The Greek Symbol Mystery Explained

The Greek Symbol Mystery is the 60th volume in the Nancy Drew Mystery Stories series. It was originally published in paperback in 1981 by the Wanderer imprint of Simon & Schuster. The original edition had a cover and six interior illustrations by Ruth Sanderson. The cover art was later revised by Garin Baker in 1986 for the last Wanderer printing, and again by Linda Thomas in 1989 for the Minstrel printing.

Plot summary

Nancy is asked to fly to Greece investigate the disappearance of money that was intended to help a needy village family, after the New York agency responsible for donations closes suddenly. While in Greece Nancy is told that a large inheritance from a Greek tycoon, meant for her friend Helen Nicholas, was stolen, and she agrees to find the culprit, aided by her friends Bess and George. They are also on the hunt for Helen’s cousin, Constantine. A poisonous snake in a basket of apples that was delivered to their room and a strange symbol stamped on a rare Byzantine mask that was dropped in Nancy’s shopping bag are the main clues, which lead Nancy and her friends to a ring of art smugglers and to the secret of the Greek symbol. ^[3] The working title for this story was "The Clue of the Ancient Mask" and listed as such in the proof copy printed of the previous title.

Places

Some real places (in Greece) mentioned in this book are

• Loutraki
• Monastiraki
• Flea Market
• Skyros Hotel
• The Harbour of Piraeus
• The Theaters of Herodotus Atticus
• Acropolis
• Corfu Island
• Lycabettus Hill
• Plaka

Characters

INA version

• Nancy Drew
• Carson Drew: Nancy's father
• Hannah Gruen: Drew family housekeeper
• Bess Marvin: Nancy's best friend
• George Fayne: Nancy's best friend and Bess's first cousin
• Ned Nickerson: Nancy's boy friend
• Burt Eddleton: George's boy friend
• Dave Evans: Bess's boy friend
• Helen Nicholas: Nancy’s friend (not to be confused with Helen Corning).
• Mrs. Jeanette Thompson: Nancy's neighbor who sends money to the Papadapoulos family
• Dimitri Georgiou NY Photini Agency Manager
• Vatis : Lawyer, owner of the law firm Vatis & Vatis
• Isakos: Vatis's friends
• Constantine Nicholas: Helen's Cousin
• Diakos: Villain
• Alexis: Coast Guard
• Mousiadis: Nancy's father's friend
• Fotis: Ship Captain
• Stella Anagnost : Constantine's girl friend who works at the jewelry store where Nancy sees the mysterious golden mask
• Papadopoulos family: Mrs. Papadopoulos and her children -> Maria, Michali, Anna -> Mrs Thompson Donation's Receiver
• Peter Scourles: Vatis & Vatis employee

Greek-English Dictionary

Here are some Greek words and phrases that Nancy uses in the book.

Efharisto : Thank you

Parakalo : Wait a minute

Astinomikos tmima : Police quarter

Voithia : Help

Autokinito : Car

Mihaniko : Mechanic

Grigora : Hurry

Maiou : May

Nai : Yes

Mati : Amulet

Na min avaskathi : Hope you are all alright

Adaptation

The 31st installment in the Nancy Drew point-and-click adventure game series by Her Interactive, named , is loosely based on the novel.

Notes and References

1. http://www.nancydrewworld.com/symbol.html The Greek Symbol Mystery at Nancy Drew World
2. http://cocatalog.loc.gov/cgi-bin/Pwebrecon.cgi?v1=133&ti=126,133&Search_Arg=Nancy%20Drew&Search_Code=TALL&CNT=25&REC=0&RD=0&RC=0&PID=D-nwq-nOyD21AV0fcXvOhAp_PtI&SEQ=20150717153956&SID=1 US Copyright Office Public Catalog
3. Web site: The Greek Symbol Mystery. Nancy Drew World.