is complete, you should have a random alpha-numeric code.
“To search in earnest, you’ll need a map (the Ordnance Survey Outdoor Leisure Map, 1:25000)…and a ruler. This is all I can tell you”.

Treasure hunters have been sharing their progress and frustrations on the Queenie Festival website, with one commenting, “I think I’ll be very pleased whoever wins, as I’ll know they have put in more than enough work to deserve it”.

Golden Queenie is claimed!

Sarah Brown of Edremony, Port Erin, has claimed the coveted Golden Queenie, pipping fellow explorers at the post on a Port Erin beach.

The organisers of the Isle of Man Queenie Festival buried the treasure in a secret location several weeks ago, encouraging the public to discover its whereabouts with a series of teasing clues contained in the festival programme.

With an estimated value of £4,000, the hiding place of the solid gold queenie shell has been the subject of intense interest – and much digging!

The treasure trail has taken Queenie hunters far and wide over the Island, from St Trinian’s Church to the Round Table.

But yesterday (Sunday 12th July), Port Erin woman Sarah Brown dug up the prize virtually on her own doorstep: the Golden Queenie was buried on ‘Mortuary Beach’, a small, pebbly cove adjoining the main Port Erin shore.

Sarah describes the lead-up to her discovery: ‘I realised weeks ago where it was and I’d been digging, trying to find the exact spot, ever since. Everything fitted, all the clues linked up in my mind. Also, I’m quite obsessive – I’m the sort of person who counts their steps wherever they go – so I knew straightaway, for instance, how many steps there were down to the beach.’

Sarah was not the only person to pinpoint Mortuary Beach as the Queenie hotspot; she estimates that there were around 30 people digging at the site, and 6 at the time of her discovery – leaving few stones unturned!

‘I must have spent about 40 hours digging – I’ve given myself a bad back! I’d dug these huge, deep trenches but the Queenie was buried in quite shallow ground. I just scraped some sand away from one of my trenches and there it was, right next to where I’d already been digging.

‘When I found it, I couldn’t stop screaming and pointing! I was so excited.’

How did the other treasure hunters react? ‘Other people on the beach were telling me to pick it up. Everyone came and huddled round and one woman said I deserved it, because I’d spent so many hours digging’.

On that day, Sarah was digging on her own but on other occasions, her young son was a willing helper. She says ‘He’s really excited too. I’m going to buy him a present for helping me’.

Sarah has yet to claim the actual Golden Queenie: buried in the sand was a tupperware box with a yellow painted Queenie shell and a code number, which Sarah had to quote to the festival organisers to verify her find. She will now receive her prize at a special presentation, to be announced soon.

Apart from winning the prize, Sarah says that one of the best things about the challenge has been the other treasure hunters: ‘I’ve never met so many new people as I have in the last few weeks; it’s been fantastic’.

Festival organiser Tim Croft, of Island Seafare, says, ‘The hunt for the Golden Queenie has captured the public imagination. People have been researching and discovering things they never knew about the Isle of Man. What’s also been great is that it’s got people out and about, seeing new places, meeting people they know and having a yarn!’

The discovery of the Golden Queenie, which was donated by Celtic Gold of Peel, brings the hugely successful Queenie Festival to a close for another year.

Can you solve the Golden Queenie Conundrum?

THE HUNT IS ON FOR SOLID GOLD, BURIED TREASURE WORTH £4,000

The hunt is on for a solid gold Queenie shell worth £4,000 buried somewhere on the Isle of Man. As part of this year’s Isle of Man Queenie Festival a Golden Queenie, moulded by Celtic Gold, has been hidden on the Island for intrepid treasure hunters to find.

What better way to spend a summer’s day than heading out on a real life treasure hunt? The adventure starts with solving the Queenie Conundrum contained within this year’s Queenie Festival Programme, available in retailers around the Island. Additional clues may be made available at a later date but everything you need to identify the location is included in the Queenie Conundrum.

Tim Croft, organizer of the Isle of Man Queenie Festival added, “We are really excited to have such an amazing prize on offer for the Queenie Conundrum treasure hunt. Not only will solving the puzzle and heading out to look for it be great fun, but the reward at the end is truly spectacular for one lucky person or family.”

The Isle of Man Queenie Festival is a week of events celebrating the sea and the Manx Queenie. Events include beach parties, live music, barbeques, sailing, kayaking, diving, fishing, Marine Day and more. Everyone is invited so pick up your event programme and take part.

The Golden Queenie will not be buried on any National Trust or private property.