Off the Cuff

Let’s look at how Image 11 pairs with the city of Boston. On the woman’s left cuff (our right), there is a number 42. This latitude passes to the south of Boston. Below the left cuff is a metal strip displaying a number of symbols. The two illuminated ones (lit by lamp light) are a square and a triangle, having four and three sides respectively. This common escape room encoding gives us 43, the latitude passing to the north of Boston. On her right elbow there is a backward 71, a longitude that intersects with the easternmost portion of Boston, by the airport. 

Per John Palencar, the name Boston is spelled out in the image. My best guess regarding this is as follows: “B” is the globe stand. “O” is one of the globes. A backward “S” is hidden in the mess of squiggles beneath the box. “T” is the bird stand. “O” is the other globe. An “N” is in the symbol just to the left of the smaller bubble. 

Finally, the falcon popping the bubble, per John Palencar, alludes to the Boston Pops Orchestra.

In Poem 3, as mentioned earlier, the following is a reference to Paul Revere’s midnight ride through Boston on April 18, 1775: 

Eighteenth day

Twelfth hour

Lit by lamplight

Here’s part of Henry Waddsworth Longfellow’s famous poem describing the ride:

He said to his friend, "If the British march 

By land or sea from the town to-night,

Hang a lantern aloft in the belfry arch

Of the North Church tower as a signal light,— 

One if by land, and two if by sea;

And I on the opposite shore will be,

Ready to ride and spread the alarm 

Through every Middlesex village and farm, 

For the country folk to be up and to arm."

And with that, we have our city: Boston. The month is August. The flower is gladiolus. The gem is a peridot, which is usually associated with Italy (as noted by Krupat).

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