British comedian John Finnemore has made good use of his social distancing time to become only the third person to solve “Cain’s Jawbone”, a super conundrum literary puzzle, in its nearly 90-year history.
Created in 1934, by Edward Powys Mathers, the pioneer of the advanced enigmatic crossword puzzle, Cain’s Jawbone is one of the hardest puzzles ever created.
Only two people have been able to solve this puzzle in the last 86 years.
It consists of 100 pages, printed and bound in out of order, and the reader is invited to rearrange the pages, decipher the mysteries, and reveal the killer(s). There are over 32 million possible page combinations, but only one is correct.
It doesn’t sound too difficult, but only two people have been able to solve it in the last 86 years. Until recently, British comedian John Finnemore managed to do just that.
“I looked it over at first and decided it was too hard for me and not helpful. So I put it back on the shelf. Then the pandemic hit… and I had time to do it.”
Figuring out the exact order of the pages and deciphering the mystery of Cain’s Jawbone is quite a feat. Finnemore says he spread the puzzle pieces out on his bed and started studying various references and laws in the early 1900s, which really helped.
In fact, the comedian recommends that anyone taking the quizzes use Google, as it’s not something you can solve without the correct information.
Back when Cain’s Jawbone was first released, a reward of £25 () was given to whoever solved it, and that prize was raised to £1,000 (,335) in 2012. last time, when British publisher Unbound re-released the puzzle.
Finnemore and Shandy Hall curator Patrick Wildgust, who confirmed that the comedian solved Caine’s Jawbone, agreed to keep “a closely guarded secret, so future generations can enjoy the puzzle”.
If tricky puzzles are your thing, maybe you should take up the challenge to be the first to decipher Kryptos, the encrypted sculpture that no one has yet been able to figure out.