image 1

[hollidaze3]

so where does the Giant Pole and Giant Step come from?  i have been workin on yet another hunt (non- ATT) heheh...and havent been able to do anymore research on that particular area...any ideas?

thanks holli

ps...thanks drew...i thought it was...

[mxb]

Hi all... I'm mostly a lurker on this board and I'm nowhere near SF. But I had a thought that I haven't seen posted here. Does anyone know if there is a big statue of someone Polish in SF (giant Pole)?

Matt

[forest_blight]

The idea has been raised before (dan39decoy, last year), but there were no takers. I really like the idea, because it doesn't involve a straightforward interpretation of "pole."

[Voltaire]

Hello, I'm a newbie here, a longtime lurker and a friend of forest blight's.

I'm in San Francisco on vacation right now, and I thought I'd have a go at this one.  I am assuming verse 7 and image 1 go together, and this morning I learned that Coit Tower on Telegraph Hill is one of three towers that have stood at that location.  The telegraph and other signal tower that once stood there may be "sounds from the sky," though I'm not certain.  Also, several churches are visible from the top of the hill, though none of them are cathedral churches.

This location is a good deal closer to Ghirardelli Square than the Golden Gate Park, indeed only about twelve blocks away.

I hope I haven't covered any old ground here, and I'm sorry if this post is inappropriate...

[fox]

Good luck on your search Voltaire.  Keep us all posted.  If I were you, dont discount GGP just yet.  If you have time, you may just want to roam around the park and see if you spot something that maltedfalcon may have missed. (although mf is one sharp cookie)

[Voltaire]

If anyone would like me to take pictures of specific sites in SF, I am here until Saturday and able to photograph with a high-res digital camera.  Just send me a message and I'll head out tomorrow.  I have already taken several dozen pictures of the area around Coit Tower, as I am convinced that the three high posts represent the three historical towers that have stood in succession atop this hill--a flag signaling tower, a telegraph tower, and the Coit memorial tower.  Each one is commemorated by notices around the top of Telegraph Hill.

Detailed pictures of these sights will follow, as will pictures from around Ghirardelli Square.  Anything else, just shoot me a message.

[forest_blight]

I wouldn't be surprised if Voltaire returned home with casque in tow. A little Googling and reading about Coit Tower leaves me very optimistic - it's an attractive site.

Consider, for example, paintings #16 and #17 here...
http://www.coittower.org/murals/floorplan.html
...and compare their outlines to that of Image 1.

I would just keep an eye out for things alluded to in various verses, especially Verse 7. For example, if there is a statue of Mark Twain looking directly at a patch of sand, I would be encouraged!

[drewsmith]

I wouldn't be surprised if Voltaire returned home with casque in tow. A little Googling and reading about Coit Tower leaves me very optimistic - it's an attractive site.

Consider, for example, paintings #16 and #17 here...
http://www.coittower.org/murals/floorplan.html
...and compare their outlines to that of Image 1.

I would just keep an eye out for things alluded to in various verses, especially Verse 7. For example, if there is a statue of Mark Twain looking directly at a patch of sand, I would be encouraged!

Interesting.  The description of painting 16 refers to the University of California (in other words, Education), while the description of painting 17 refers to Alcatraz Prison (in other words, Justice).  "For all to see", indeed.

Drew

[fox]

Very nice Drew.  I was excited just because the tops of those 2 pix were rounded like P1 and included a dark sky and rocky mountains.  Then you drop the bombshell about education and justice.  Coit tower has to be near.

bring one home Voltaire.....bring one home!

[forest_blight]

Wow, drew, that's a wonderful observation. I think I just heard a "clink" as a couple of pieces fell nicely into place.

I wonder if anything in (or around, or visible from) the Coit Tower has to do with airplanes. Near ace is high suggests a "flying ace," which would be high if the plane is aloft. Is there an airplane in any of the murals? That would also qualify as Sounds from the sky, too, by the way, but then, so would the Berkeley campanile in the east painting.

In jewel's direction may not refer to the casque at all (since there is no jewel there, after all), but rather to the artificial Treasure Island (hardee har), home of the 1939 World's Fair and a former military base. And frankly there isn't much between Coit Tower and Treasure Island but water and a little land. So if this is helpful at all, is there an object / Of Twain's attention or a Giant pole / Giant step to the northeast of the tower?

[wilhouse]

I know this is a stretch, but somewhere in my mind I remember that a telegraph tower used to be known as a "pole", meaning that the possibly something on the Telegraph Hill could actually be the telegraph pole?

wilhouse

[drewsmith]

While we're focusing on Coit Tower, could the blue lake-like image on the left be the outline of Pioneer Park?  I couldn't find a good map to compare the two outlines.

Drew

[Voltaire]

I spent most of the day taking tons of pictures at Ghirardelli Square, actually, but I walked away disappointed.  The walls around Ghirardelli are brick, not stone, and though the air smells sweet, I couldn't find much else to satisfy me there.

But I'm heading to Coit tomorrow.  I'll be wearing a black pullover and a green-and-blue striped polo shirt--bad fashion sense, but conspicuous.  If any of you want to meet me there, I'll almost certainly be in the tower vicinity all tomorrow morning, taking pictures, asking questions, and dropping hints. 

[drewsmith]

And while I'm letting my mind wander a bit...

Mark Twain often credited Bret Harte as being his mentor.  Harte apparently lived in SF at 716 Montgomery Street at the time he wrote some of his stories (Ralph Stackpole, one of the Coit muralists, also lived there).  And one of Harte's stories was "The Outcasts of Poker Flat". 

Has anyone connected "ace is high" to poker?

Drew

[catherwood]

hey, seems several of us are reading this right now!  let's meet in chat!

I must be at the office all day Friday, and I don't think I'd want to be treasure hunting at night.  It's been a while since i've been near Coit, but I thought it was all residential streets.  (Hey, rbfox, it's right near where P.Dreizen lived!)  Maybe a bit of earth and trees along a winding page around the base?  Yes, it's been too long, but I think i'll continue working remotely on this one some more.  Good luck!  And welcome to California!