The Sauniere Code.

Description

By William Van Zyl (Nov 2021).

EXCERPT:

The muffled scoop and thump of a spade and pick disturbed the dead. The unexpected sound – at 1:15 am – sent a shiver through the cemetery. The moist soil and decaying bodies were disturbed. Though many of the dead were at peace, the sound of spades and picks at that unholy hour of the night sent a whisper from grave to grave.

A couple of swords, a lance, and a spear – guarding the burial site – were pegged firmly into the ground next to the four working men. The silhouettes of the weapons looked like a forgotten battlefield. Chain mail, a knight’s helmet, and red and white knight insignia glimmered in the moonlight. The red cross juxtaposed on a white background had a message.

It is Sunday morning, 2 August 1310. France, Rennes-Le-Chateau. The small village is asleep.

The priest, Raphael Garnier, lays awake on his bed. He had prayed over the dead body late that night. The Knight Templars are burying their dead.

A black silhouette – outlined as a Roman Catholic Church – was studded against the half-crest moon in the background. Mysterious tar-sealed bags – were waiting quietly to be buried. Why waterproof the body? Or was there something else in those sinister bags?

Darkness drenched the graveyard; the only light visible was from two short candles. One on the outside and one flickering nervously in a small niche inside the short trench. The groaning organ and the angelic voices of the choir were silent – holding their breath. They had to keep the secret. The beautifully shaped men and women in the stained glass artwork were staring at the activities in disbelief. The yellow, red, marigold, cerise and periwinkle faces were draped in cold shadows. They were witnessing something very extraordinary. They wouldn’t be able to tell. They had to stay silent for almost five hundred years.

An owl hooted: “Hoo-hoo; salvation belongs to the Lord.”

The slither of moon was now being curtained by a couple of small grey clouds; the sky studded with several bright stars. Polaris anchored the light-swirl. A couple of freckles and small blemishes blotted out some of the stars. The night was covered in secrecy.

The waterproofed bitumen bags made high pitched clinking and clanking sounds.

“Sshhh! Slowly move the bags, slowly.”

The Tower of the Magdalene. Magdala refers to Magdalene. The ‘Magdala’ tower was built by the Catholic priest Sauniere. Magdala near Gallilee, according to the gospels, was the birthplace of Mary Magdalene. Magdala also means tower in Hebrew (Migdal in Aramaic), hence the Magdela’s triple meaning.  Credit: https://commons.wikimedia.org – Rennes Le Chateau.  

From the author’s sketchbook: A sectional view of the grave. See the treasures right at the bottom just below the coffin (sealed in bitumen). Symbols: The Priory of Sion (left) and the shield of a Templar Knight (red cross on a white background). Credit: W Van Zyl.