In mountain ranges that yielded much of the gold that gilded the Ancient World's great Mediterranean cultures, Odyssey is already making impressive headway. With the advent of modern technology and sophisticated exploration savoir-faire, Odyssey (http://www.odysseyresources.com/) is proving that the Ancients literally just "scratched the surface," accessing only the easy-to-find gold. Ironically, it has been left to the intrepid gold hunters of North America -- the New World -- to unearth and develop an array of rich, deeper-seated gold deposits. Meanwhile, Odyssey is also active in compelling early-stage gold and related metals projects in other regions of Turkey.

Notably, Odyssey's success to date in developing prospectively economic gold discoveries in Turkey has not come overnight. Indeed, the company's daunting quest to identify the Mediterranean's most geologically prospective territory is reminiscent of the epic journey of the central character, Odysseus, in the famous ancient Greek mythology, The Odyssey. With the same drive and determination to succeed, Odyssey's geologists spent over a decade doggedly traversing the Mediterranean region's many gold belts.

Turkey won out, offering the best near-term "window of opportunity" for Odyssey to make a name for itself. This modern, pro-Western democracy is also where another renowned Canadian mining junior, Eldorado Gold, has made a world-class, six-million-ounce gold discovery. A handful of other high-profile mining companies, including Canada's Inmet Mining, have also made impressive gold and base metals discoveries in recent years. They have also served as a litmus test for Turkey's emerging reputation as a nation that is pro-mining and very supportive of foreign investment.

However, what has most galvanized the interest of investors in recent weeks is the progress being made at Odyssey's flagship Altintepe ("Gold Hill") Gold Property in the Pontides mountain range. This expansive 100-square-kilometre property comprises two advanced exploration-stage gold deposits and a number of emerging satellite gold zones. Located less than 10 kilometers south of the Black Sea coast in northeastern Turkey, the property sits at the heart of the largest known concentration of mineral deposits in Turkey, including Inmet's polymetallic Cayeli Mine. Roads, power, water, labor and all other infrastructure, including the supplies and services necessary for mine development, are all close at hand.

The Altintepe Property's two advanced exploration-stage gold deposits were originally discovered by the major mining company, Teck Cominco, in the 1990s. Comcino Madencilik, Teck Cominco's Turkish subsidiary, mapped and drilled this property, with most of its 54 drill holes intersecting gold. A global exploration policy change led Teck Cominco to cease work on all of its gold projects in Turkey - a development that gave Odyssey this golden opportunity.

Notably, mineralization at the Altintepe Property is exposed at surface in several locations, including two deposits partly drilled by Teck Cominco and Odyssey. The larger deposit, known as 2G, hosts a combined "indicated and inferred" mineral resource of 4,352,927 tonnes at an average grade of 1.18 grams per tonne. The second deposit, known as Extension Ridge, is located several hundred meters to the north. It hosts an "inferred" mineral resource of 3,194,027 tonnes at a grade of 1.21 grams per tonne. (However, these somewhat dated mineral resource estimates are not yet compliant with the relatively new National Policy 43-101 guidelines -- a federal-government recognized standard of a "measured resource"). Significantly, there are also several additional parallel trends over a distance of more than 2 kilometers that remain to be tested.

Odyssey was fortunate enough to option the Altintepe property from Teck Cominco in 2001 with the right to earn a controlling majority interest. And with an improved climate for financing exploration activities, the company has conducted a recent in-fill and exploratory 11-hole drill program on the 2G Deposit and surrounding targets. The results have proved very encouraging, warranting further drilling in 2004 to better outline the size and scope of the deposit.

Meanwhile, one of the several step-out reconnaissance holes that were aimed at testing newer outlying targets also intercepted oxidized gold in what is known as the Karakis Ridge. This hole yielded 2.2 grams per tonne of gold over 20 metres including 3.83 grams per tonne of gold over 10 metres. Karakis Ridge is only about 1,000 metres to the west of the 2G Deposit and represents an entirely new mineralized gold zone -- one with considerable size potential.

Furthermore, the ongoing exploration and development of another well-documented gold discovery in the immediate vicinity of the 2G Deposit is expected to further enhance the economic prospects of the property. Named the Extension Ridge, it was also originally discovered by Teck Cominco, which drilled a number of holes to partially outline the deposit. Unlike the other gold zones discovered at Altintepe to date, all of which are of the "high sulfidation" variety, Extension Ridge is of the "low sulfidation" variety. This type of rock is typically synonymous with rich, bonanza gold veins that are often found at depth. Thus, Odyssey is planning to embark upon a 2004 drill program to test the potential of the Extension Ridge Deposit to a depth of at least 200 metres.

And with several other untested targets in the western half of the mineralized Altintepe trend, the prospect of more gold discoveries is very real. Most importantly, such a scenario would also allow Odyssey to consolidate several or more easy-to-extract oxide gold finds into a single million-ounce-plus economic deposit.

Meanwhile, in the Biga Peninsula of western Turkey, Odyssey has optioned an epithermal gold discovery from Teck Cominco that is named the Tavsan ("Rabbit") Property. This advanced exploration-stage project sits in an historic gold mining district that also hosts both Eldorado Gold's six-million-ounce Kisladag gold deposit, as well as Newmont Mining's one-million-ounce epithermal Ovacik gold mine. Various other Turkish-owned base and precious metals deposits are also located in this region, including Turkey's largest silver mine.

Previously, Teck Cominco identified several mineralized gold zones on the property, including the Main Zone, where a total of 280,000 ounces of gold were outlined by drilling (7,894,302 tonnes at a grade of 1.15 grams per tonne of gold). Teck Cominco's exploration focused on a thrust fault with which mineralization is associated. However, recent preliminary fieldwork completed by Odyssey's geologists has led to the recognition of additional controlling structures. This development offers to considerably expand the size potential of the Main Zone and related mineralized zones over a strike length in excess of 3 kilometers. The company has also recently embarked upon a trenching program to better understand and quantify the full extent of gold within these mineralization-controlling structures, as well as to ascertain its average grade. This program will to be followed by diamond drilling.

Elsewhere, Odyssey continues to advance its joint venture agreement with the world's largest mining company, BHP Billiton, on the Eastern Anatolides Project in southeastern Turkey. It is worth noting that the project is within the Tethyan mineral belt - a geologically fertile region that has been poorly explored and has largely untapped potential. This is where Odyssey and BHP Billiton believe there exists the opportunity to unearth large copper-gold porphyry deposits similar to those found in neighboring Iran in the same mineralized corridor. Porphyry deposits are among the world's most significant from the viewpoint of size and often contain very rich mineralization near surface. Accordingly, both Odyssey and BHP Billiton believe the exploration potential of this relatively virgin territory to be exceptional.

Finally, Odyssey is also in the early stages of assessing the epithermal gold potential of their Lucky Star Property. It was previously targeted because of local concentrations of high-grade zinc and silver, situated in the same geological setting as the previously discussed Altintepe Property. To date, Odyssey has identified a mineralized structure with a strike length of at least 800 metres and a mineralized depth of at least 150 metres. The company believes that this gold-silver discovery is typical of silver-rich epithermal vein systems such as those that are found in places like Creede, Colorado and elsewhere. Such deposits are typically vertically-zoned, with increasing silver and gold grades at depth. Odyssey plans to test this model structure to depth by drilling the strike length of the Lucky Star's mineralization.

On a corporate note, the company benefits from an adept management team and board of directors that has a combined 100-years-plus of experience in the mining business with a particular focus on mineral exploration. Odyssey's president and founder, Avrom Howard, is an accomplished geologist who has extensive experience and an enviable knowledge of the Mediterranean region's most prolific gold belts. Mr. Howard's solid reputation has also been instrumental in his ongoing success in financing the company, including the completion in November, 2003, of a Cdn. $2 million equity financing.

Complimenting Mr. Howard's geological expertise is Vice President, John Buckle, who has made a name for himself as one of North America's leading geophysicists during his 30-year career. Additionally, the company's board of directors includes Douglas Forster and Jonathan Goodman, two well-known exploration geologists and successful mining financiers.

From a technical perspective, the company has 34.16 million shares outstanding (45.35 million fully diluted) of which senior management and other insiders own about 35 per cent - giving them ample incentive to ensure the company's success. This share structure also provides the stock with good liquidity, which has been fueled in recent weeks by the company's flow of upbeat exploration results. This news has also acted as a catalyst to a revitalized up-trend in the company's share price. Accordingly, SmallCapMedia believes that the advent of plenty of positive exploration news in the coming months will continue to sustain this up-trend, precipitating considerably higher price valuations throughout 2004.