More of Saunière in Spain?

 

From Rennes to Gerona

A Spanish dimension to the story of Rennes-le-Château has become much more prominent since the publication of Patrice Chaplin’s “City of Secrets”, in which she compiled evidence for Bérenger Saunière’s presence in the city of Gerona. After initial – sometimes severe – criticism, now, more and more people become convinced of this Spanish dimension to the story. And even some hardened sceptics of her allegations decided to spend January 17, 2009, in Gerona.
That there is a Spanish dimension to the story should not come as a total surprise, as Rennes-le-Château is close to the Spanish border. Furthermore, an interesting period of its past involves the raiding of the first church of the village – Saint Peter – by Spanish troops. It was after this assault that the – demolished – church of Saint Peter was abandoned and the castle’s chapel rebuilt as the church that would become the cornerstone of the mystery: that of Mary Magdalene. It is this church that is said to hold the key to the mystery, and though it is unlikely that this will be decoded from the Stations of the Cross, in some symbolic sense, it might be.

From Gerona to Jaén

However, recently, the towns of Toledo and Jaén have been added to the list of Spanish cities that might be linked with the mystery of Saunière. The Spanish writer Lorenzo Fernández Bueno in his book “The Guardians of the Secret” relates the story of a mysterious bishop, Alonso Suárez de la Fuente del Sauce, linked to the Cathedral of Jaén. In Bueno’s opinion, Saunière was following the path of Suarez. Why? The answer is, in his opinion, the treasure of the Temple of Jerusalem.
The soldiers of Emperor Titus destroyed the Temple of Jerusalem and took it with them to Rome. There, it rested for more than three centuries, until the Roman Empire too was overrun by the Visigoths. In 410, Alaric led his men on Rome and took “the Treasure of the Temple” with them. Two years later, they arrived in Gaul, including the region of Rennes-le-Château. It is here that somewhere the city of Rhedae was constructed. Though many aficionados of the mystery claim it is located in the village of Rennes-le-Château itself, others have placed the town on a neighbouring hilltop, and still others – e.g. Jean-Luc Chaumeil – place it more towards Limoux.

Visigoths

The Visigothic treasure has always been at the core of the mystery of Rennes-le-Château, and was what was chiefly promoted by the early writers on the topic. However, in more recent decades, the story of Rennes has slowly become about other things, and the story of the Visigoths has taken a back burner. In short, from treasure, it has evolved into Mary Magdalene… and various other stories.
The Visigothic Empire stretched as far as Spain, beyond Gerona, Barcelona, etc. – as far south as Toledo, we find stories about the legendary “Cave of Hercules”, which was said to be a site where the Treasure of the Temple was taken to. However, from there onwards, there is no further trace of the relics, though some claim that there are traces of the treasure in Jaén. And it is here that Lorenzo picks up the story: Lorenzo suspects that Saunière followed the path of Suarez. Both definitely share some similarities, but it is equally clear that they are separated in time and space, and no clear connections between the two currently exist.

An enigmatic bishop

Alonso Suárez de la Fuente del Sauce was bishop of Jaén from 1500 to 1520. He is indeed known to have been very wealthy and seemed to have unlimited funds, so much so that in Spain, many indeed say that he found the secret of Solomon, through which he was able to continuously accumulate new wealth. Like Saunière, he used his money for various building projects, which includes a chapel in the Cathedral of Jaén.
Like Saunière, he has also been reburied. At first buried in his chapel in the cathedral of Jaén, his mummified remains were moved. In fact, only on May 13, 2001, was he finally re-interred in his chapel.

The question is whether the bishop of Jaén knew indeed about this treasure, and whether this means the treasure of Solomon is near his city, or elsewhere. It is the same debate that we see with Saunière: was his mystery truly of Rennes-le-Château, or was that merely his residence, and was the secret of his wealth elsewhere – or could he make it anywhere, as it had nothing to do with location at all?

The Treasure of Jaén

Jaén Cathedral is dedicated to the Assumption of the Virgin, and it was built to shelter the relic of The Holy Face, or Veil of Veronica, lodged at the major chapel and exposed to the public every Friday.
The Veil of Veronica is one of Christianity’s best-known relics. Veronica was a woman from Jerusalem who saw Jesus on the Via Dolorosa, and used a cloth to wipe the sweat of hiss face. His image was said to become imprinted on the cloth. Legend has it that Veronica later travelled to Rome, and presented the cloth to the Roman Emperor Tiberius, claiming the veil possessed miraculous qualities. Interestingly, the veil was said to even raise the dead. And the Veil of Veronica, as it was linked – prominently – with the Calvary of Christ, was obviously a most cherished relic for La Sanch. We can therefore speculate – without any evidence at the moment – whether the bishop had his extra income as he allowed the Veil to be featured in certain ceremonies that were dear to La Sanch. And of course a relic that could raise the dead…

Which veil?

The question is: which veil? The “Holy Face of Jaén” is a precious relic, but not deemed to be the genuine artefact. There are at least six images vying for the role of “the” relic, but as one of the relics is within the Vatican, they have of course laid chief claim to possessing the real one – whereas, we have to remember, probably all are non-original.
Interestingly, the Vatican Veil is not on display, and few photographs exist. It might be because during an inspection in 1907, it was reported that hardly anything was visible on the cloth.
The “copy” of Jaén is believed to date from the 14th century and originated in Siena.

Questions

Though a La Sanch connection between Jaén and Rennes-le-Château remains unproven, or even documented, it is a matter of record that Patrice Chaplin’s work in Gerona has revealed a strong Sanch component with the people involved in the Gerona saga. And it is a matter of record that La Sanch are into the Arma Christi, of which the Veil of Veronica is definitely one. In fact, there are few relics that capture the suffering of Christ better than the Veil. Though there is the cross, the nails, the Spear, many of those would have had the blood of Jesus on them… None of them, however, were miraculous – only the Veil does. The Turin Shroud, however famous it is today, is less La Sanch, and more Christian, as it was believed to capture the essence of the Risen Christ, whereas the Veil captures the essence of the Suffering Christ. And what to make of the allegations expressed by Karl Hammer-Kaatee that the Arma Christi were indeed held in Rennes-le-Château and that they form the centre of the true secret?
As with Gerona, the Jaén saga may one day be further explored?

Filip Coppens