The first decoding of the
largest of the two parchments is given away in 1978 by Franck Marie in
his "Etude Critique". It is taken up again in 1991 by Henry Lincoln in
"Le Message" where the author specifies in particular the solution was
communicated to him by Gérard de Sède. The document was decrypted on
the basis of certain anomalies inscribed on the stela of the marquise
de Blanchefort enabling to compose the keyword "Mortépée" and by using
the table of Vigenère many times. The final result, obtained by the
knight's leap, is a perfect anagram of the epitaph increased by the
Latin words "prae cum". Since then, needed it be concluded the link
existing between the stela and the great manuscript is prior to a
presumed discovery of the latter in the church? For answering this
question, the chronology of facts should be collected.
Since the first writings
reporting Bérenger Saunière's story, the majority of the authors claim
the curate of Rennes-le-Château went to Paris on the advice of his
bishop Mgr Billard to entrust the manuscripts' decoding to religious
experts.
In pages 55-60 of
"L’Héritage de l’Abbé Saunière", Claire Corbu and Antoine Captier
present a text telling the old curate's adventures. This story
recorded on a
magnetic tape, is distributed in the years 1955/56 by the narrator
Noël Corbu to the visitors of his restaurant "La Tour".
In this text the priest's
trip to the capital is evoked for the first time. In his account, the
restaurant owner puts this voyage shortly after the discovery of
manuscripts done by Bérenger Saunière in his church during the change
of the altar in February 1892.(1) Noël Corbu however specifies there
exists no confirmation of this voyage.
In his work, "L'Or de
Rennes" published in 1967, Gérard de Sède fixes this same episode to
the beginning of the year 1893. Twenty years later, in
"Rennes-le-Château, le Dossier, les Impostures, les Phantasmes, les
Hypothèses", the same author writes: «But this was most enigmatic
about the
voyage of Bérenger Saunière to Paris, that we believe may have
occurred during summer 1891,…». Jean-Luc Chaumeil, as for him,
specifies the curate's departure for Paris in March 1892 in "Le Trésor
des Templiers".
It's so clear this
hypothetical event of Abbé Saunière's life (there is no proof), is
surrounded by the greatest historical vagueness. Never mind! All these
informers agree to say, on the return from Rennes-le-Château, the
priest brings back in his luggage the message "BERGERE PAS DE
TENTATION QUE POUSSIN TENIERS GARDENT LA CLEF PAX DCLXXXI PAR LA CROIX
ET CE CHEVAL DE DIEU J'ACHEVE CE DAEMON DE GARDIEN A MIDI POMMES
BLEUES". However, I'm challenged by the end of this phrase "at midday
blue apples".
In Sainte Marie-Madeleine
church, during sunny January days, at true noon, a light phenomenon
appears. The rays of the sun, then low over the horizon, penetrate a
stained glass in the church's south wall and project on the opposite
side a tree, moving from left to right, and among its fruits "three
blue apples" stand out. Arrived to its right end, the effect finishing
its movement disappears suddenly.
What should be known about
the stained glasses?
In page 73 of their common
work, Claire Corbu and Antoine Captier point out: «In 1887, he (Abbé
Saunière) orders the stained glasses from the house of Henri Feur(2)
at Bordeaux,…». René Descadeillas in his "Mythologie du Trésor de
Rennes", page 17 also said: «At the same time (in 1887), the abbé was
occupied with replacing the stained glasses.» Pierre Jarnac wrote in
page 143 of his "Histoire du Trésor de Rennes-le-Château" :«On the
30th September 1887, the house of Henri Feur delivers a bill of 1350
francs for the stained glasses placed in the choir and nave.» In "Le
Fabuleux Trésor de Rennes-le-Château" page 77, Jacques Rivière brings
some additional details: «The magnificent stained glasses today
decorating the church were put in by the firm of Henri Feur at
Bordeaux, the painter and glass maker placed his work in September
1887 and delivered a bill of 1350 frs.»
These authors, relying on
all of the curate's personal documents, seem unanimous in placing the
order for the stained glasses in 1887.
At its meeting of the 8th
April 1888, the Factory Committee registers an outlay in the sum of
2478 francs "for paying the repairs made in our church during the year
1887". Besides, without knowing the curate's debt, we know he often
used the spreading of payments for his bills. Sometimes he even
awaited a pestering letter from certain creditors. Concerning the
stained glasses, two documents were published: a state of payments of
Abbé Saunière to Henri Feur with a last payment of 309.70 francs for
balance of entire account (C.Corbu-A.Captier, "L'Héritage" page 89),
and a duplicate of 1905 for receiving 4 payments made by Abbé Saunière
for the sum of 1350 francs, the first occurring on the 30th September
1887 (J. Rivière, "Le Fabuleux Trésor" page 76).
All this evidence tends to
show in 1887 Bérenger Saunière made a first payment to the painter and
glass maker for the installment of one and the same order of the set
of stained glasses than he then balanced with 3 more payments on the
12th April 1897, the 26th April 1899 and the 7th January 1900, i.e. as
his finances were permitting to honour his initial order. Villa
Béthanie, built over many years, is a significant example. In this
sense, Abbé Saunière brings a determining element since he specifies
himself in the speech given in honour of Mgr Billard come to visit
Rennes-le-Château at Whitsun 1897: «Since your last visit (July 1889),
in the shrine, two new windows, decorated with rich stained glasses,
continue to reproduce the principal events of the life of our
illustrious Patron have been added to our beautiful rose window and so
give more regularity and light to the essential part of the house of
God.»
However, if an order made in
1887 concerns the stained glasses of the shrine, one of them (the
resurrection of Lazarus) produces the phenomenon of three blue apples.
In this case, it appears doubtful the priest returned from a trip to
Paris in 1891, 1892 or 1893 provided with a decoding of the
manuscript meaning the same light effect! This detail could confirm
the manuscripts and their messages were elaborated a little before the
era when they appear literarily! The debate is open…
Patrick Mensior
(1) The change of
the altar indeed took place in July 1887, a discovery of the
document(s) was really made in the baluster during the disassembling
of the old pulpit in 1889.
(2) Pierre Henri
Feur is born on the 18th July 1837 at Bordeaux. First pupil of Joseph
Villiet, he becomes his collaborator then his successor on the 15th
August 1877. He dies on the 18th May 1925. Many years before, his son
Marcel had taken over the company.
