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In 2001 a gold cauldron was discovered at the bottom of a Bavarian lake. A decade later it was revealed that the artefact was part of a treasure hoard that the Nazis were desperately trying to hide from the advancing Allied troops. This is the story of the cauldron’s true origins and why it was revered. Read more…
 Wednesday 29th August 2012
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2012 is here and suddenly all the hoopla that preceded it has quietened. Is this the calm before the proverbial storm that many have predicted, or is it simply vindication that the whole thing was never worth the worry in the first place? Read more…
Wednesday 9th May 2012
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The discovery of gold transformed the American Old West into a chaotic and lawless place. Mayhem spread, and a peculiar breed of French penitent orders infiltrated Colorado’s mining towns. Religion and anarchy clashed, and one man and his wife made all the difference. Read more. Read more…
Tuesday 7th June 2011
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Death awaits us all and the realm beyond the living has been a source of fascination for thousands of years. In London, seven great cemeteries encircle the city and stand testament to a nation's passion for commemorating its dead with symbolism inspired by some of the greatest esoteric traditions in history. Read more…
Thursday 7th October 2010
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There is a fine line between imagination and reality. In 2002 I visited Amarna, kingdom of Akhenaten, and witnessed the two become one. Do spirit entities really exist, and if so, can they manifest in our daily lives? Read more…
Wednesday 21st April 2010
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The Pharaoh Khufu is said to have built the greatest monument in history, the Great Pyramid at Giza. But what do we really know of the legendary man, father, king and heretic? Upon inspection, we are left with more questions than answers, and the realisation that the famous king may not have been who we thought he was. Read more…
Tuesday 2nd June 2009
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Freemasonry, Napoleon and the wider esoteric community have all paid homage to the Bee, but that has not stopped it from dying. Albert Einstein forewarned that mankind will perish four years after the Bee does, and this puts us circa 2012; the end of days according to the Mayans. Does anybody care, and how has it come to this in first place? Read more…
Friday 29th August 2008
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The Bee was held sacred in prehistory before undergoing a transformation into an icon of unparalleled adoration in the sophisticated civilisations of ancient Sumer and Egypt. How did it also became the inspiration for the first principals of the United States of America? Well, that’s another story altogether. Read more…
Wednesday 2nd July 2008
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The Bee is dying and we are only now beginning to wake up and recognise its huge significance, not only to the global economy but to our very survival. However the importance of this sacred creature was not lost on ancient man, in fact, from prehistory to Egyptian times, it appears to have been viewed as the single most cherished god on the planet. Read more…
Friday 6th June 2008
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Oak Island is an enigma not unlike Rennes-le-Chateau; one could argue there is no mystery at all, only copious amounts of fraud and misdirection. And then comes Will, an informant who claims to be part of team that has blown the mystery wide open. But can he be believed? Read more…
Tuesday 29th January 2008
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Land’s End, Cornwall is a special place, but few truly appreciate its splendour. Legends abound here, from Christ to Arthur, Atlantis to Avalon, Piskies to Pirates and Mermaids to Megalithic man. Why has it remained unappreciated? I believe the answer lies in its name. Read more…
Thursday 10th January 2008
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The tombstone of Father Henri Boudet is but one of the many enigmas of the priest's exceptional legacy. Many believe it contains a code that conceals a secret, and many a treasure hunter has pondered its inscription. However, none have cracked it. Is that because it is not a code, after all? Could the infamous inscription have more to do with faith than fantasy? Read more…
Thursday 25th October 2007
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An encounter with the alleged grandson of Bérenger Saunière, a Cabalist who is the fountain of all knowledge, the Grail portal atop the sacred mountain of Canigou in the French Pyrenees, and a society set-up at Patrice Chaplin’s Spanish book launch were just some of the highlights of my recent Girona odyssey. Read more…
Sunday 7th October 2007
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Arcadia has evolved into a mythical, almost other worldly province in history, as if it never really existed. Greece’s 2007 fires brought that image back to reality – Arcadia burned, reaffirming another association – Death. I toured Arcadia at the peak of the fires and discovered hope, an ancient library, a magical temple of Apollo and a wolf cult that all seemed strangely connected to Rennes-le-Château. Read more…
Friday 21st September 2007
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The Spanish connection with Rennes-le-Château – Girona, represents a new frontier in research and exploration. Patrice Chaplin and her provocative new book, City of Secrets are to thank for that. I decided to investigate the story first hand, and with Patrice’s guidance, I went questing in Girona. Read more…
Friday 29th June 2007
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Louis de Coma is the forgotten priest in the Rennes-le-Château mystery, yet his tale is as peculiar as Bérenger Saunière’s. The two men had an eerie amount in common. Now for the first time, the Stations of the Cross of Father de Coma are revealed, and they appear to hold clues. At the very least, the provocative images are curious and thought provoking, just like de Coma’s life itself. Read more...
Thursday 12th April 2007
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The Da Vinci Code brought overwhelming attention to one of the most enigmatic women in the Gospels; Mary Magdalene. Long before that, she was always at the heart of the Rennes-le-Château mystery. Is it possible that some of Europe's greatest artists were well aware of that? Corjan de Raaf and Andrew Gough join forces and examine the Magdalene, a strangely overlooked rock, a lot of paintings and a 600 lb gorilla. Read more...
Thur 1st February 2007
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When I launched this ‘Arcadia' website in the summer of 2006, I never imagined I would stumble upon London’s forgotten Arcadia, on my doorstep, in the Royal Borough of Richmond upon Thames. Read more...
Mon 13th November 2006
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The mystery of Rennes-le-Château is predicated on two primary elements; (1) the Priory Documents and (2) the Archaeology & Artefacts of the legend. Let’s take a closer look at each and reflect on what they tell us. Read more...
Wednesday 30th June 2006
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The story of Rennes-le-Château is fantastical, even mystical. Or is it? One school of thought claims it's a complete hoax. Another believes it is one of the greatest mysteries of our time. Perhaps the truth lies somewhere in-between. Read more...
Friday 12th May 2006
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The enigmatic Abbe Saunière was not the only priest of his generation to guard a great secret.
Abbe’s Louis de Coma, Antoine Gelis, Antoine Bigou, Henri Boudet and Alfred Saunière, Berenger’s younger brother, amongst others, all feature prominently in the legend of Rennes-le-Château. Collectively, they represent what I call the Abbe’s of the Magdalene; each is associated with a great treasure, or secret, and in some instances, Mary Magdalene herself, the embodiment of the Holy Grail.
At the fragile age of 70, Abbe Gelis, was brutally murdered for the secrets he concealed. For the first time, Arcadia asks the question, what evidence exists to support the supposition that other Abbes of the Magdalene were also murdered, for the same reason, and by the same assassins? Read more...
Friday 12th May 2006
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Abbe Bérenger Saunière was a priest, not an alchemist. That said, he did keep very interesting company. I believe that he was merely one of many abbes – arguably the last of a generation - who presided over a great secret.
If we are honest, in retrospect Abbe Saunière was less mysterious than some of the other abbes, namely Boudet, Bigou and de Coma, but he was blessed with something they never had; physical possession of the treasure and secret. Thus, the question remains, just what did Abbe Saunière unearth in the crypt of his dilapidated church of Mary Magdalene, all those years ago?
There are no easy answers, but let’s apply Occam's Razor, and see what the evidence tells us? Read more...
Friday 12th May 2006
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by Duncan Burden
Rarely have new insights on old conundrums been so authoritatively presented than by ‘The Time Monk Project’. Don’t let the sacred geometry put you off. This is a discovery that’s easy to follow and worth the journey. Read more... |
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by Douglas Gibson
Patrice Chaplin’s book, The Portal, has spawned a revival of interest in Magic Squares. This fascinating guest article, written by a London cabbie, explores the ancient and largely forgotten phenomenon. Read more... |
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by Josh Kroeker
Rarely does a new and original insight come along in the mystery of Rennes-le-Château, let alone a visually demonstrable discovery; but it has. Research by a 22-year-old opens a whole new chapter in the analysis of Nicolas Poussin’s painting, Shepherds of Arcadia. Read more... |
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by Isaac Ben Jacob
The third and final part of Isaac Ben Jacob’s trilogy delves still deeper into the underbelly of the Rennes-le-Château mystery, with an analysis of the dark forces at work behind the scenes, including Satanists and their Black Masses. Read more... |
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by Isaac Ben Jacob
In the second instalment of his impressive trilogy, Isaac Ben Jacob recounts the fascinating legends of the Merovingians and Visigoths and the mysterious relics they coveted. Read more... |
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by Isaac Ben Jacob
Cult of the Dead researcher and author, Isaac Ben Jacob, is back with a three-part exposé on the mysteries of Rennes-le-Château and its connection with Spain. Part one of Jacob’s account introduces us to a variety of forgotten relics, including the elusive crista. Read more... |
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by Lori Paras
Arcadia Forum regular Lori Paras provides a sneak preview of her debut book, ‘Emma’. Rennes-le-Château, Emma Calvé, Bérenger Saunière, its all there. Do you believe in reincarnation? Read more... |
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by Patrice Chaplin
After finishing ‘City of Secrets’, I thought the story was complete. I had no idea of the amount and quality of material that was available now that the protagonists in the published book were satisfied with what was revealed. One of the qualifying factors for joining the private society which holds the Grail Rituals is the ability to do the journey. This, I discovered is not simply a geographical experience but a profound test on all levels of being. Read more... |
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by By Isaac Ben Jacob, Sarah Fishberg, Jean de Niort
The Isaac Ben Jacob research team are new to the English speaking Rennes-le-Chateau community, but not for long. This article, along with the book, ‘The Rise’, signals a new chapter in the history of the mystery; Bérenger Saunière and the Cult of the Dead. Read more... |
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by Dr. Elias Van Kasteel
In his sequel to Rennes-le-Chateau, Mystery Solved? Dr. Elias Van Kasteel returns with more provocative insights into the location of Sauniere's alleged discovery. Is his tale cryptic? Yes. Is it enticing? Yes. Will you want to read it? Absolutely. Read more... |
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by Geoff Bath
Seldom has an analysis of Poussin reached this far and this wide. From Rennes-le-Château to Shugborough and Chatsworth and more, Geoff Bath examines the changing face of Poussin’s Pentagram. But was Poussin the only artist to encode pentagonal geometry in his work? Read more… |
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by Adrian Lodge Ph. D.
Adrian Lodge Ph.D. returns with a sequel to his earlier analysis of the existence – or not - of sacred geometry in Nicolas Poussin’s celebrated painting, The Shepherds of Arcadia. Coincidence, serendipity, the writer Greg Rigby and the fallibility of memory all contribute to Adrian’s rather surprising conclusions. Read more… |
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by Corjan de Raaf
Corjan de Raaf goes on the trail of author Karl Hammer-Kaatee's provocative research about the holiest of relics - the Arma Christi - the Instruments of the Passion of Christ. Were the relics really guarded by Ebionites as Hammer has recently suggested and what is their relation to the Franciscans? Read more... |
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by Corjan de Raaf
Corjan de Raaf contemplates Jean Cocteau's last great work, the enchanting Chapel of ND de Jérusalem, in Part II of his ‘Last Message of the Initiate’ opus. In addition to a thoughtful analysis of Cocteau's final masterpiece, de Raaf provides a stunning 360 degree panorama of the Chapel murals – not to be missed. Read more... |
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by Corjan de Raaf
Researcher Corjan de Raaf ventures to the South of France to examine two chapels decorated by the initiate Jean Cocteau. In this, the first of two articles dedicated to his findings, Raaf examines the Alpha and Omega of Cocteau’s magnificent murals and discovers a hidden pentagram along the way. Read more... |
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by John Harper
Ancient miracles and biblical metaphors are the source of legend, intrigue and cynicism. John Harper offers fresh insight into old enigmas by placing these extraordinary tales into their proper ritualistic context. Not surprisingly, he has uncovered a link to the mystery of Rennes-le-Château in the process. Read more… |
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by Patrice Chaplin
In support of her new remarkable new book City of Secrets, Patrice Chaplin gives us The Girona Enigma, an essay on the Spanish connection with Rennes-le-Château, Bérenger Saunière, private societies and the Holy Grail. Are you ready to open your mind to the possibilities that new and challenging research can provide? Read more... |
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by Dr. Elias Van Kasteel
Uncover the source of Saunière’s wealth and you solve the mystery of Rennes-le-Château. Dr. Elias Van Kasteel believes he has done just that. A treasure hidden by the Grand Master of the Knights Templars of Jerusalem, a paining by David Teniers, a mysterious place called Belcastel; they all add to the intrigue of Kasteel’s provocative new research. Read more... |
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by Corjan de Raaf
Forget the usual suspects. They’ve been done to death. Arcadia regular Corjan de Raaf takes us on a path less traveled; Abbé Eugène Grassaud, the best friend of Rennes-le-Château icon Bérenger Saunière. A priest’s closest friend, what better place to look for clues? Read more... |
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by Ben Hammott
Ben Hammott's remarkable discovery, if validated, will prove to be the most significant revelation in the history of Rennes-le-Château. It may even be the greatest discovery of the last two thousand years! In his own words, Ben provides an intimate look at his world and discovery. Read more... |
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by Adrian Lodge Ph. D.
The notion that Sacred Geometry exists within classical works of art, concealing secrets and obscure heretical truths, is uniquely fundamental to Rennes-le-Château mythology. But is the geometry to be believed? Ph. D. Adrian Lodge reviews the dilemma and attempts to apply a scientific method to the debate. Read more... |
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by Corjan de Raaf
The mystery of Perillos continues to unfold. In Three Holy Maps, Corjan de Raaf adds a new and exciting dimension to the story. I’ve heard of triangulating your hypothesis before, but three sources pointing to one destination, now that’s a story that needs to be told. Read more... |
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by Corjan de Raaf and
Jean-Pierre d’Aniort
Welcome to Arcadia’s inaugural Guest Article. The legendary Coumesourde Stone, now lost, is believed to have concealed a secret of great importance, but what? Corjan de Raaf & Jean-Pierre d’Aniort take us on a journey of discovery, and arrive at some surprising conclusions. Read more...
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If you are interested in submitting a Guest Article then please contact me. |
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