Can You Solve This Ice Cream Cone Riddle?

How much is an ice cream cone worth? In this visual riddle by Budapest-based artist Gergely Dudás (who posts comics on Dudolf.com), the answer requires a little math.

The riddle asks you to determine how much an ice cream cone, a scoop of white-colored ice cream (let’s call it vanilla), and a scoop of pink-colored ice cream (let’s call it strawberry) are worth, according to the logic of the puzzle.

Stare at the equations for a while, then scroll down for the answer.

Ready?

Are you sure?

OK, let's walk through this.

Three ice cream cones multiplied together are equal to the number 27. Since 3 multiplied by 3 multiplied by 3 equals 27, each cone must be equal to 3.

Moving on to the next row, two ice cream cones each topped with a scoop of vanilla ice cream added together equal 10. So since each cone equals 3, the vanilla scoops must each equal 2. (In other words, 3 plus 3 plus 2 plus 2 equals 10.)

Now, a double scoop of vanilla on a cone plus a single scoop of strawberry on a cone equals 11. So if a double-scoop of vanilla equals 4 (2 plus 2) and each cone is equal to 3, the strawberry scoop must equal 1. (Because 4 plus 6 equals 10, plus 1 for the strawberry scoop equals 11.)

And finally, one vanilla scoop on a cone, plus one empty cone, plus a double-scoop of strawberry and a single scoop of vanilla on a cone, all together equals 15. One scoop of vanilla on a cone is equal to 5 (2 plus 3), and an empty cone is equal to 3. Two strawberry scoops plus one vanilla scoop plus one cone can be calculated as 1 plus 1 plus 2 plus 3 (which comes out to 7). So together, one vanilla scoop (5) plus one cone (3) plus a triple scoop with two strawberries and one vanilla on a cone (7) equals 15.

And there you have it.

If frozen dairy-themed challenges are your thing, he also has a hidden image puzzle that challenges you to find the lollipop in a field of ice cream cones. Check out more of his work on his website and Facebook.