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The Oak Island Mystery: The Secret of the World's Greatest Treasure Hunt
It began innocently enough … in 1795 three boys discovered the top of an acient shaft on uninhabited Oak Island in Mahone Bay, Nova Scotia. The boys began to dig, and what they uncovered started the world’s greatest and stangest treasure hunt. Two hundred years of courage, back-breaking effort, ingenuity, and engineering skills have so far failed to retrieve what is concealed there. The Oak Island curse prophesies that the treasure will not be found until seven men are dead and the last oak has fallen. That last oak has already gone - and over the years, six treasure hunters have been killed. What can the treasure be? Theories include Drake’s plate and jewels, Captain Kidd’s bloodstained pirate gold, an army payroll left there for safety by the French or British military engineers, priceless ancient manuscripts, the body of an Arif or other religious refugee leader, the lost treasure of the Templars, and part of the ancient, semi-legendary Acadian Treasure linked to the mystery of Glozel and Rennes-le-Chateau in France. After years of research the authors have finally solved the sinister riddle of Oak Island, but their answer is challenging, controversial and disturbing. Something beyond price still lies waiting in the labrinth.
224 pages, Paperback
First published July 25, 1996
20 people are currently reading
119 people want to read
About the author
Lionel Fanthorpe
178 books20 followersRobert Lionel Fanthorpe cowrote with his wife Patricia Fanthorpe. Pseudonyms: Erle Barton, Lee Barton, Thornton Bell, Leo Brett, Bron Fane, R.L. Fanthorpe, R. Lionel Fanthorpe, L.P. Kenton, Victor La Salle, Robert Lionel, John E. Muller, Phil Nobel, Lionel Roberts, Deutero Spartacus, Neil Thanet, Trebor Thorpe, Pel Torro, Olaf Trent, Karl Zeigfreid
The Reverend Robert Lionel Fanthorpe is a priest and entertainer, and has at various times worked as a journalist, teacher, television presenter, author and lecturer.
Born in Dereham, Norfolk (UK), his parents were shopkeeper and teacher, Greta Christine, née Garbutt. In 1957 he married Patricia Alice Tooke, with whom he has two daughters (born 1964 and 1966). From 1958 to 1962 he was a teacher at Dereham Secondary Modern School, then from 1961 to 1963 he studied Education and Theology at Keswick College, Norwich, and was then again a teacher at Dereham until 1967, after which he served in the British Army and was a tutor at the Gamlingay Village College in Gamlingay, Cambridgeshire, and course leader with the Phoenix Timber Company in Rainham from 1969 to 1972 . From 1972 to 1979 he was Headmaster at Hellesdon High School in Norfolk. In 1974 he acquired a bachelor's degree at the Open University. The marriage currently live in Roath, Cardiff, South Wales.
In the early 1950s, Fanthorpe began writing short stories that appeared in various magazines published by John Spencer & Co., such as Futuristic Science Stories and Worlds of Fantasy. From 1954, Fanthorpe's novels appeared primarily in the Badger Books series of the same publisher. In the good decade between 1954 and 1967, Fanthorpe was astonishingly productive. Under various pseudonyms, some personal and some publisher pseudonyms such as Victor La Salle, John E. Muller and Karl Zeigfreid, Fanthorpe wrote much of the supernatural tales and science fiction published in the Badger Books, a total of well over 100 novels and countless short stories. At times a 45,000-word novel was published every 12 days at a flat rate of £22.50, with Fanthorpe dictating his lyrics on tape and then having friends and family transcribe them, after a quick proofreading of the text then going to the publishers. The production method caused frequent careless mistakes, inconsistencies and plot gaps, and the story often came to an abrupt end because he did not have an exact overview of the extent of the text produced while dictating it. Despite such shortcomings, it is conceded that his products often need not fear comparison with the works of other prolific writers. In particular, some stories from the series about Val Stearman, an adventurer in the style of Bulldog Drummond and the mysterious immortal La Noire are considered highlights of Fanthorpe's work. A contributing factor to the large number of pseudonyms used was that the Badger Books series often included so-called magazine volumes, i.e. collections of stories allegedly by different authors. In fact, the stories in such a volume came all or mostly from Fanthorpe under various pseudonyms.
From the early 1980s, together with his wife, he signed a series of non-fiction books on historical mysteries, for example on the legend of the Templars and on Rennes-le-Château, as well as on themes of anomalistics and cryptozoology. Adept at such subjects, he has appeared on television on a number of occasions, notably as presenter and writer on the British television series Fortean TV (1997) and Forbidden History (2013–2016).
The Reverend Robert Lionel Fanthorpe is a priest and entertainer, and has at various times worked as a journalist, teacher, television presenter, author and lecturer.
Born in Dereham, Norfolk (UK), his parents were shopkeeper and teacher, Greta Christine, née Garbutt. In 1957 he married Patricia Alice Tooke, with whom he has two daughters (born 1964 and 1966). From 1958 to 1962 he was a teacher at Dereham Secondary Modern School, then from 1961 to 1963 he studied Education and Theology at Keswick College, Norwich, and was then again a teacher at Dereham until 1967, after which he served in the British Army and was a tutor at the Gamlingay Village College in Gamlingay, Cambridgeshire, and course leader with the Phoenix Timber Company in Rainham from 1969 to 1972 . From 1972 to 1979 he was Headmaster at Hellesdon High School in Norfolk. In 1974 he acquired a bachelor's degree at the Open University. The marriage currently live in Roath, Cardiff, South Wales.
In the early 1950s, Fanthorpe began writing short stories that appeared in various magazines published by John Spencer & Co., such as Futuristic Science Stories and Worlds of Fantasy. From 1954, Fanthorpe's novels appeared primarily in the Badger Books series of the same publisher. In the good decade between 1954 and 1967, Fanthorpe was astonishingly productive. Under various pseudonyms, some personal and some publisher pseudonyms such as Victor La Salle, John E. Muller and Karl Zeigfreid, Fanthorpe wrote much of the supernatural tales and science fiction published in the Badger Books, a total of well over 100 novels and countless short stories. At times a 45,000-word novel was published every 12 days at a flat rate of £22.50, with Fanthorpe dictating his lyrics on tape and then having friends and family transcribe them, after a quick proofreading of the text then going to the publishers. The production method caused frequent careless mistakes, inconsistencies and plot gaps, and the story often came to an abrupt end because he did not have an exact overview of the extent of the text produced while dictating it. Despite such shortcomings, it is conceded that his products often need not fear comparison with the works of other prolific writers. In particular, some stories from the series about Val Stearman, an adventurer in the style of Bulldog Drummond and the mysterious immortal La Noire are considered highlights of Fanthorpe's work. A contributing factor to the large number of pseudonyms used was that the Badger Books series often included so-called magazine volumes, i.e. collections of stories allegedly by different authors. In fact, the stories in such a volume came all or mostly from Fanthorpe under various pseudonyms.
From the early 1980s, together with his wife, he signed a series of non-fiction books on historical mysteries, for example on the legend of the Templars and on Rennes-le-Château, as well as on themes of anomalistics and cryptozoology. Adept at such subjects, he has appeared on television on a number of occasions, notably as presenter and writer on the British television series Fortean TV (1997) and Forbidden History (2013–2016).
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Displaying 1 - 7 of 7 reviews
September 20, 2013
I picked this up thinking it would be a grea, exciting romp, but what I got instead was much better! I'm no Erik Graff but I found these authors to be able researchers, weighing all the possibilities fairly and cogently (not jumping to conclusions because of an exciting or preferred explanation), and describing the progress of the expeditions very well with an admirable precision. The association of the Old Testament's Melchizedek with the scribe of the Egyptian gods, Thoth and the clarification of the grail probably being tablets rather than the Passover cup and it's connection to the mystery was intriguing. When I become curious about the paranormal and other unexplained mysteries, I will definitely return to this husband-wife team. Highly recommended for clarity, logic, detail and combinatorial-learned grasp of what's at hand.
February 25, 2023
All the aspects related to oak island is covered.
And written in unbiased format.
And written in unbiased format.
March 5, 2018
This book is divided into two nearly equal halves. The first half contains a brief telling of the history of the Island as well as its mystery, followed by chronological telling of history's attempts to reach the bottom of the mystery: chapter by chapter deals with each subsequent company or association of searchers, their make up, financing and method of attack. Each ending with the same result: failure.
The second part of the book details, quite haphazardly at times, the working theories of just who, how and why the mystery exists. From the plausible to the obscured, I lost interest when the wheel fell off the wagon with regards to the Bible's Melchizedek involvement, UFOs, and ghosts.
This book seems to deserve a split decision rating - searcher activity: solid A, investigative reporting: weak B at best.
The second part of the book details, quite haphazardly at times, the working theories of just who, how and why the mystery exists. From the plausible to the obscured, I lost interest when the wheel fell off the wagon with regards to the Bible's Melchizedek involvement, UFOs, and ghosts.
This book seems to deserve a split decision rating - searcher activity: solid A, investigative reporting: weak B at best.
November 11, 2022
These people might be nuts. They do a brief and insightful history of the treasure hunt on Oak Island and then they take a sharp left turn into some elaborate conspiracy theories that have some possible remote connection to oak island....it's a little cuckoo.
March 21, 2019
Not bad. A good basic history of the work that has been done on the island and the main theories around the mystery. A bit short and would like a bit more detail but well written.
June 12, 2022
Not a novel so not an interesting to read. Love the History Channel show. This book had a lot of theories, but some of them were a bit far fetched while others made sense
September 6, 2013
Very much in the style of Ancient Aliens TV show... "What if so and so stopped and buried treasure here" and "what if the Templars stopped here" Oak Island is in Nova Scotia so of course I had to read it.
I LOVED IT!!! I want to read more.
P.S. I love Ancient Aliens and Georgio's hair....
I LOVED IT!!! I want to read more.
P.S. I love Ancient Aliens and Georgio's hair....
Displaying 1 - 7 of 7 reviews