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The Converging Wells and Staines Cases

The Luminaries

This thread traces how separate mysteries surrounding a dead hermit, missing prospector, contested gold, and forged document become one court case.

increasingupBearing stren­gth in each eventdowndecreasing
Wells Found DeadWells Found Dead from "The Luminaries". Wells Found Dead A remote death Alistair Lauderback and his companions reach Crosbie Wells’s cottage and find him dead at his table.
Wells Found Dead A remote death Alistair Lauderback and his companions reach Crosbie Wells’s cottage and find him dead at his table. His death initially appears natural. A hidden complication The cottage contains no obvious family records, yet Wells’s death soon triggers a contested estate sale and questions about a large concealed fortune.
A Fortune Enters the RecordA Fortune Enters the Record from "The Luminaries". A Fortune Enters the Record The estate is cleared Harald Nilssen discovers thousands of pounds in gold hidden throughout Wells’s cottage while cataloguing the…
A Fortune Enters the Record The estate is cleared Harald Nilssen discovers thousands of pounds in gold hidden throughout Wells’s cottage while cataloguing the dead man’s effects. His commission makes him part of the dispute. A claim appears Lydia Wells arrives with marriage papers and challenges the sale. The money is frozen while officials try to establish whose estate it belongs to.
The Aurora MarkThe Aurora Mark from "The Luminaries". The Aurora Mark Tracing the bars Charlie Frost recognizes that the retorted gold bears the name Aurora.
The Aurora Mark Tracing the bars Charlie Frost recognizes that the retorted gold bears the name Aurora. Bank records connect the mine to Emery Staines and Francis Carver. A missing prospector Staines has vanished, while his employee Quee Long says the Aurora was nearly barren. The gold’s presence in Wells’s cottage now suggests theft or concealed dealings.
A Deed in the BibleA Deed in the Bible from "The Luminaries". A Deed in the Bible The hidden paper surfaces Cowell Devlin shows Anna Wetherell a partly burned deed promising her money from Staines, witnessed by Wells.
A Deed in the Bible The hidden paper surfaces Cowell Devlin shows Anna Wetherell a partly burned deed promising her money from Staines, witnessed by Wells. It connects the missing prospector to both the fortune and Anna. A consequential signature The document lacks Staines’s signature and appears invalid. Anna nevertheless recognizes its importance and soon adds a signature herself.
The Court Joins the StoriesThe Court Joins the Stories from "The Luminaries". The Court Joins the Stories Testimony changes the case At trial, Staines admits taking Quee’s gold and hiding it near the Arahura.
The Court Joins the Stories Testimony changes the case At trial, Staines admits taking Quee’s gold and hiding it near the Arahura. He says he intended to give half to Anna. A public explanation Walter Moody exposes Carver’s false identity and theft by comparing documents and testimony. The separate strands of the Wells estate and Staines’s charges finally converge.
Night of 14 January 1866
Two days after Wells’s burial, January 1866
Late January 1866
Morning of 20 March 1866
27 April 1866