"In 1891, the obscure and impoverished village priest of Rennes-le-Chateau, Bérenger Saunière, began the job of making repairs and renovations to his village church. ... Inside the hollow pillar Curé Saunière found four pieces of parchment. Two pages were genealogies. Two others were a long and complicated message in code....
Shepherdess, no temptation. That Poussin, Teniers, hold the key; Peace 681. By the Cross and this Horse of God, I complete--or destroy--this daemon of the Guardian at noon. Blue apples.
. . . [After he took the documents to his superiors,
Saunière came back to his village a millionaire.]
"He continued with the restoration of the village church which had
been interrupted by his discoveries and his Parisian visit, but he
restored the church strangely. Inside the church he placed a statue
of the demon Asmodeus--'custodian of secrets, guardian of hidden
treasures and according to ancient Judaic legend, the builder of
Solomon's Temple.'"
Holy Grail Across the Atlantic by Michael Bradley, Hounslow Press 1998, ISBN 0-88882-100-X
Rennes-le-Chateau Official Web Site
|