Little St James Island — a tour UPDATED 4 Dec 2019:
Since the arrest of Jeffrey Epstein, and his subsequent reported death, there has been a lot of interest in his favourite private island — Little St James, in the US Virgin Islands. Now, thanks to recent drone footage (by the cryptically named Rusty Shackleford), everyone can view the island in some detail.
UPDATE: See note at end re visit to the island by We Are Change and the Dollar Vigilante (published 28 October 2019).
UPDATE: See note at end re early (1998 or 1999) photos that emerged (26 November 2019).
UPDATE: See note at end re Interesting Oddities — connections between the island, the new Series 3 of ‘The Crown’ and Prince Andrew’s BBC interview.
Welcome to your visual tour.
The Map
This tour is based on an annotated map of the island compiled mainly from screen shots of the July-Aug 2019 drone coverage, but it also includes Google Earth time-lapse screen shots, and some other images.
Jeffrey Epstein’s ownership of Little St James
The island was purchased in April 1998 by LSJ LLC for $7.95 million. It appears that Epstein was the sole shareholder of LSJ LLC. At that time the island infrastructure included a main house, three guest cottages, a caretaker’s cottage, a private desalination system, a helipad and a dock.
When Epstein went to prison, the New York Times (1 July 2008) reported that he had recently commissioned a major upgrade to facilities at the island:
The villa will occupy the island’s promontory, which offers views of the Atlantic on one side and the Caribbean on the other. It will have a separate library to house Mr. Epstein’s 90,000 volumes, a Japanese bathhouse and what he calls a “Ziegfeld” movie theater.
Prior to his death, court documents were reported (15 July 2019) to list the value of the island at $63,874,223.
What isn’t on the map
The Rusty Shackleford 63 drone videos published by the end of August 2019 have (so far) attracted tens of thousands of comments. One video alone attracted more than 5,000 comments. While some comments draw attention to particular time-stamps, or contribute links to related videos and articles, others simply thank, instruct or berate the unknown drone pilot.
Many commentators wax lyrical on the ‘meaning’ of what the writer sees — some insisting the images are ‘proof’ of particular theories.
These theories can be summarised as:
- Small &/or shuttered windows denote hidden activities
- Occult practices take place on the island
- The island is full of tunnels &/or contains buried rooms
- The island is full of dead bodies
Any evidence provided by the images to actually support these theories will be discussed later in the article.
Two “fake news” stories sometimes referred to in the comments would seem to be simply untrue:
- That there was a large fire on the island in 2018. These stories are usually accompanied by photos which appear to originate from the Lion Island fire in NSW Australia.
- That the island has recently been available for rent. These stories (or advertisements) are usually accompanied by pictures which simply do not match what is currently seen on the island via Google Maps or the drone videos. It may be that the photos from these advertisements are relics of the pre-Epstein era (they quote a Conde Nast travel article from 1996), but if they are, it would seem that the island landmass has ‘grown’ in that vicinity since the photos were taken. Whether these photos are real, somehow distort the view, or have been photoshopped, is beyond the scope of this article. Someone with access to the Conde Nast article or archives could explore this angle.
Navigating the map
On the map itself, each marked point can be clicked to bring up an informative sidebar (giving a short description, and sources for images) while a further click displays larger images from its photo album.
Some selected map items
This article doesn’t cover all of the items on the map — you can visit the map yourself to see the full range. Instead, it visits those items that seem to attract most attention. or that provide (or don’t provide) evidence of the popular theories. There are many more images (from a variety of angles) on the map.
Of course you can just go watch the drone videos (as tens of thousands have already done), but the point of the map is to organise and consolidate the findings of the videos.
Serious researchers can also use the map to find where (in the videos) there are images of their particular focus of interest.
A whole island view
This pin on the map provides an overview: addressing collections of buildings, and the topography of the island. The 70–78 acre (28–32 ha) island is shaped rather like an aeroplane, or a cross — with two main ridges running through both bars of the cross. The map provides topological views (from Google Earth) from several angles.
The Main House and pool complex
When Epstein purchased the island (in 1998) it already had a main house included on the property. The first publicly available Google Earth view of the island (March 2002) shows that main house in approximately the same location as the current building, with some cabanas nearby. The extensive pool complex now seen was not present though.
This complex is so extensive it has three pins on the map: the Main House (Building A-3), the shell patio, and the main house pool complex. Surrounding buildings, which could be guest houses or have other purposes — such as the “separate library to house Mr. Epstein’s 90,000 volumes”, or a “Ziegfeld movie theater” as reportedly to be built while Epstein was in jail the first time— are also pinned separately (A-1, A-2 & A-4) to the map.
The Main House has a veranda which faces the sea. On a lower level there is a paved patio which displays two mirror image conch shells, plus the letter E (which is also seen in other places — most notably on a bench outside the ‘temple’).
Facing away from the sea, the Main House looks out onto the pool complex, which has 4 cabanas, a (seemingly movable) pergola and a large swimming pool.
At the far end of the pool is statue of a seated archer, which is very similar to one found in Epstein’s Palm Beach townhouse, where a photo of a Caribbean island hangs on the wall behind it.
UPDATE: A similar image of an archer flashed quickly across the screen in a scene in Season 3 of ‘The Crown’ (see Updates below). No comment was made on that image in the episode.
Beyond the archer, and outside the exterior of the pool complex, is a large painted (?) compass. (Some have mistaken this for a helicopter pad.)
There are three companion buildings clustered around the Main House and its pool complex.
Building A-1: This is a post-Epstein building (constructed between Oct 2006 and Aug 2009) — on the furthest northern point of the island. This building had two large sculptures in front of it with what appear to be mirrors behind them, but these had all been removed by the post-Dorian drone video of 30 August 2019, leaving just the plinths.
Building A-2: Next to A-1 and below the Main House, is a building of similar construction. This has an outdoor bathroom facing the beach, with a mirrored back wall. Something existed in this location in earlier Google Earth photos, but it was smaller. It seems this building was constructed / enlarged between 2009 and 2013.
While the Main House and its pool complex appears, from the air, to be a one-storey construction, at least the western portion is actually two-storied. A door beneath one of the pool cabinas can be seen giving entrance to the lower story of the A-1 and A-2 buildings, and there are external stairs at the far end. How far under the paved area of the pool complex this second level goes cannot be guessed at from the photos.
Building A-4: Further along the beachfront, and still below the Main House is another building, very well surrounded by shrubbery. It could be that this is a pre-Epstein building, as a building occupied that site on the earliest (2002) Google Earth photos.
This completes what appear to be the main residential complex on the island. Other habitable buildings appear to be cabins (which may be used for other purposes), or service buildings — with one larger building (C-1).
The Jetty
Following the coast we find the arrival point for sea-borne guests and goods. While there was a jetty included when the island was purchased, it has since been extended and partly roofed (between 2002 and 2006). Adjacent to the jetty is a concreted area where barges are unloaded. This seems to be a recent construction.
Service areas
Building B-1: A Service building (??)
Immediately in front of and to the right of the jetty is a low building of unknown purpose, well disguised by trees. This building existed in the earliest (2012) Google Earth photos.
The Main Service Area
On the eastern side of the island, at this same point, an area is given over to service buildings — presumably generators, desalination, water pumps, workshops, storage, fuel pumps, sewage management, etc. After August 2009, some buildings were partly incorporated into the landscape, giving the potential to use the “roof” as additional storage and/or as a parking area for service vehicles. In these cases, only a one or two-sided facade is left exposed. The “columns” on one of the buildings appear to be a trompe l’oeil effect.
The bay in front of the service area can be seen covered in brown ‘gunk.’ While this looks like a sewage spill, people familiar with the Virgin Islands say it is a cluster of brown seaweed that is common in that part of the world.
While buildings existed here in 2002, the area has gradually been expanded and walled off visually from rest of the island.
UPDATE:
As well as the partly buried buildings at the top of the service area, it appears that there is a building running UNDER the shrubbery that can be seen behind the service area. This only became apparent in the latest drone video (30 Aug 2019) when the doors to this area were left open.
What appears to be a pipe (or possibly a cable) runs between the service area and the beach. It is most likely that this is a waste water pipe. Note that this exists on the opposite side of the island from St Thomas.
While no desalination plant is visible in the drone photos, I have been told that two installations of this size would probably be sufficient for a population of about 70 people.
UPDATE 11 Sept 2019
On the visit of 11 Sept 2019 the drone was able to see inside one of the partially buried buildings through a door left open. A surprisingly roomy space was seen, partly full of boxes and equipment. A the rear of the space a set of double doors could be seen to a space even deeper in the hillside. This door had a lockable handle. On the left wall of the space there was some kind of door behind the boxes, looking almost like the face of a dumb waiter. On the right side of the space were double doors to what appeared to be a cupboard.
Service vehicles
There are a variety of service vehicles on the island. As well as a fleet of small runabouts, there are several large trucks, a fuel tanker, a digger, roller, and even an unregistered ambulance (discussed at length here).
One recent article made much of the recent delivery of a concrete-mixer (not seen so far) [UPDATE: parked in the berm area 11 Sept 2019], but a paver (if correct) has been spotted in the rubbish dump.
UPDATE: One photo has recently emerged (3 Sept 2019) of Jeffrey Epstein himself, reportedly on the island — in earlier days, on a quad bike. As this is a copyright photo, you need to go to the source to see it.
UPDATE: This site was visited by WAV and TDV 28 Oct 2019. Most of the vehicles seen before were present, including the ambulance (which they were able to look inside).
The helicopter pad
Above and south of the service area is the helicopter landing area. While at some point this area was marked with a large ‘H’, it is now just a green field with a small waiting room and a larger covered area (presumably for baggage storage). Two stone arrival platforms are provided: one with steps and one with a ramp. The stairway is adorned with two ‘astrolabes.’
Telecoms
As could be expected, there is a telecom tower at the highest point of the island. What appear to be wifi repeaters can be seen on many buildings.
Rubbish disposal zone
One part of the island near the southern coast has been used as a rubbish landfill. Some non-organic items seem to be loaded into skips (which may be taken off-shore by barge) but much seems to be covered with dirt in the landfill.
Other cabins and activity areas
Cabins
Building C-1: This building is of unknown purpose. Some articles refer to it as a guest house, but it looks more like a garage and staff accommodation area. It is well away from the Main House complex, in the middle of the island.
Building C-2: This has been said to be the planned Japanese Bath House mentioned in the NYT article of 1 July 2008. It was certainly there in August 2009 (per Google Earth) but something was on that spot in 2006 as well.
UPDATE: This building was visited by WAV and TDV 28 Oct 2019. The horned chair they found seems to have been under this tarpaulin.
Building C-3: By 2016 another building — near to C-2 — appeared in a spot previously unoccupied. This appears to be some kind of cabin or rest area.
Building C-4: On the other side of the island, another cabin is found. This cabin is fully enclosed and looks occupiable. Furniture and office equipment can be seen inside. There is an interesting statue outside.
UPDATE: This building was visited by WAV and TDV 28 Oct 2019. They were able to go inside, and describe this as “an office.”
Building E-1: A missing building.
While the base Google Map (2016) shows a fairly substantial building on the south east corner of the island (which appeared between October 2006 and August 2009), this area was unoccupied — except by a flagpole — at the time of the 2019 drone flights. An image is available from the 2014 VPT video.
One explanation offered has been that the building was badly damaged or destroyed during Hurricane Irma (Aug/Sept 2017). Google Earth shows the building present at 10 August 2017 and gone by 7 September 2017, so this seems to be a reasonable explanation.
UPDATE: This site was visited by WAV and TDV 28 Oct 2019. They confirm that the building was gone and all that remained was the flagpole and a large, rectangular concrete container.
Building E-3: Another, and smaller, building along the same coast also seems to have gone missing at the same time. No close photos exist of this building.
Building E-2: This is a stranger affair. This building appears to be a simple pergola, with two buried sheds or entrances into the hillside nearby. There is also a path and a stairway down the cliff face at that point, with a rock pool at the foot. We will return to this area when we return to the various theories listed at the start of this article.
It appears there may be another small missing building (not marked on the map) along the coast from E-2 as well.
Beach S-1: These appear to be the remains of a building (or an unfinished building) with a roofed shelter nearby. The strip of beach nearby had a privacy shield (a hatched overlay) on the base Google map currently in use (from 2016). Nothing untoward can be seen in the 2019 Google Earth map or the drone pictures of this area, although it does appear that some reclamation / stabilisation work has been done in this area.
Activity areas
Swimming pool
As well as the Main House pool complex, there is a swimming pool with attached building on the western end of the island “cross.” The second flagpole is also here. Whether this is a second pool for residents and guests, or for staff use, is unknown.
A Flickr photo from June 2013 appears to also show a pergola in that vicinity.
Pond (and reservoir ?)
A fairly large pond is present. It is unclear whether this is also used as a reservoir for (at least) watering the plants, even if not for drinking water (there is also a desalination plant), but it is likely that is the case.
While the NYT article of 1 July 2008 mentioned a “ flamingo-stocked lagoon” no flamingos have been spotted on the 2019 drone videos — so far.
Fountain
While no flamingos were spotted on the pond, one 2019 drone video did spot deer grazing close to the fountain.
The ‘Temple’
This is by far the most controversial building on the island. On the south west tip, it is a small building covered in blue and white stripes, set in a paved area with red geometric markings.
Earlier photos show it with a golden dome, and two statues in the roof. The shape is reminiscent of a Muslim turba (pictured is Turbat al-Kubakiya in Jerusalem, photographed in the 1920s).
Decoration is in the Ottoman style — pictured are buildings from Aleppo.
It would appear that the building has windows at opposite ends with one set of glass doors facing the sea on the far point of the island. On the opposite wall, next to the courtyard, the elaborate ‘doors’ appear to be a trompe-l’œil effect, and may not actually be doors at all.
UPDATE: This building was visited by WAV and TDV 28 Oct 2019. They confirmed that the doors (seen below) are simply trompe-l’œil effect, and the other apertures were all covered over at the time of their visit.
The disturbed soil with a channel around the edge in the area next to the paving is disconcerting, because an earlier photo appear to show a built up area there — although this may be an optical illusion. Earlier Google Earth photos do not show that.
The ‘temple’ with dome and statues can be seen in a 2014 drone flight over the island by VPT.
The building is not large. On one flight, the 2019 drone was able to look inside. Whatever was there before appears to have been dismantled, with various items lying about, and painter’s scaffolding erected.
The sundial
The sundial has also provoked much comment. There are thirteen colourful benches arranged around the perimeter. [UPDATE: These seats had gone by the 11 Sept drone visit.] In one image a deer or goat can be seen grazing at its side.
The face on the sundial is in the style of Alexander Slade’s ‘Masonic Man’. Both images have 16 rays around the sun.
The ‘tennis court’
If the temple and sundial are controversial, the ‘tennis court’ is by far the strangest item on the island. An enormous amount of work has gone into creating a 20 ft berm around a large area, but for most of its existence the area seems to have had little obvious use. The standard google map (2016) shows a tennis court in this area, and yet that lasted for only a short period, with most Google Earth images showing nothing inside from the time it was created (between 2009 and 2013).
At the time of the 2019 drone flights the service vehicles were collected here, but they appear to have their own normal parking /storage areas elsewhere. One explanation offered is that the berm creates a wind break which protects the vehicles in storms, but if that were the actual aim, a much smaller walled area would suffice. Another explanation is needed.
But … what about the theories?
That’s it for the guided tour. But what about the theories mentioned in the drone comments (and all over the internet)?
Here are my comments in relation to the drone images — for what they are worth. My comments address only the ‘proof’ or ‘evidence’ these images provide (or don’t provide) for such theories.
Theory 1: Small &/or shuttered windows denote hidden activities
In hot climates it has been traditional to have smallish windows covered in shutters to keep out the heat of summer, and to protect from storms. Although these days air conditioners can cool areas with poor insulation (if one has the funds to fuel them), that aesthetic remains the norm.
If the photos from the online advertisements mentioned above (possibly ex Conde Nast 1996) are actually of this island, then the construction style of the Main House complex was already established when Epstein purchased the island — and has simply been continued in later buildings in that complex.
However some of the cabins have larger windows, or are open to the weather. And indeed, in one case, the actual bathroom is outside and facing the sea.
Another reason for having an inside-outside interface that provides maximum privacy is that the owner of this island shares space with guests and island service staff. Even people going about their lives in innocuous ways do not want to share their activities with everyone.
Conclusion: The windows do NOT provide persuasive or viable evidence of (bad) hidden activities.
Theory 2: Occult practices take place on the island
People mean many things when they use the word “occult.” Originally it meant “hidden” and denoted knowledge that was kept within a core group — usually wisdom of some kind (or religious beliefs) about how the world works. However, these days many use it to denote “non-Christian” practices and see it is a very negative descriptor.
There are certainly many statues on the island depicting images / gods of non-Christian origin, but then so too do all museums, the tourist spots (and even churches) of Europe, and many ordinary homes.
Business Insider described the ‘temple’ in what appears to be their own interpretation, ie with no special knowledge:
The front is flanked by statues painted in gold; one of them appears to be the trident-wielding Poseidon, the Greek god of the sea, while two others look like birds perched on the corners of the roof. It is surrounded by a line of palm trees and a terrace with a labyrinth motif.
The ‘temple’ — with style and decoration clearly influenced by (Muslim) Ottoman architecture — disturbs many, but it could simply be a fanciful ‘folly’ such as the European forbears of many US citizens liked to enjoy on their estates.
Conclusion: The statues and other elements visible in the drone images do NOT provide persuasive or viable evidence of “occult practices” on the island, although they do not dissuade from that theory either.
Theory 3: The island is full of tunnels &/or contains buried rooms
This is the most prevalent theory expressed in the drone video comments. Many people saw evidence of this in:
- The service area — with its partly buried buildings, and multiple ventilation grates and piped outlets. While these might easily be explained as vents for generator rooms etc (and they are not hidden at all), many people are not satisfied by such explanations.
- The second (lower) level of the pool complex. This was not noticed by many people, but it is not exactly hidden. However it is clear that there ARE spaces there that can’t be seen by a drone in this area.
- Small buildings attached to — or partly (or fully) buried — in hillsides, dotted around the island. Again, these can be explained as service areas for buried utilities (water, power, sewage), but that explanation often does not satisfy viewers. This is particularly the case at the E-2 location, where it is hard to come up with a “normal” explanation for the juxtaposition of items (doorways, paths, steps, pergola) at that site. Perhaps someone will enlighten us all.
UPDATE: on the WAC /TDJ visit of 28 October 2019 the green doors were opened and only small storage/utility spaces were found. However commentary on the Outer Light (included in the WAC AMA video) suggested that the concrete block walls appeared to be only recently completed.
The idea of tunnels and buried rooms is exacerbated by Epstein’s reported connection to a company advertising buried ‘survival pod’ infrastructure. UPDATE:
Until shortly before his death, Jeffrey Epstein was listed as being on both the Finance Board and the Futurists Board of the LifeBoat Foundation.
This organisation has a webpage showing its “LifeShield Bunkers” — buried habitats large enough to be places where “ babies are born and children play and go to school.”
The key problem with the theory of tunnels and hidden, buried rooms (if these were in any way extensive or large) is that blasting to make these spaces in the rocky surface would be very loud (and so probably noticed and remembered outside the island), and it would require a place to put the large amount of soil and rock removed from the space.
- WHEN could such work have taken place without signs being gathered by eyes in the skies? How could Epstein be sure that satelite or aircraft/drone photos weren’t planned in the visible period of construction?
- WHAT happened to special machinery required for such excavation? There would be records of purchase and/or delivery.
- WHERE could such spoil be now on this island?
As it happens, there are several possibilities for relocating excavation spoils.
- Rocks line all paths and roads on the island, and large rocks are used as ’aesthetic statements.’ Many rock walls have also been constructed. That would dispose of some.
- Rocks also cover what seem to be major water reticulation efforts (eg from fountain to top of hill).
- The berm of the ‘tennis court’ contains a VERY large amount of dirt &/or rock.
- What is NOT a likely approach is dumping it in the sea — the water is so clear that evidence of this would probably be still visible.
- Lastly, it could be barged off the island. However, this would also be noticed off-island and probably commented on by now.
Conclusion: There could be unseen tunnels or buried rooms on the island, but there are plenty of visible spaces to ‘hide’ people if that is what was wanted. The drone photos may give pointers as to where to look, but do not provide ‘proof’ that any such spaces exist.
Theory 4: The island is full of dead bodies
Dead bodies turn up all over the place — in gardens, churchyards, culverts, beaches, farms, forests … There is nothing in the drone images that particularly points to their presence on the island (although some commentators were sure they saw evidence of skulls in the rubbish dump).
The drone is still flying
As of the time of writing, ‘Rusty Shackleford’ is still flying his/her drone, and so the map is still gaining images. Remember to refresh your screen copy from time to time.
Now — visit this interesting map and if you spot something that has been missed, here is your opportunity to contribute to crowdsourced research.
Please leave a timestamp and a helpful comment here (or on the relevant drone video), and if you see a relevant article please leave a link.
UPDATE: The last drone visit to the island (to date) was 12 September 2019.
UPDATE: Two vigilante journalists visit the island
Published from 28 October 2019 (they don’t give a date for the visit):
- Luke Rudkowski (Twitter @Lukewearechange) of WeAreChange [WAC] and
- Jeff Berwick (Twitter @DollarVigilante) of The Dollar Vigilante [TDV]
visited Little St James for a brief, unauthorised walking (sometimes running) tour. A number of videos resulted (to date):
- WAC: The Visit, Summary of Five Things Learned, and an AMA livestream.
- TDV: The Visit
While limited pre-visit research meant that these two walked right past several places we have never seen into (like the B1 “service” building), they did provide some new perspectives — especially by being able to enter the C-4 cabin (which they described as an “office”), open the two hillside green doors at E-2, notice that the cow had moved, and provide a general update on the state of the island. So thanks to Luke and Jeff for that.
Unless they have other (as yet unshown) footage, all the new perspectives are contained in the WAC video of The Visit. In the WAC AMA researchers needing high resolution photos were offered digital delivery — request frame(s) via the WAC Twitter account.
Key new findings have been noted above in relevant categories, and images have been added to the map.
UPDATE: Photos emerge from 1998 or 1999.
A Daily Mail article from 26 November 2019 shows photos said to be from alleged victim Chauntae Davies, taken not long after Epstein purchased Little St James. Davies is said to be 40 now (in 2019), so in 1999 she would have been 20. These photos are also shown in Shaun Attwood’s video of 28 November 2019, and images shown below are screenshots from that video.
If, as it seems, these photos are taken around the same time, it seems reasonable that they date from soon after the island purchase.
The photo of the swimming pool matches the curved pool shown on the pre-purchase advertisement (discussed above), although the new photo looks out over what is now the utilities area. The pool furniture could even be the same.
The photo taken (presumably) on the main house veranda, looking towards a roughened area, doesn’t exactly fit with the vista from the pre-purchase photo, but this could be a distortion — there is a roughened area in that photo. Or it may be that the roughened area has increased as work on reshaping the central courtyard has commenced.
The fence deck edging style of the photos looking out to sea matches the style shown in the pre-purchase photos (see upper left quadrant). This can be seen better from another angle in the drone photos — see the edging of the swimming pool complex in the middle of the photo, between the Main House and Pool Cabin.
There is no way to know in which of the main buildings the interior photos were taken, but the stone and window styles seem compatible with the drone photos of 2019.
UPDATE: Odd connections:
Little St James Island, Prince Andrew, and ‘The Crown’ (series 3)
Early production began by Netflix on Series 3 of ‘The Crown’ (covering covers the years 1964 -1977) in October 2017, and the series was finally released on 17 November 2019 — the day after Prince Andrew’s “car crash” interview on BBC Two.
On the face of things, there is little to connect that series with the BBC interview or Jeffrey Epstein’s Island, except that Prince Andrew had been known to visit the island, and that he is a child of the Queen (still a small boy in Series 3).
However. several odd connections were made. The first was simply parallel events noted in the series and the interview, while two further items drew visual parallels between the world of the royals (as depicted in the series) and items observed on Little St James Island.
While at the time the episodes were planned and completed the producers of ‘The Crown’ may not have known of Epstein’s arrest (5 July 2019) or his apparent suicide (9 Aug 2019), and could not have known of the BBC interview (16 Nov 2019), it does seem odd that these connections exist.
1) The Sandringham shooting weekend
The first odd parallel has no island component. In the BBC interview, Prince Andrew is asked about throwing “a birthday party” for Ghislaine Maxwell (and her “plus one” — Jeffrey Epstein), to which Andrew replied:
“No. It was a shooting weekend. Just a straightforward shooting weekend.”
However, in S3 Ep2 of ‘The Crown’, when an impression must be made on US President Lyndon B Johnson and the Queen is asked (by the Prime Minister) to “roll out the red carpet” [9:10] so as to make Johnson feel valued and appreciated, and amenable to approving a large loan, what is eventually offered by the palace is … a shooting weekend.
The ‘Three Wise Men’: [10:13] “What about a State dinner? Or a weekend at Windsor Castle.”
The Queen: “The important thing here, I’m told, is that it must exceed whatever we gave the Kennedys.”
Johnson: [16:00] “What is this?”
Aid: “A peace offering from the Brits — hoping to secure the bailout.”
Johnson: “A weekend shooting at Balmoral?”
Aid: “Yes, that’s as good as it gets. Even Kennedy never got that.”
While there may be a hidden difference in ‘value’ between the two locations (Sandringham and Balmoral), such a difference would be invisible to most outside a very tiny circle. So it would seem that an invitation to “a shooting weekend” is no small thing, after all.
[As an historic note, President Johnson is portrayed (from 6:50) as withholding financial assistance from the UK — at a time when there was a run on sterling, and their IMF credit was about to expire — because Harold Wilson (the Labour Prime Minister) had not supported him over Vietnam — another parallel to current events, but one beyond our scope here.]
2) Statues of the archer
As noted above, there is (or was) a statue of a seated archer at the end of the pool in the island’s main pool complex. Another archer was found in Epstein’s Palm Beach townhouse.
In ‘The Crown’ S3 Ep2 a statue of an archer also appears, briefly, before moving out of focus. This could be an allusion to Diana, goddess of the moon, as this was the episode of the moon landing. But this cluster of archers is an interesting coincidence.
3) The cockatoos
On the island two very large cockatoos flank the stairway from the beach through what appears to be a tiered seating area.
These island birds are sulphur crested cockatoos, as can be seen more clearly in this photo. If these birds have some occult symbolism, I am not aware of it.
But it was interesting to see them turn up in S3Ep10 of ‘The Crown’ — where a pair appear [at 00:41] as bedside lamps in the bedroom of Princess Margaret.
After a matrimonial dispute and separation, another shot [48:05] of the same room shows plain lamps beside the bed …
… but a single cockatoo lamp is shown [51:26] on the other side of the room, behind the visiting Queen.
Make of all that what you will. Since cockatoos are said to mate for life, their appearance in these scenes from ‘The Crown’ may simply symbolise an intact and then broken marriage. But it is hard to connect that symbolism to their appearance on Little St James island. Perhaps it is just another coincidence.
