Solution to the Cat Pharaoh’s Challenge

The key image in solving the puzzle is the underwater scene towards the end of the book featuring countless fish, each with a different pattern of jewels. One of them is surely the fish Jackal and Ibis need to find – but which? The answer lies in a small image right at the beginning of the book: the cameo of the Jewel Fish on the Title Page.

This little piece of art does not show us the colour of the jewels – it seems no use at all – but look again – is that a tiny question mark at the base of the tail? Ah, ha! Turn back to the underwater scene – each fish has a different shape at the base of the tail. But which is the right one?

Once more help lies in an oft-overlooked artwork – the Front Cover. There is another cameo of the Jewel Fish – the shape at the base of the tail is a round disc … Back to the underwater scene – and there it is: one of them has the same round disc. Bingo!

With the pattern of jewels revealed it’s an easy matter to work out which other treasures Jackal and Ibis took from the Crocodile Prince: the blue pyramid, the green scarab beetle and the purple vase.

The Cat Pharaoh’s reward is ours! Click on the links below for your copy.

Graeme

ps; sorry to everyone who thought the answer was hidden somewhere in the Egyptian Hieroglyphics. All that work translating them for nothing. Haha!