On Monday, musician-turned-entrepreneur Jon Collins-Black tweeted, “Today is the day. The greatest treasure hunt in American history starts now.” Collins-Black has launched a treasure hunt across the United States, with five hidden treasure chests containing valuable items estimated to be worth between $2 million and $3 million.
Five Hidden Treasure Chests
Jon Collins-Black has hidden five treasure chests across the United States, initiating a treasure hunt that has attracted the interest of many enthusiasts. The treasure chests contain valuable items, including a diamond and sapphire brooch once owned by Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis, gold pieces from shipwrecks, a Greek gold laurel from the 4th century B.C., and a 1986 NBA card of Michael Jordan.
To aid treasure hunters in their quest, Collins-Black has published a book titled There’s Treasure Inside, which offers 243 pages of clues and tips for treasure hunters to find the hidden chests with a combined prize value of more than $2 million, as reported by SIC Notícias. Each chapter of the book contains detailed clues leading to one of the five treasure chests. The book serves as a treasure map and guide, containing stories, puzzles, and maps to help adventurers find the hidden objectives, including the location of the treasure chests.
Jon Collins-Black, a Bitcoin millionaire, has been a lifelong fantasy enthusiast, immersing himself in games and mythical adventures such as Dungeons & Dragons since childhood. He financed his treasure collection with money saved from early Bitcoin investments, having bought a significant amount early on and held onto it.
Inspired by the Forrest Fenn treasure hunt, Collins-Black began working on his own treasure hunt in 2015 after being inspired by an elderly art and antiquities collector who buried a $1 million fortune in the Rocky Mountains, according to Vice News. Unlike Forrest Fenn, who hid a single chest, Collins-Black envisioned multiple treasure troves across the country.
Filled With Unique and Valuable Items
Over the last five years, Collins-Black has collected valuable and rare items, including gold, jewelry, sports memorabilia, and historical artifacts, which he has placed in separate chests hidden in different locations across the United States. Among the most prized possessions in the treasure are items with historical significance, including a coin minted by Pablo Picasso, a diamond and sapphire brooch belonging to Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis, and other significant artifacts.
Jon Collins-Black has challenged treasure hunters to solve difficult clues he designed. He stated, “You don’t need to be a genius to solve the clues. There is no great cipher. If you have curiosity, imagination, and willingness to try something new, you can find the treasures I have hidden,” according to Terra. Participants are required to solve the clues to locate the treasure sites, and Collins-Black has designed difficult clues for treasure hunters, ensuring they are complex enough to decipher and accompanied by clear instructions.
Each treasure chest is a custom-designed puzzle box that requires careful unlocking, complete with instructions to unlock its treasure. The chests are located in safe, accessible public places, no farther than five kilometers from the road, and it is not necessary to dig to find them, as they lie on the surface.
Collins-Black assures that adventurers do not need to worry about their safety while searching, stating that acquiring the boxes will not require “stunts” or put one’s physical safety at risk, according to SIC Notícias. He further explained, “I wanted the chests to be separated to give people an optimistic and adventurous chance,” reported WSVN 7News.
The treasure hunt has already gained several enthusiasts who have created groups to discuss various theories. Many participants are convinced they have pinpointed the states where the treasure is located, and many are exchanging possible solutions online. Collins-Black believes it will “take some time” until all five valuable chests are discovered, Stern reported.
If the treasure chests go unfound for too long, he may release new clues to help them be spotted, and if the chests remain unfound for several years, he believes he will publish additional clues or perhaps even a sequel to keep the hunt alive. While the chests wait to be discovered, the value of many items continues to grow, and the value of the contents is said to have increased even more since then.
Jon Collins-Black meticulously selected the hidden treasures inside the chests to captivate a wide range of interests and offer an unparalleled treasure hunting experience. Among the items in the treasure chests are Colombian emeralds. The treasure boxes are filled with items like a gold medal from Olympic sprinter Wilma Rudolph. Other treasures include Olympic gold medals and the autograph of Amelia Earhart.
Collins-Black wants the treasure hunt to be challenging but is clear about the timeline, saying, “I hope and believe it could take a little time, but I don’t need this to last an eternity,” according to WSVN 7News. He said, “I really couldn’t consult other people because I didn’t want them to have that burden,” referring to the heavy responsibility of knowing about the treasure, according to SIC Notícias.
To protect the integrity of the hunt, Collins-Black worked with the fewest strategists and editors possible to avoid leaking clues to the public. With clues waiting to be unraveled and treasures to be uncovered, the search is officially on. Jon Collins-Black encourages treasure hunters, saying, “There is a treasure hunter inside many people. Sometimes, they don’t even realize it,” according to SIC Notícias.
Participants are required to solve the clues to locate the treasure sites, and after deciphering the clues, they must go to the identified locations to search for the treasure, and whoever correctly deciphers the clues and reaches the location first will be richly rewarded. Collins-Black assures that no dangerous underwater exploration, climbing, or entering private property is required to find the treasure, and he has clarified that none of the treasures are on private land.
Jon Collins-Black hid the treasure boxes himself, hiking more than a hundred miles on his trips, and he intentionally distributed multiple boxes across the country so that as many people as possible would have a chance to find them. He believes that anyone who reads the entire book can find the treasure he has buried, stating, “All the clues you need are in the book,” according to WSVN 7News.
The treasure chests include historical artifacts. Among the items are rare Pokémon cards, shipwreck bounty, sports memorabilia, gold, and precious metals.
Jon Collins-Black spent a total of two million dollars on the treasure hunt, reported Stern. He assures that he did not spare any costs or efforts in acquiring these historical pieces. With no clear blueprint for such an ambitious project, Collins-Black experimented through trial and error, carefully programming the difficulty of the clues.
“It’s nearly impossible for me to select a favorite item from the collection,” Collins-Black said, reflecting his excitement in pursuing his treasure hunt, reported WSVN 7News. A few specific items hold a special place in his heart, including a brooch once owned by Jacqueline Onassis, a 96-carat emerald, and Wilma Rudolph’s 1960 Olympic gold medal.
Jon Collins-Black encourages all who are interested to embark on the adventure. “There is a treasure hunter inside many people. Sometimes, they don’t even realize it,” he explained, according to SIC Notícias. With the treasure hunt officially underway, enthusiasts across the country are delving into There’s Treasure Inside, hoping to unlock the secrets that will lead them to the hidden riches.
