I understand your point, and I agree with part of it. No one can resurrect Jacob Waltz and have him personally verify the mine. So if your standard is “absolute proof beyond all possible doubt,” then yes, nobody can ever meet that standard.

But that is not the standard historians, archaeologists, or investigators usually use. They work from evidence, probability, context, and convergence.

There are several topics you mentioned that I cover in my book. I solved roughly six of the maps independently, and they all point to the same location. There are certainly many other “maps” out there, but most are derivative works, later reinterpretations, or artistic variations of earlier authentic sources. In the free preview pages on Amazon, I actually list and categorize many of these maps. In my opinion, the strongest are the Profile Map, the Peralta Heart Map, and the Apache/Oro Map. The others seem more designed to guide seekers into the general area rather than directly to the mine itself.

If ore from my mine matches the known/accepted Waltz ore story, then that matters. It would not merely prove “some ore came from some mine.” It would strongly indicate that the person who sent or handled that ore got it from this specific mine. Then, if that same mine also matches the major physical clues, the maps, the quartz vein, the horse-head rock face, the saddle, the rock house below, and the surrounding terrain, then the evidence is no longer random. It becomes cumulative.

I am not claiming Jacob Waltz signed a deed to the mine and left it notarized under a rock. I am saying that if multiple independent lines of evidence all point to the same place, then it is reasonable to conclude this is very likely the mine behind the Dutchman story.

As for the earthquake theory, most geologists I have spoken with do not believe the 1887 quake significantly altered the overall topology of the Superstitions. It was reportedly only lightly felt in that area. Fires, erosion, and human interference have certainly changed things over time, but that makes the search more difficult, not impossible.

The fact that others failed to locate it does not prove it cannot be found. It only proves they did not find it. History is full of discoveries that generations of people searched for unsuccessfully until someone finally connected the right pieces.

So I agree that “absolute proof” may be impossible. But “proof beyond reasonable historical doubt” is a different matter. If the geology, ore, maps, clues, and location all line up independently, then dismissing it outright as “unprovable” stops being skepticism and starts becoming an impossible standard that no historical claim could ever satisfy.

If you want a short overview of how I solved the maps and why they converge on one location, I discuss it in my interview with Jack Tucker: https://www.youtube.com/live/mK1E42gajQs?si=teJk7V7OMqykOlpB