A strange manuscript, which mentions Rennes-le-Château Part 2: initial observations

 

The document is a poem in 22 verses, each identified by a letter of the Hebrew alphabet. The document itself is written in Latin. The poem itself resembles other poems, such as The Red Serpent, deposited in the French National Library in Paris and afterwards incorporated into the mythology of the Priory of Sion. Unlike this document, The Red Serpent, is written in French, even though its 13 verses start with a sign of the zodiac.
This document, which we could label “The Restoration of the alabaster vase”, is written in Latin, which suggests an earlier origin than The Red Serpent. In fact, the date of this document has been identified as ca. 1830, approximately 50 years before Saunière’s arrival in Rennes-le-Château.

Nevertheless, this poem, like The Red Serpent, is connected with the mystery of Rennes-le-Château. “Rhedae” is mentioned and we need to ask the question whether Rhedae was already identified with Rennes-le-Château in the first part of the 19th century, or whether it is a more recent amalgamation. If the latter, then it suggests that the document is of a much later date than 1830 – and whether it therefore needs to sit in the same line of so many faked documents.
Apart from Rennes-le-Château, the poem also identifies Bugarach, one of the most famous mountains in the region, and the inspiration for various enigmas.

The poem has a biblical nature: the alabaster vase, identified in the first sentence of the poem, is without a doubt the vase used by Mary Magdalene. The second line of the poem is a reference to Simon the Cyrenean, the man who aided Jesus on his Calvary.
The first verse is the only one of the 22 that is understandable: there is mention of the vase of Mary Magdalene, which has been taken to a different country, far from Galilee, where apparently through some mediation on the part of Simon the Cyrenean, apparently from Mary Magdalene herself.
In the second verse, we find the destination of the vase: it is visible from Bugarach and hence must reside in the area of Rennes-le-Château. Like The Red Serpent, there is a reference to “noon”, allegedly the best time to see the vase.

From here onwards, the poem becomes more and more difficult to comprehend. There are furthermore references to sacred geography, such “marking the limits of the circle”, which seem to indicate the type of sacred geography that has become popular by authors like Henry Lincoln. It places the poem more into the 1980s then in the 1830s.
The poem also contains references to north and south, with other parts of the poem referring to periods of the year: the summer solstice, spring and winter. But more importantly, the poem does seem to begin to develop a line of reasoning: a secret, hidden, invisible: “Those who are jealous of the secret do not see the pearl that has been hidden from view”. A potter – whoever that could be – plays a role in it.

We can also ask whether or not the references to the oak are important, and if so, in what framework. It is mentioned in relation to Bugarach; afterwards, the author “informs” us that at the roots of the oak, “in the middle of the hill of olives, the stone of spring is rolled.” This may be somewhat comprehensible, but the rest once again becomes impossible to distil: “to destroy the heads.”
The Hill of Olives seems to be a reference to the Mount of Olives, a part of the last moments of the life of Jesus in Jerusalem, and therefore fitting in the tradition of the vase of Mary Magdalene. But the poem directs us towards a different location, near Bugarach. We need to ask whether the Mount of Olives referred to is perhaps that of Perillos, which is in the general vicinity of Bugarach. If this is the case, is the “stone of the spring”, the stone of the tomb of Jesus, a reference to the Tomb of Jesus, placed on Saunière’s model? Perhaps. But even if this is the case, this illumination is immediately obscured by the next line: “to destroy the heads.” What can it mean?

In “Teth”, more details are given : “Terribilis domus ista”, a slightly altered version of “Terribilis locus ista”, in which the place has become a house. Is the house the stone of the spring? Or the Tomb of Jesus? In either possibility, we are told that the house is close to the underworld; its entrance touches the underworld, but “the servant guards the entrance”, the “servant that wears the crown of the saints”. As we are in Rennes-le-Château, it is easy to see the parallels with Saunière. It is he who has placed “Terribilis locus ista” above the porch of his church and beyond the entrance, we truly touch upon the underworld – there is Asmodeus, the devil. Finally, there is also the servant, in the feminine, which therefore does not seem to refer to Asmodeus, who was a male guardian of the treasure of the Temple of Solomon. So is this a reference to a maid servant, like Marie Dénarnaud was to Saùniere? Or is it a reference to Mary Magdalene? If so, then the reference to the crowns of the saints becomes clear(er).
“Jad” is a verse that is similar to the legend of the Grail: “the port of the night opens” but all too soon does it become clear that by the morning it is closed again. In the next verse, a specific point in time is mentioned: “the evening of the summer solstice”, as well as a specific location: “in the shadow of the little tower”; that of the Tour Magdala? If so, we are once again in Saunière’s or post Saunière’s time.

The next verses once again take us into darkness. It takes us until “Nun” to find further indications as to the possible location where all of this is supposedly occurring: “the rocks are white with snow”. Perhaps this indiates the scenery is not so much that of Jerusalem, but indeed that of the mountainous Pyrenees? Perhaps…
At the same time, there is a discussion on winter, which seems more symbolical than just a discussion of the calendrical season. In “Samech”, there is talk about the return of a shepherd, forgotten, who awaits his liberation from the ice, by the light. “The sheep begin their return.” Is it an indication that springtime is coming, or does it instead refer to a new era, where the shepherd – Jesus? – has returned and has begun to preach, thus creating new followers – sheep? The spring, is it the start of a New Age?

“Ain” leads us back to the typically biblical scenes. The female guardian of the temple is back; she is linked with “penitence”, so specifically identified in the bible with Mary Magdalene. In the following verse, there is definite talk about a “sepulchre”, even though its description is much more obscure. Still, in “Sade”, the final verse of page three, there is a clear identification of whose tomb this is: that of Mary Magdalene. It is situated “on the mountain, where it is placed in the shadows, she remains there until the end”. The tomb of Mary Magdalene is on top of a mountain… one that is visible from Bugarach? If so, is it the small mountain on which the village of Rennes-le-Château was built?

Towards the end, the shadows of the author continues: what does “during 47 years […] he reigns with an iron sceptre, he destroys the dragon…” mean when you do not identify who “he” is? The following verse changes subject, saying that “Rheda” opens the way of the lion. In the end, the author only states that “If you enter in the cavern, you will no longer shine with light, neither of the sun or the moon.” Yes, of course… but could the author possibly be a little more specific? And what to think of the lat verse, “Tav”, in which we only have 1 word, “tabernacle”. Is it a reference to the Ark of the Covenant? If so, there is no clear connection between the rest of the poem, which is largely orientated towards Mary Magdelene, and the Ark, which is a treasure of the Old Testament.

For sure, poetry is an art, but the author could be more specific if we are to treat this poem in a manner in which we are supposed to learn something and come away with certain information.
Like The Red Serpent, this poem does contain references to Mary Magdalene; it is also divided into 22, a number linked with her, as her feast is on July 22. The ninth verse of The Red Serpent is very much like some of the verses of the latin poem,: “Coming from the shadows, my voyage can only be concluded in the light. At the window of the ruined house, I contemplated through the defoliated trees of the autumn the top of the mountain.” There are references to shadows, light, a house, the fall, and the top of a mountain… this after the verse in which the author of The Red Serpent has made a link between Mary Magdalene and specifically the church of Saunière.

To conclude: certain questions remain around the provenance of this poem. Is it really from 1830? There are specific references that indicate that either Saunière was aware of this poem, or that the writer was aware of Saunière. And in the latter scenario, the poem cannot have been composed in 1830, only if the author was a 19th century Nostradamus…

continued >>

Filip Coppens