Skip to main content
  1. Home
  2. Culture

HBO Hid 6 Iron Thrones Around the World for Game of Thrones

By

We hate to lean on the obvious catchphrase here, but “Game of Thrones is coming” — literally. The eighth and final season of what has become one of HBO’s most widely acclaimed shows ever returns April 14 in all its fascinating, bloody glory. In the network’s typical over-the-top fashion, they’ve launched a global, GoT-flavored scavenger hunt ahead of the final season’s premiere.

“When you play the game of thrones, you win or you die.” Cersei Lannister

Recommended Videos

The queen’s bleak declarations aside, last week, HBO announced a less deadly, real-world game of thrones for hardcore fans of the show. The Quest for the Throne is simple: six replica Iron Thrones have been hidden in remote locations around the world and fans are tasked with finding them. HBO is encouraging hints, rumor mill, and sharing on social media with the hashtag #ForTheThrone.

Seek the Weirwood in this Kingdom on Earth. Begin your Quest #ForTheThrone.#ThroneoftheForest https://t.co/LowR2bZ1z5 pic.twitter.com/usJrQjYlpv

— Game of Thrones (@GameOfThrones) March 18, 2019

HBO kicked off the hunt on Twitter with a photo of the first throne, The Throne of the Forest. The purposely vague picture revealed the empty throne sitting in a dense, mossy forest which, frankly, could have been just about anywhere. Still, in less than a day, two eagle-eyed fans tracked it down to the Forest of Dean in the United Kingdom. While it might not seem obvious to casual fans, the location is well-known among lovers of Harry Potter as the real-life setting for The Deathly Hallows.

Throne of the North | Quest #ForTheThrone - Dawn

The Throne of the North was the second to be unveiled via an hour-long, 360-degree YouTube livestream. Fans quickly tracked that one as well to a snowy field in Björkliden, Sweden. Three additional thrones were subsequently found in the Brazilian desert, coastal Spain, and British Columbia, Canada. Every winner in the scavenger hunt receives a replica of King Robert Baratheon’s crown from the show (similar to this one we imagine).

game of thrones throne of joy quest hbo
HBO/Twitter

HBO is no stranger to clever marketing campaigns to hype their best programs, and they’ve pulled out all the stops ahead of the last six highly anticipated episodes of Game of Thrones. In February, the Create for the Throne campaign inspired artists around the world to craft some of the show’s most iconic props (like the dragon glass daggers seen here) in their own image. The company also worked alongside the American Red Cross on a do-good campaign dubbed Bleed for the Throne, a simple, nationwide blood drive with a branded tie-in. Plus, we’ve seen Game of Thrones sneakers, whisky, and even a co-branded Game of Thrones x John Varvatos clothing line.

Now that you’re appropriately dressed, boozed, and inspired for the season premiere, the only thing left to do is … wait.

Mike Richard
Mike Richard
Contributor
Mike Richard has traveled the world since 2008. He's kayaked in Antarctica, tracked endangered African wild dogs in South…

Editors’ Recommendations

Ted Lasso season 4: Everything we know so far
The show is coming back three years after the last season.
Jason Sudeikis in Ted Lasso

After plenty of questions about its future, Ted Lasso is back. The Apple TV+ hit seemed to be done following its third season, but production has officially started on the fourth, with much of the cast set to return for this new installment.

Now that we know Ted Lasso is coming back, there are still plenty of questions about what that means for the show, and how it might change moving forward — and everyone has opinions on what they'd like to see from season 4. Here's what we know so far, including when we might see that fourth season:

Read more
Beginner’s guide to cigar shapes and sizes — and why they matter
Why your cigar choice says more about you than your watch (and how to pick the perfect one)
A collection of cigars

Walking into a cigar shop and facing what seems like a million options is enough to make anyone panic. Cigars stacked everywhere, each with a strange name, size, and a slightly different shape from the last one. If you haven't done this before, it's tempting to just grab something, anything, and run!But hold on a second. Those shapes actually matter. They aren't just there to look fancy or make things confusing. The size and shape change the whole experience of smoking that cigar – how it tastes, burns, and feels. It's kind of like how driving a tiny sports car is way different than driving a big truck. Both get you where you're going, but the experience along the way is not the same.

What are cigar vitolas?

Read more
The writer of one of Netflix’s biggest drama is taking on James Bond next
We still don't know who will star in this new installment.
James Bond at a casino

The news that Denis Villeneuve would be taking on the next James Bond film was certainly exciting for many, and as we continue to speculate about who might take over as 007, we're also learning more about who else will be working behind the scenes on the film.

We now know that Steven Knight, the writer behind Peaky Blinders, will be writing the next Bond movie. While Knight is best known for his work on TV, which includes Peaky Blinders and the recent Stephen Graham series A Thousand Blows, he's also the writer behind Spencer and Maria.

Read more