Its an irresistible combination: Brad Meltzer, a born storyteller, counting down the worlds most intriguing unsolved mysteries. And to make this richly illustrated book even richer, each chapter invites the reader along for an interactive experience through the addition of facsimile documentsthe evidence! Its a treasure trove for conspiracy buffs, a Griffin and Sabine for history lovers. Adapted from Decoded, Meltzer's hit show on the HISTORY network, History Decoded explores fascinating, unexplained questions. Is Fort Knox empty? Why was Hitler so intent on capturing the Roman ';Spear of Destiny'? What's the government hiding in Area 51? Where did the Confederacy's $19 million in gold and silver go at the end of the Civil War? And did Lee Harvey Oswald really act alone? Meltzer sifts through the evidence; weighs competing theories; separates what we know to be true with what's stilland perhaps foreverunproved or unprovable; and in the end, decodes the mystery, arriving at the most likely solution. Along the way we meet Freemasons, Rosicrucians, Nazi propagandists, and the real DB Cooper. At the beginning of each story is a custom-designed envelopea faux 19th-century leather satchel, a U.S. government classified filecontaining facsimiles of relevant evidence: John Wilkes Booth's alleged unsigned will, a map of the Vatican, Kennedy's death certificate. The whole is a riveting, interactive adventure through the compelling world of mysteries and conspiracies.
