Treasure hunters close in on 10-ounce, 24-karat gold statue valued at $26,000 as map shows potential location

A New Hampshire crippled decorator announced connected September 19 that he'd hidden a 10 troy ounce, 24-karat golden statue valued astatine $26,000 connected the wood floor, but present the shrinking representation determination has treasure hunters closing in.

Jason Rohrer of Dover is 1 of the co-creators of Project Skydrop - a existent beingness treasure hunt for a golden statue hidden determination connected nationalist onshore successful the Northeast. 

When the crippled was rolled out, the representation showed the imaginable hunt country was a 500-mile radius ellipse that encompassed New England to Washington D.C.

But connected Monday, the representation merchandise had constricted the country to a 35-mile radius, with the ellipse closing successful connected Massachusetts and a tiny sliver of Vermont. 

It's centered connected the I-91 corridor successful the Pioneer Valley that includes the cities of Amherst, Northampton, South Hadley and miles of heavy forest. 

For those players heavy invested successful uncovering the treasures whereabouts, they tin wage a $20 registration interest which gives entree to a changing aerial representation of the wood floor.

The archetypal photograph sent retired was conscionable a ft disconnected the ground, but by this past Monday, the representation roseate supra the histrion canopy, the Boston Globe reported. 

Rohrer said that towards the extremity of the hunt, the photograph volition scope a tallness wherever players tin place geographic details that volition beryllium a large hint for the treasures location. 

Subscribers also person entree to clues that are sent retired betwixt 9am and 3pm each day.

But clues are sent retired successful 'first-joined, first-sent order' meaning those who articulation earlier get their clues first. If idiosyncratic joins later, they inactive volition person entree to clues released from erstwhile days. 

There's besides a discord server for subscribers wherever they tin chat astir their findings that has a whopping 10,613 members.

For the winner, it isn't conscionable the worth of the golden statue they'll beryllium walking distant with - the prize bounty is presently valued astatine $76,372 and steadily rising by the second, arsenic shown connected the project's website. 

Internet sleuths are putting their heads unneurotic online to fig retired the treasure's determination - adjacent Rohrer has been participating successful threads connected his Reddit account. 

On the GeoPuzzle Reddit thread a post, which features a photograph from the way camera that oversees the golden statue, 1 idiosyncratic commented: 'Also, nary disposable moss growth. So astir apt the camera is facing north.'

Rohrer was seemingly impressed by this find and wrote back: 'Actually, I deliberation you're right. A clever tin tin you are!'

Users are besides joking astir the way camera photograph of a squirrel adjacent to the trophy - arsenic a homage to the archetypal promo video which featured an animated squirrel with the treasure. 

One idiosyncratic posted a representation of a squirrel successful the woods and wrote 'found,' that had 1 Redditor commenting: 'That squirrel knows wherever the treasure is. If we find the squirrel we find the treasure.'

Rohrer and Tom Bailey collaborated connected Project Skydrop implicit a 3 twelvemonth period. Bailey helped to make the game, plan the statue and created the euphony for the awesome announcement video. 

Rohrer has a robust estimation successful the satellite of gaming for his instauration of Passage, Inside a Star Filled Sky and A Game for Someone - a crippled meant to beryllium played 2,000 years successful the aboriginal that's buried determination successful the Nevada desert. 

Rohrer told the Boston Globe that his astir caller task is his effort to amended the treasure hunt arsenic a crippled genre. 

If successful, Rohrer wrote on Reddit that he'd similar to marque a treasure hunt determination successful Europe. 

Project Skydrop is expected to beryllium solved by October 10, erstwhile the representation volition shrink to lone a azygous quadrate foot.