Product Description

It began as an intriguing piece of puzzle-solving - and ended with the discovery of the greatest secret of all. Dissatisfied with the explanations of previous researchers, Richard Andrews and Paul Schellenberger applied mathematical logic to the enduring mystery of the Rennes-le-Chateau and the 'treasure' alleged to be buried there. The quest began with an investigation into the activities of a group of 19th century priests who had become embroiled in the legend. These priests had grown rich because of their involvement and had maintained the anonymity of the paymasters, but in 1993 an extraordinary clue came to light which suggested the priests were engaged in activities at odds with traditional Roman Catholic pastimes. A series of paintings was unearthed which incorporated a cryptic, obscure geometry; a set of interrelating shapes with a very direct link to the priests' habitat and spiritual role. Through the centuries a pattern emerged - a web of concealment on maps, in fine art, on tombstones which defied coincidence and pointed to one very specific location...

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #772785 in Books
• Published on: 1997-08-04
• Original language: English
• Binding: Paperback
• 528 pages

About the Author
Richard Andrews spent 15 years in the Mediterranean and Middle East as a contract diver and has also done archaeological work in Israel, Italy and Sardinia. He is an expert on the Roman era. Paul Schellenberger is a civil engineer by profession and has a

Customer Reviews

What happens next?
I randomly picked up this book at a library doing some research into the history of christianity, and nearly finished it the first night, being too involved to put it down!

What I could not understand was why I had never heard of the book before considering the nature of the topic that it was dealing with.

The book describes the research of the two authors into a mystery surrounding a location and historical events in Southern France.

Starting off with 2 parchments they unravel a form of code based on pythagorean theroems (geometry) and follow this as it emerges in paintings, architecture and even the layout of buildings in a geographic area over several hundred years.

While the high level of detail in their research and explanation of each case does get repetitive, it is very necessary to overcome the cynicism with which every intelligent reader can not but help approach the unbelievable story of the book with. Instead the authors prove time and time again, that their testable hypothesis is correct.

The last section of the book regarding the involvement of people such as the artist Poussin, the origins and role of the roman catholic church, the role of the Knights Templar and Gnostic forms of christianity attempts to tie together the strands of the research.

In conclusion, as the blurb of the book states, this book is something which could challenge the fabric of western societies, and perhaps be the push that the Roman Catholic Church and its followers need to re-evaluate their view of history and religion for the future.

The frustration I was left with after reading the book, was the single question 'what next'? What action has been taken because of this book? If, as they seem to be, the facts and research in this book is accurate surely individuals, religious institutions and the French Government have some obligation to follow up on them?

A scholarly but incomplete account
The book sets out to examine the evidence as scientifically as possible; leading from one set of evidence and conclusions to another without introducing any authors' prejudices. The reader must be detrmined to see it through and there is a danger of information overload for the casual 'browser'. The one area for criticism is that the book did not come up with a convincing explicit explanation of the sudden wealth of Fr Sauniere (although the implication is clear)and this, for me, undermined the book's radical conclusion. Certainly worth a read but keep your feet on the ground, being as sceptical as the authors tried to be.

Trash History at its worst
The conclusions of this book are that Jesus's body was spirited out of Jerusalem by the Knights Templar and buried near a village in the Pyrenees. This secret has been handed down through the centuries to initiates of a a secret society headed by, amongst ohter people, Sir Isaac newton, Leonadro da Vinci and Jaques Costeau. The authors calim to have unravelled this grand conspiracy by decoding the geometries implicit in paintings and two parchments, and similarly obscure clues. (They've never seen the original parchments, by the way; they've only seen photos of them.)

If you think this hypothesis is completely implausible, you are right. The authors, who patently have no idea of historical method, gullibly swallow hypotheses from various sources as if they were proven fact, never check any basic facts that could shatter their thesis and pile one implausiblility on top of another.

Save your money. The treasures of Rennes le Chateau is an interesting and justifiably famous story, but there must be many better books on it than this.

(If you ARE convinced by their hypothesis, seek out the 1996/97 BBC "Timewatch" documentary on it, and think again.)