The internet’s largest mystery, explained.
In 2012, a mysterious image was posted to the 4chan site. The user was looking for “highly intelligent individuals” and hid a message in the post itself. This was the start of a series of puzzles that would puzzle the entire internet for years to come.
For those of you who know what I’m talking about, awesome! However for those who don’t, keep reading and I’m sure you all will be as amazed and mystified as I was when you realize something like this really happened.
Now, lets dive into the mystery that baffled millions of people worldwide.
What is it?
Lets start with what the puzzle was titled. The original 4chan messaged was signed ‘3301’. That was the pseudonym the puzzle’s creator used to publish them. To this day, no one know who created the puzzle and why. Now, to answer the questions as to why there is a cicada in the image above. One of the missions in the puzzle was to find pictures of that image somewhere in the world using previously discovered coordinates. The puzzle as a whole was dubbed “Cicada 3301.”
The First Puzzle
The very first message (left) was posted on 4Chan on January 4th, 2012. Soon after the message was posted, people were finding new clues and new ways to look for hidden messages. I won’t go into too much detail about the different clues, but I will mention some key elements. Using a text editor, you were taken to another, image, then a link, and you ended up at a book titled “The Mabinogion.” Once you deciphered the book using a specific code, you were led to a telephone number which when dialed, told you to find 3 prime numbers (one of which was 3301) that were associated with the original message (ended up being image dimensions). You were told to multiply these #’s together and add a .com at the end for the next clue. At this point, the image had been posted all across the internet. Many had their theories, of course, but nobody could find out who 3301 was. Many perceived it as a joke, however others marveled at its complexity and thought it could be a secret society/mysterious organization.
The less you reveal, the more they wonder. ~ Emma Watson
The 3 numbers led to a site with a countdown and a Cicada. Once the clock ran out, you were given various coordinates to places all around the globe. At these locations were images of Cicadas and QR codes. Once scanned, you were led through various other clues, then finally leading to a website. Few first arrivals to the site were accepted, and the rest of the arrivals were rendered incapable of entering. Finally, a subreddit found during the scavenger hunt, another message (above) appeared indicating the end of the puzzle.
As mysterious as it was, it was now over. Questions were left unanswered, theories were unverified and the internet never heard from 3301 ever again.
Until…
The Second Puzzle
Exactly 366 days after the first image was posted, another image was released on 4Chan. It was very similar to the original. It contained a hidden message leading to a book, the an audio file titled “The Instar Emergence” which you can listen to here. The puzzle then led to an image of a Runic alphabet titled ‘Gematria Primus.’ This led you to a twitter account and much like the first puzzle, the clues sent you out onto a quest to find images of Cicadas and QR codes in the real world. The hunt concluded exactly the same way and the trail went dark once again.
But…
The Third Puzzle
At the commencement of 2014, the third round had begun. Similar to the first 2 puzzles, the hunt led from the message to a book, and to another link and so on. However, this puzzle was special as it was centered around this book titled “Liber Primus.” This literally translates to “first book.” It was all written in runic language, so the rune decryption image that was found during the 2nd puzzle hunt was to be put to use. Only few parts of the book were translated, as it became incredibly complex to decipher as you went on. The parts that were translated read to be some sort of manifesto, and various philosophical ideologies which made you question who or what on earth was behind this. It had the makings of a cult or a secret society, however there is no way to know for sure. In “Liber Primus,” there are 74 pages in the book which contain runes, however only 19 were translated. To this day, no one has solved the 3rd puzzle. At the beginning of 2016, Cicada stated that “Liber Primus is the way,” which meant deciphering it would lead to more clues. Cicada had gone MIA once again, but this time, they weren’t coming back anytime soon.
So, what does this all mean? Who or what is behind Cicada 3301? What was the purpose of all these puzzles.
These questions remain unanswered and the mystery of Cicada 3301 be remembered.
