The list (at the end) shows:- the talismans numbered from 1 to 40, each one's code letter and zone number, those discovered and the locations described as clearly as remembered. An illustration gives the Ordnance Survey map co-ordinates. A good idea would be to trace each and overlay on the OS sheet 196. Also included are sketches of the lost talismans' stones, giving an indication of size and shape. Please note, the character of some of the locations has changed over the years since the talismans were hidden. In addition to the forty Wight Eye talismans, there were two joker talismans (each set with a real diamond) which have never been registered as having been found. As space is limited, only the "Lost talismans" are completely detailed.

To coincide with the sharing of the Spirit of the Stones Royalty Fund in Jan 1994, another book entitled "Joseph's Magic Albatross was published. Although the narrative has nothing to do with SOS, it was launched with its own small, very easy riddle. The book was sold with a special coupon which allowed the reader to state the location of its story. The intention was to have as many of the lost talismans discovered as possible (in fact, four have been found by JMA readers). To this end, these two extra clues were given to those who failed on their first attempt:-

Choosing Red And Yellow Offers No Solution : This was to tell what to look for in the book

What Edith used to make her Chart, You must use at least in part, You know the way acrostic tells, When re-arranged the place name spells : This was to show how to use the letters.

Successful readers of JMA were issued a certificate complete with the list of hiding places and the size and shapes of the stones. These locations and stone shapes are included herewith.

By referring to the list and the diagrams which show the pertinent areas of the lost talismans you should be able to find the hiding places to within a few yards. However, if you wish to search, to avoid frustration and disappointment, you are advised not to be too optimistic and take it slowly. As the JMA riddle was comparatively easy and this leaflet is now published, you will not be the only person who is party to this information.

I thank you for your interest and wish you the very best of luck but regret that I cannot communicate further information on an individual basis.

One last thing: So far, most lost talismans which have turned up, were found some distances from the original hiding places. For instance: number 30 was eventually discovered in the middle of a bush about 30ft from its original spot. Perhaps by the nature of concealment they had been picked up and thrown away by someone who had not realised the significance of what they are. Look around and about the spot!

IN A NUTSHELL : A BRIEF OVERVIEW OF THE RIDDLES OF SPIRIT OF THE STONES (revised 1997)

This diamond was divided into 324 facets (18 x 18) which made a grid of zones into which Mark's journey was plotted. A verse which Mark composed to help him remember his passage was entered into the grid to follow the route. As the verse had words containing 360 letters, 36 had to be lost along the way. These coincided with the places where Mark dropped his diamonds.

Having constructed the grid and correctly entered the letters, a final message could be deduced by means of outer grid reference numbers which are encoded into one of the illustrations. Not only did the grid supply this message but it presented search zones where seekers could locate the Talismans.

The description above is a very simplified explanation of the general quest. The details that follow are more complex. Please take your time and remember: it took the winners five years to unravel the mysteries of Spirit of the Stones.

In so little space I cannot answer every question but I would like to say that there were no intentional red herrings. Much was left to interpretation and I tried to brush upon wide ranging subjects to give the story its own facets and to open doors of research to seekers who might find other treasures therein. Some of the Talismans were easy to find and others very difficult, in fact, there are currently 19 which have not been located, ... I hid them and I can't find them but neither could I find the last ten which have been discovered by more ardent searchers than me.

Finally, I must congratulate once again Malcolm and Colin Brockbank for unravelling such an intricate puzzle. I also send condolences to the few who were so close on their heels, especially Brian Blake who cracked the final riddle within a week of the Brockbank boys. Well done all of you .

Now follows a more detailed explanation, .... Take it slowly!

THE FOUR CODES
There are three primary codes which are referred to on the back cover of the book as "The Three Brothers". These lead to code four: "The Final Riddle".

The key cipher characters for the first two codes are in the letters and figures contained in: "1763 KEG QUAY MAZE" (ref. frontispiece unfinished verse and illustration page 13). If these known symbols (code 1) and runes (code 2) are entered in relative position to the numbers and letters in numerical followed by alphabetical order, the remaining unknown symbols and runes can be deduced.

THE FIRST BROTHER : CODE 1
This is a 36 facet grid with four coloured sectors as shown at top of next column. See the border of illustration of page 3. Its character pattern of progression is also a clue to "The Final Riddle" which follows similar directions through a larger grid of 324 facets. In code 1, if you place the known numbers then letters in their correct facets, you should be able to see how the remaining ones flow. Except for one jump Eastward and one jump Northward, the rest must be placed in adjacent facets (diagonal, horizontal or vertical), e.g.: 2 next to 1 and 3 next to 2 up to 9 then zero. Adjacent to zero follows the letter "A" and on to "Z". As stated, this direction pattern and the two jumps are also clues to code four. The four sector colours and their North, East West, South sequence are also important in later ciphers.

The cypher to code 1 from top of page 3. The Known numbers and letters have been entered

Always step to an adjacent facet except one jump east and one jump north Start with numbers from one to zero then letters A to Z Complete each colour sector in correct sequence: Yellow, Blue, Red Green

THE SECOND BROTHER : CODE 2
The basic runes. The graphic shape is based upon a diamond (rhombus) divided into four facets.
This time the outlines are used to make the characters. Using the same cipher as code 1, place the known runes below their corresponding numbers and letters. The patterns revolve and the cipher contains at least one of each type, so you should be able to complete the code in full. Correct cipher of the numbers is most important at this stage in order to decode the final riddle.

THE THIRD BROTHER : CODE 3
This has the same graphic shaped runes as code 2. However, the cipher has changed for nearly all the characters. There are three methods of discovering the changes: -

Method one: Page numbers 1 to 36 carry a verse (in runes) which has to be sorted into 36 rhyming lines. The changes are the key to code 3. So that you can see the start and finish, pages 1, 2, 3 and 36 are in their correct positions. These correspond to numerals 1, 2 and 3 and the letter Z (Z being the last of thirty six characters) For reasons of verifying correct claims, page 6 and page 30 were also unchanged (that is, the lines of verse on these pages are in correct order). An example of these changes is Page 15 (e) becomes 23 (m).

Method two: Thirty six of he Wight Eye Talismans have diamond (rhombus) shaped removable tablets called "Shards" (or the Shards of Wisdom). These fit together in a sort of jigsaw assembly which on one side makes a legible relief message and on the reverse shows the code-three changes. (The relief message is of no importance and is only there to allow correct mating of the shards.

Method three: When the talismans were hidden in 1983, John Worsley also concealed an earthenware plaque called "The Lock Seal". This artifact is a matrix of the "Shards of Wisdom" revealing the code-3 changes. The Lock Seal has remained undiscovered and, although it has no monetary value, it still excites a challenge to a few ardent seekers.

THE FINAL RIDDLE : Code 4

The basic runes at the edge of the first 36 pages, when decoded, describe how a diamond shape (rhombus) was drawn on the map of the Isle of Wight, having the Needles and Bembridge Lifeboat Station as East and West points. A line projected down from Bembridge Lifeboat Station through St. Catherines Lighthouse and beyond formed the lower right boundary of the shape. A line perpendicular to midway between the East to West points intersects the lower right boundary line to form the South point of the diamond. This point joined by a line to the Needles forms the lower half of the diamond which is then repeated in mirror fashion above to complete the rhombus. This rhombus is then to be divided into four sectors: North, East, West and South. Each sector then divides into 9x9 = 81 facets making a total of 324 equal grid facets which can also be considered as search zones.

Along with the above procedure, the runes describe how to plot Mark's journey on the grid so that each zone was consecutively covered one step at a time totalling 324 steps until the grid is full. The journey was broken into the same four sectors, each having a different colour code. The sectors relate to the four days in which the journey was made.

Several seekers managed to complete the grid and number the facets in the correct order according to the directions of Mark's footsteps.

Next, Mark's verse which he recited as an aid-memoir as he travelled, must be entered into the grid to follow the same pattern as described. This is where the direction clue of code 1 is useful as this journey takes similar but more complicated steps and directions. It also takes the North, East, West, South sector sequence with two jumps as in code 1. This verse (from the scroll on page 35) contains 360 letters which means that 36 have to be lost along the way. These 36 letters correspond to the diamonds which Mark dropped and are not entered into the grid. The border illustration on page 21 has a clue to the correct arrangement of the verse lines which became scrambled as Mark passed through time. The clue is a series of runic numbers and minus signs referring to the phrase "Letters from Space" (you must count the letters and the spaces of each line and then put the lines in the sequence as shown on the girdle (border). The girdle also supplies the clue that the scroll is signed: "Mark A Stone" This verse plus the signature totals 360 letters.

So far 36 diamonds have been mentioned. As there were 40 Wight Eye Talismans, the remaining four were the HEARTS. In the story, Mark purposely leaves four diamonds as markers. These are the letters which occur in the centre facets of each sector. These letters spell the word TREE and must be entered into the grid.

One last move has to be made to get the grid of letters into a final framework: Each sector contains 81 facets (9x9) with its heart in the middle. These 81 facets are considered as having their own North, East, West and South regions each having 16 facets which are separated by an X shaped cross of 17 letters with the heart in the middle. The final move is of these regions, again in the old NEWS sequence , ... North to East, East to West, West to South and South to North.

When this 'small task' was achieved. By placing grid references and correctly decoding the Third Brother numbers in the illustration on page 31, the books final secret was revealed which would have lead a very weary seeker to the hiding place of The Great Wight Eye. The message is:

GRACE SEES SHORE WAY OVER DAWNS CRY FORK R TO ANGEL TREE BY BRIDGE STREAM

Clue to the meaning of this on Page 27 : "Aspire to under Stan"
In fact from GRACE which is the Ashey sea-mark which has the inscription GR 1735 :
G R 1=A, drop the 7 like there is no page 7 numbered, 3=C, 5=E
SHORE WAY = Beach Copse footpath is in alignment with DAWNS CRY which is Newchurch weathercock. The ANGEL TREE (or Stan, already mentioned) grew in Beach Copse near Godshill. Since the Angel Tree was destroyed in 1987 by the great storm, decoding this message was all that was required to claim The Great Wight Eye.

ILLUSTRATIONS AND OTHER CLUES

The book's pictures give different ways of identifying the zones
(facets of the final grid) where talismans were/are hidden:- By drawing intersecting lines of the map by means of clues around the border of page 9, fourteen talismans were located. Others were found by deducing zone (facet) numbers and talisman letters, others by letter count e.g.: 4th N in Mark's journey through red sector (see bottom of page 27)

There are too many ways to list comprehensively but, letters concealed but known by familiarity, were important e.g.: H,E and S are lost from HEINZE SOUP, these letters are dropped from zone 57. There are many clues and puzzles of general significance:- Mill Stone Verse: count the letters starting from the end of the book: "Now start a gain, ... For in every life a little rain...." etc. this gives "FIND PUNS" if you invert the letter d to make a p (sorry, there was no p)

The Demon Taxman on page 16 = anagram of POUNDS SHILLINGS AND PENCE (the route of evil, a pun) Page 32= Reeds between the lines: if you angle the book and look along the railway lines, letters appear, ... an anagram of APT CLICHE refering to "he was rooted to the spot" from text.

Page 33: trace through the maze without crossing a black line; you will pass letters, morse code, signal flag and semaphore = NON PEDANT or don't be pedantic.

Page 9: The Angel Stan has 3rd brother runes = I AM NATURE'S RESURRECTION; the final coded message of the book refers to an Angel Tree which was a beautiful young tree growing from the root stump of a long dead one. Sadly this was a victim of the great storm of 1987. The stump of the Angel tree is still there with its host, ... will it grow again?

ABOUT THE TALISMANS

Basically rhomboid in shape (as is the Isle of Wight), the talismans can be visualised as having four sectors: North, East, West and South. Every talisman has a runic message on its face: WARD AGIN EVIL TRAPS These words are inscribed one to each sector in sequence N.E.W.S. This North, East, West, South sequence is important as it is used in several codes. Each talisman has a tiny removable rhombus shaped tablet: a "Shard" with a single rune (letter). There were 40 Wight Eye Talismans, plus two jokers (never found) The main forty were divided into 36 Rid Shards and four Heart Shards, the function of which will be important to understand when working on the final riddle. As a preliminary brief: The Rid Letters will be lost from a large grid of letters in the final riddle . The Heart Shards spell the word TREE

METHOD OF CONCEALMENT

The clues leading to the hiding places vary. Some are relatively easy and others quite complex. This allowed a number of Wight Eye Talismans to be discovered early on. The most easy was in fact found within a few months of publication and it was contained in a small polythene bag. Apart from the two jokers, all the rest including the Great Wight Eye, were encased in rough stones which have a spiral coil mark rather like an ammonite fossil. This marking is really a cement impregnated, coiled cord, which when pulled, breaks the stone to reveal the talisman. In the early stages this method of concealment was a closely guarded secret

Below: Scale and shape of the stones which contain the Lost Talismans

Look for stones with a spiral mark

LIST OF THE HIDING PLACES

TALISMAN : IF FOUND : LOCATION
Number
& Letter
ZONE
1 T 15 Found Whippingham, near small wooden bridge on path through copse
2 H 1 By gate at bend in lane (probably now in hedge. Please search with care)
3 I 15 In hole in small tree near talisman number 1 (Tree still there, worth hunting around it)
4 A 5 Thorness Bay in old winch on beach near measured mile post with diamond shape
5 N 5 *Found Thorness Bay in bush bordering beach to field (look for large flint stone)
6 M 15 Found Northwood copse in hollow of tree root near path
7 A 15 Found Midway between talisman 6 and 8 on copse path
8 N 15 Found End of copse beneath board-walk over soft ground
9 H 33 Found Near pylon and stile over wire fence in Fattingpark copse
10 H 57 *Found In first cattle grid along pathway Near entrance to farm
11 E 57 *Found In second cattle grid same pathway
12 S 57 *Found At base of tree at corner of copse near footpath (could still be within yards)
13 N 90 Found At base of chestnut tree in America Woods
14 E 90 Found Near to talisman number 13
15 T 99 Between gate and stream crossing path (an ancient pond since reclaimed near here)
16 I 133 In old stone wall where footpath from windmill reaches it. Line up land marks?
17 N 133 Found In back of same low wall (midway between talisman 16 and 18 near gate or stile)
18 S 133 In top of same wall a few yards from its west end.
19 L 139 Found In tree with split bow on footpath by Caul Bourne brook
20 A 139 Found Beneath stile marked "Keep Dogs on Lead" Same path as talisman 19
21 L 154 On small peninsular at horseshoe bend of stream near wooden footbridge
22 C 156 By large stone where stream crosses path (This stone still there but has been moved)
23 H 156 Found Tucked beside single stone bridge over stream (footpath S19 as is talisman 22)
24 P 160 Old railway at Yarmouth tucked beside bridge over creek
25 S 161 Old railway Yarmouth base of very tall post now removed
26 H 163 Found Signpost where footpaths cross in field (this was the first & easiest to be found)
27 N 169 In side of cutting leading to Long Stone (look for red brick stone probably washed down)
28 K 213 Found Where Tennyson and Worsley trails part
29 R 234 Near small boundary stone on path skirting Hermitage at base of covered wall.
30 H 245 Found Crossing over old railway line Whitwell. Found some distance from where hidden!
31 S 247 In wall (now fallen) probably in rubble (new deer fences here but access still possible)
32 A 249 Found In wall near Freemantle Gate (this also fell but workman repairing it found talisman)
33 D 251 Near small gate with balance weight (gate later smashed and replaced)
34 E 251 Close to talisman number 33 in bushes Requires a thorough search.No damage PLEASE!
35 N 265 Tucked beside large brown stone by stream (probably now washed away)
36 G 265 Whale Chine (under middle of top steps now gone)
37 T 13 Found In copse near Marks Corner Although I hid it I couldn't find it but the claimant did!
38 R 94 Beneath wire fence West of Seamark (in lump of chalk) I have looked often to no avail!
39 E 171 Beside large stone near gate high on downs (sheep since grazing here)
40 E 220 Found Under stone slab (this was later covered with earth by farmer but found by seeker using a spike pick (his first blow broke the talisman in two)

Joker Under railings around Tennyson Monument (wrapped in parcel tape)
Joker At corner where path reaches level near Hoy Monument (wrapped in parcel tape)

Utmost effort has been made in preparing this information but due to circumstances beyond control and the time which has elapsed since the talismans were hidden, there may be slight errors.

* The word "Found" shows the 'LOST' talismans which have been discovered by readers of Joseph's Magic Albatross