What's in the "Book of Secrets"? Quiz

Answer:

"National Treasure: Book of Secrets" opens on the night of Lincoln's assassination at Ford's Theatre in Washington, D.C. (April 14, 1865). Ben Gates' ancestor, Thomas Gates, is introduced as a code-breaker investigating a mysterious page from John Wilkes Booth's diary that may point to a vast treasure of gold. Mortally wounded while pursuing the clue, Thomas leaves behind a legacy that will later come under suspicion.

In the present day, during a lecture at the George Washington Masonic National Memorial in Alexandria, Virginia, Ben Gates is confronted by Mitch Wilkinson, who produces the missing diary page and claims it implicates Thomas in the conspiracy surrounding Lincoln's assassination. The revelation casts doubt on the Gates family history and sets Ben on a quest to uncover the truth and restore his ancestor's reputation.

Finding a cipher remnant on the new page led to the clue "Laboulaye Lady," which pointed to the Statue of Liberty. Gates (and Riley Poole) visit Paris and the replica of Lady Liberty on an island in the Seine, which revealed an inscription that referenced the Resolute Twins, two desks built from the planks of the HMS Resolute... inconveniently located in Buckingham Palace and the Oval Office of the White House, respectively.

Going to London and Buckingham Palace, Gates manages to find his way to the Resolute Desk in the palace, and he finds a clue hidden within it: a fragment of wood carved with ancient Native American-style pictographs. After visiting his mother, Dr. Emily Appleton, an expert in pre-Colonial Native American languages at the University of Maryland, Gates learns that the carvings are part of a much larger message. Emily translates the pictographs, revealing directions that point toward a "sacred temple" and suggesting that the two halves of the carving once formed a single clue. More importantly, she confirms that another matching fragment must exist, convincing Ben that the second Resolute Desk in the White House holds the next piece of the puzzle.

To gain access to the White House, Gates and Abigail attend an Easter event on the grounds and make their way into the Oval Office with the unwitting help of the White House curator. There, Ben discovers that the second wooden fragment is gone. Instead, he notices that the Presidential Seal has been subtly altered, with a scroll clutched in the eagle's claw instead of a bundle of arrows. The anomaly serves as a hidden clue, leading Gates to a far more closely guarded secret: the existence of the President's confidential Book of Secrets, a collection of the nation's most sensitive mysteries and classified information.

Knowing that he must broach the subject directly with the President, in private, Gates infiltrates President Edward's birthday celebration at George Washington's Mount Vernon. In one of the film's most memorable sequences, Ben abducts the President and escorts him through a network of hidden passages beneath the estate. Although initially skeptical, the President comes to trust Gates and ultimately confirms that the Book of Secrets is real. Before they part ways, he provides the crucial information needed to access it, allowing Ben to continue his quest while remaining one step ahead of both law enforcement and Wilkinson.

Armed with the President's instructions, Gates and his team travel to the Library of Congress, where the Book of Secrets is stored. There he finally gains access to its pages and uncovers records relating to the mystery surrounding Thomas Gates and Booth's diary. The Book also contains a photograph of the wooden carving that was hidden in the White House's Resolute Desk. With the completed inscription combined from both fragments, Ben obtains the next clues in the chain and discovers that the route ultimately leads west to Mount Rushmore.

At Mount Rushmore National Memorial, Gates reunites with Wilkinson, who possesses additional clues gleaned from a letter exchanged between the Confederacy and Queen Victoria that has remained in his family's possession. Despite their rivalry, the two men reluctantly cooperate when it becomes clear that neither can reach the treasure alone. Following the final set of clues hidden within the monument's secret passages and chambers, they uncover the entrance to the long-sought City of Gold.

Beyond the hidden passage lies Cíbola, the legendary City of Gold. Deep underground, Gates, his family, and Wilkinson discover a vast cavern containing immense stores of gold and priceless historical artifacts. More importantly, the evidence found there finally clears Thomas Gates of any connection to Lincoln's assassination and reveals the truth behind the mystery that has haunted the Gates family for generations. With his ancestor's name restored, Ben's quest comes to an end.