David J. Hanson had the good fortune to be a student of one of the greatest scholars of the 20th century, Mark Van Doren. While at Columbia University, and under Van Doren’s tutelage, he deepened his love and understanding of the Western intellectual canon, spending most of his life immersed in a study of the liberal arts and becoming a scholar of the classics, in his own right.
Learning of the mystery concerning the authorship of the plays and sonnets commonly attributed to William Shakespeare, David spent the latter part of his life studying “Shake-speare’s” work from a historical, ethical, and political perspective. He published two books and wrote several essays on “Shake-speare,” and was a well-regarded expert on the plays, not to mention on the question of authorship, which he argued belonged to Edward De Vere, the 17th Earl of Oxford (1550 –1604).
David founded The De Vere Foundation in 1991 to further his research on Elizabethan writings; and in particular, the plays, the authorship question, and the location of the original manuscripts. When he was not drilling for oil, Hanson worked diligently in his search for the answer to the mysteries. It was his great passion in life; a passion that stayed with him for life.
Based on many facts and not a little compelling evidence, David became convinced that the manuscripts were the buried treasure surrounding the mystery of Oak Island, a small, remote island off the coast of Nova Scotia, Canada. Nova Scotia thought he had a case too because David was one of the few people to receive a Treasure Trove license from the Island, which would allow him to search for the treasure.
National Geographic learned of David’s research, too, and sought to get the rights to film a documentary based on his findings, but for legal and political reasons, it never came to fruition. Instead, the reality show, The Curse of Oak Island, was born. While Hanson was thrilled with the show, he declared one day while watching the program, “They will never find it!”
The De Vere Foundation continues to further the research and publications of David J. Hanson and hopes one day to help solve a mystery that has intrigued scholars and readers of “Shake-speare” for so long. Does Hanson’s research provide the keys to solving the mystery?
That is the question.
