Merlin Mystery Solution: Part 13

The Merlin Mystery prize wand

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This is it! This is the final part of my solution to The Merlin Mystery by Jonathan Gunson and Marten Coombe.

For a puzzle where the number 12 is so important (relying on there being 12 zodiac signs, 12 positions on a clock face and using 12 different alchemy symbols), I like that it has taken 13 blog posts to reach the final solution.

Before revealing my answer, a final summary of the whole puzzle and how the solution is reached is warranted. Links lead to the 12 preceding parts of the solution to read the full details of each stage.

Complete Summary of the Puzzle and Solution

The Merlin Mystery poses a simply worded puzzle: find the Alchemist’s Spell and the method of casting it and draw these two elements on paper. The answer is contained within the 22 double pages of the book, each double page being surrounded by 48 squares. Every page contains a variety of symbols, from zodiac signs to solid geometrical shapes.

The answer to this puzzle is found by interpreting the meaning of a list of 75 objects found in the border around each page of the book. To find the correct objects and to order them correctly requires solving 7 different mini-puzzles.

The Seven Solids

Each mini-puzzle is represented by a different solid object: Pyramid, Cone, Cube, Sphere, Cylinder, Cuboid and Diabolo. These 7 solids are lined up on the shelf on P4 of the book. Using gold rings, each of these objects are linked to other objects which lead to clues for solving each mini-puzzle. Once all the puzzles are solved, they provide a set of instructions for drawing 75 lines through the book.

The starting points of the lines are special border squares on each page of the book associated with the 12 Zodiac symbols (Pyramid puzzle). The page containing the starting square also contains gold and silver Merlin symbols telling you to turn to a different page of the book (Cube puzzle). On that second page, gold alchemy symbols tell you which direction to draw a line in, crossing the page to a new border square (Cone puzzle).

Having found the new border square, gold and silver cadency symbols tell you to turn to yet another page of the book (Sphere puzzle). On that third page, counting up crescent moons takes you from your current border square around the border to a final square (Cylinder puzzle).

The object contained in the final square is one of the objects that make up the solution and going through each page of the book in turn (Diabolo puzzle) results in a collection of 75 objects. The objects are placed into their correct order based on Roman numeral encoded into the copper tiles around the border of each page (Cuboid puzzle).

The ordered list of objects is a symbolic representation of the Alchemist’s spell and the method of casting. Correctly interpreting the list as a set of instructions gives the final solution which can be drawn on a piece of paper.

The instructions tell you to perform the spell during a full moon. Facing north, a pentacle made of five different wooden sticks is placed inside a 3 foot wide circle of salt. 12 runes are placed around the circle and a 13th inside the north point of the pentacle. Burning candles of silver and gold are placed either side of the pentacle and a censer burning rosemary is placed in the centre.

The method of casting the spell is to recite the names of the 13 runes, extinguish the candles, and to say “Peace”.

The Final Solution

Here is my attempt at drawing the answer on a piece of paper. Please appreciate the artistic effort, particularly on the censer and Merlin’s cape!

The Merlin Mystery solution

I hope you’ve enjoyed this epic journey through the Merlin Mystery.

Onward, puzzlers!