The Knights Templar, Seborga, and the Cassini Family.

The Knights Templar have been the subject of a great deal of speculation with regard to hidden history and secret societies. Many myths and legends have surrounded the Order since it was disbanded in the early fourteenth century. The common story states that Philip IV of France had colluded with Pope Clement V to arrest and imprison the Templars. In many countries or monarchies of the day this persecution was never really carried out though the order was officially disbanded by 1314. This story may reveal the importance of the Republic of Genoa and the country of England with regard to the Knights Templar in a story that has been overlooked in Templar mania in favor of their influence in Scotland and Portugal. True those two places are important in the story of the Knights Templar but if we are looking for something secret why look where we are being shown intentionally? If there are really items, documents, or concepts hidden why would they tell us where they all are?

Here we will examine some alternate views as to the true origins of the Knights Templar that will take some surprising twists and turns as well as exposing some truth with regard to the legacy of this storied military order. It is obvious that a great deal of hyperbole and speculation has surrounded the story of the Knights Templar. An examination of some of the people who took part in the First Crusade may reveal a great deal of truth with regard to the Knights Templar and why they were created as well as other Knighthoods and political groups that were associated. The Latin Kings and their families also seem to have played a role in many mysterious goings on long after the dissolution of the Knights Templar.

Here we will examine the history of the Latin Kings, Republic of Genoa, the famous Cassini family, Dante Alighieri, and even the famous Pirate Peter Easton of the early seventeenth century to come to some startling conclusions. Along the way we will also see the basis for many of the more storied legends of the Knights Templar including why many people believe they were searching for the Ark of the Covenant beneath the Temple Mount in Jerusalem. Many people view the notion that the Templars acquired the Ark of the Covenant to be nothing more than fantasy but it is more than possible that they obtained what they believed to be authentic relics associated with biblical history during their time in the Holy Land. Coupled with this is also a belief among many that Mary Magdalene had somehow made her way to France with some theories even espousing the fact that she had borne children with Christ thus inspiring many of the bloodline theories that in turn became associated by many with the Knights Templar.

As in many myths and legends there may be some truth to all of these ideas. Sometimes through the fog of history it is necessary to examine the surrounding cultural and historical context of the era to discern the truth. Many clues come to us by how later people viewed these ideas and how they may have been embellished later for political and social reasons that could have changed the original scope of the story at hand. Given this idea it may become obvious that more than one single lost treasure or relic story was intentionally told in order to keep these ideas alive long past the time of the original Knights Templar. Through time a great deal of written documentation has been lost so we may have to use the artwork and architecture of the era to try and glean some clues. Some of the information at hand suggests these treasure and lost relic stories were simply developed to tell a story of lost or neglected history. There are also some indications that over a wide span of time these techniques were indeed used to hide caches of gold or valuables that would be used in revolutions and hidden political movement and possibly secret societies.

What we may be seeing in part is the intentional creation of storied legends that involve missing items or treasures similar to the stories we see at Shugborough Hall in England, Rennes le Chateau in France, Perillos France, Oak Island Nova Scotia, Williamsburg Virginia, and more. All of these places may indeed be associated with each other in ways that include the same families being involved in the intentional propagation of these legends intentionally in part to preserve a history that applies to them that would otherwise have been left out of the textbooks.

This information is only available to one willing to dig in to obscure tenets of the overall big picture. In the past I have termed these conundrums the Arcadian Mysteries because that theme or imagery seems to be present in many of these storied legends. In order to understand all of this in the context of the history of the Knights Templar we will go back to the time of their origins and examine some little discussed attributes of how this story began.

The untold origins of the Knights Templar.

The untold origins of the Knights Templar may include a story that at first glance seems to be a later manifestation of a myth or legend. Some events in later history may show that this story is indeed somehow true. Usually this story is presented in a way that questions the fact that the Knights Templar were formed to protect pilgrims in the Holy Land. This was also the stated goal of the Knights of St. John or Hospitaliers. The mode in which this story is commonly told also infers that the order was established for some other secret reason that was hidden from the Vatican at that time.

It is commonly stated that the original nine members of the Knights Templar went to the Holy Land where they were quartered in what is now known as the Al Aqsa Mosque. In fact this structure was originally known as the Church of St. Mary Justinian and had been built by Byzantine Emperor Justinian I in the early sixth century. After the Muslims conquered Jerusalem the structure was then turned into the Al Aqsa Mosque. So the Knights Templar were actually being housed in what was originally and Greek Christian structure. Of course, it is also stated that the Latin King of Jerusalem also used the building as his palace at that time.

Other period Byzantine churches of the era do resemble the Al Aqsa Mosque in form especially Sant Apollinaire Nuevo in Ravenna, Italy. In fact the architecture of Ravenna including three octagonal structures may have actually inspired the entire array of architecture that we see on the Temple Mount today including the Dome of the Rock. It is not impossible that the arrangement of the Church of St. Mary Justinian (Al Aqsa Mosque) and Dome of the Rock was inspired by the alignment of the Sant Apollinaire and the Neon Baptistry in Ravenna which had been buit a hundred years prior to the Dome of the Rock. The Church of St. Mary is contemporary with the time Sant Apollinaire had been built in Ravenna. The interior of these two buildings do in fact resemble each other a great deal.

As this story unfolds we may see how Ravenna is actually the original template for the Temple Mount’s architecture which in turn would later inspire a great deal of architecture through time as well as the concepts of what a “New Jerusalem” and “New Atlantis” are supposed to represent later in history. The short story would involve how all Byzantine Emperors beginning with Constantine also used an octagonal structure as their palace in Constantinople. Renderings of the Daphne Palace strangely resemble Thomas Jefferson’s Monticello in Virginia. The President may have actually been aware of the “secret” of the Knights Templar.

The Dome of the Rock may have actually been inspired or clandestinely built by Byzantine Emperor Justinian II in the seventh century. Justinian II is the only Byzantine or Roman ruler to have lost and regained his crown. At one point, it appears that Muslim controlled Jerusalem was an excharate of the Byzantine Empire that paid tribute to them. The term excharate in part indicates that a city or region was actually controlled by the Byzantines who were paid tribute not to invade. As part of this Justinian II may have demanded that the Caliph build a structure that resembled a common form of Byzantine Imperial architecture in the form of the octagonal Dome of the Rock. It may also be that Justinian II was aware that Constantine or a later Byzantine ruler had previously built a similar structure on the same site where the Dome of the Rock is now located.

Some sources even suggest that Byzantine engineers and artisans had been sent to Jerusalem to help in the construction of the Dome of the Rock. If Jerusalem was an excharate this would not be unusual in the Byzantine scheme of empire. Earlier in history Ravenna had been ruled by Theodoric the Great during a period when Justinian I actually “owned” Ravenna. At that time Theodoric helped in the building of the octagonal Basilica San Vitale as well as his own octagon the Arian Baptistery. Theodoric’s tomb in Ravenna also uses one of the largest single piece cut stones in the world. Strangely Theodoric had been raised in the Byzantine Imperial Court as a hostage by Emperor Zeno and his wife Arcadia. In many ways Ravenna may also represent the origins of a value of the theme of Arcadia through many different periods of history. Ravenna actually may also represent part of “the secret” that was known of by the Knights Templar.

Constantine the Great had likely established this tradition in his building of the octagonal Daphne (Palace) in Constantinople which was adjacent to where the hippodrome now stands in Istanbul, Turkey. Constantine had also built additional octagonal structures in Antioch and Rome. He had likely done this in part due to his Greek heritage and an appreciation for the octagonal Tower of the Winds of Athens which is a structure that was likely used to form a prime meridian that helped people to define time and space. He may have also done this out of respect for previous Roman emperor Augustus whose given name was Octavian. Subsequent Byzantine rulers lived in the Daphne and created octagons of their own until the time of Justinian II who we may consider the last classical Byzantine ruler in many ways. After Justinian II the rulers no longer used the Daphne as their residence.

It is entirely possible that the Knights Templar later recognized the tradition and history behind all of the architecture present on the Temple Mount. They may have also recognized and known the history of how this architecture in Jerusalem had actually been inspired by the architecture of Raveanna that had been built over one hundred years prior to the Dome of the Rock. It is clear that the octagonal form is not present in any other Muslim architecture even today. It is entirely possible that the Templars learned to use templates to build temples that defined the temporal fabric by examining the Dome of the Rock and possibly the architecture of Ravenna. Some secrets of Ptolemaic Egypt and ancient Greece may not have been taught to these people prior to them being exposed to these concepts in the Holy Land.

All of this may add up to explain why the Knights Templar had an unusual value of the Dome of the Rock and considered it the “Templum Domini” or “Temple of God.” The Dome of the Rock does occupy the same area where the original Jewish Temples had existed earlier in history. Subsequently many later Templar churches would also resemble not only the Mausoleum of St. Helena which had been built by Constantine but also the Dome of the Rock. Later this value may have compelled later landed gentry in England to construct copies of the Tower of the Winds in this tradition. It may also be true that some of these octagonal structures represented a Prime Meridian and a kind of map projection where all that is measured references the point on earth where the temple is located. Later in history the concept of what a cosmography is would closely resemble this theory. This may be one of the hidden tenets of only a few specific structures that were designed with this concept in mind. Though not proven it appears the ancient Greeks possessed this skill and it later became known by the Romans and Byzantines who also built similar structures.

So the true history and purpose of Dome of the Rock and Al Aqsa Mosque itself may represent a secret that the Knights Templar had learned that did not fit the common cannon of history as told by the Latin Church. This concept could also be expanded more importantly to include the nobility of all the Latin Kingdoms that existed at that time. The Latin Kings and their descendants may have also been privy to this newly realized information. Coupled with the spiritual overtones of such places a possible secret of navigation or map making was also included that would have represented a strategic military and economic advantage over those who did not possess this knowledge.

There is also a great deal of inference that Holy Roman Emperors like Charlemagne, Otto, Barbarossa, and Frederick II had also been privy to these secrets starting long before the Templars ever existed. The Templars may represent a way that these ideas were spread to a wider audience of common people. It is not hard to speculate that their realization of this may have also in turn caused them to question other tenets of the way the Latin Church may have presented history to its followers during an era in which the common person couldn’t even read the bible. In addition, history shows us how the Knights Templar were closely associated with stone mason’s guilds that would have also been aware of the true origins of any style or method of architectural arrays present in Jerusalem. Stone masons could have also understood the geometry involved in cartography and geodesy which are also skills valued by astronomers and astrologers. It is clear the Romans and Byzantines with their architectural tradition had a large impact on the history and architecture of the Levant or Holy Land.

This is also interesting in league with the common history of St. Helena Constantine’s mother who spent a great deal of time in the Holy Land collecting Christian relics including the one true cross, the anointing jar of Mary Magdalene and many others. In fact, fragments of the cross and the anointing jar were said to be displayed at the Column of Constantine in Constantinople as placed by the Emperor himself. Both the True Cross or “Holy Rood” and the anointing jar of Mary Magdalene have been the subject of relic and treasure hunters for centuries. Some even claim the anointing jar to be the famous “Holy Grail.” We may also speculate at this time that the Byzantines were aware of how the Christian and Jewish faiths had spread to Ethiopia sparking a curiosity in stories of the Ark of the Covenant and the Queen of Sheba in relation to how the Latin Church viewed these realities.

The importance of items like the Holy Rood and anointing jar of Mary Magdalene are important to pilgrims who may also serve as an example of the common folk of the era. Many of them would value a story associated with the Knights Templar and relics as opposed to a conceptual view of how the architecture on the Temple Mount was actually built by Byzantines and not Muslims as they were likely told. He we may be seeing people like the Knights Templar beginning to realize that parts of Christian history did not necessarily match what they had been taught via the Latin Church and its control of information during that era.

At the same time the men who went to the Holy Land were also being exposed to people who practiced Greek and Coptic forms of the faith that also included different views on the divinity of Christ with regard to his myths and legends. These divergent beliefs of other Christians also likely included a more liberal view of the role of women in matters of faith. This may be the reason why Mary Magdalene is valued in relation to many of the historical stories with regard to the Knights Templar. Some people believed in the divinity of Christ while others viewed him as a gifted human being. Traditionally these alternate Christians would be persecuted and many times wiped out by the Latin Church. Good examples of how that occurred are seen in the sagas of both the Cathars and Arians.

If one wanted to construct an outrageous theory about what the Knights Templar found beneath the Temple Mount there are some ideas that may hold more water given the context of the almost one thousand years of Christianity that had existed prior to the formation of the Knights Templar. This may of course include the influence of Constantine and all the subsequent Byzantine Christian rulers who had ruled the region for vast periods of time. As stated above Justinian I and II seemed to have had an influence in this realm in the form of leaving us clues as to what was really going on. If one examines the art left behind by Justinian I we may be able to see a thread of alternate Christian beliefs. Empress Theodora Justinian’s wife seems to illustrate this concept in specific mosaic murals present in Basilica San Vitale. Her mural in the Baslica San Vitale depicts her with a female priesthood whose tunics are adorned with Coptic tunic patches for example. We may also consider that the exploits of St. Helena would have including finding any objects such as the Ark of the Covenant that were hidden in the region.  

Most accounts of the burial of Constantine have him entombed at the Church of Holy Apostles in Istanbul formerly Constantinople. Interestingly the sarcophagi present at the Church of the Holy Apostles includes some Coptic or Ptolemaic symbols such as the Egyptian Ankh sometimes referred to as the Gnostic Cross. Given this idea no one has ever definitely found which tomb is Constantine’s or if he was actually entombed there. This is simply stated in history. We do know that Constantine had built a crypt for himself in Rome but had used that to inter his mother Helena in and is now known as her burial place. The Mausoleum of St. Helena also strangely resembles the Temple Church in London from plan view and other round churches associated with the Knights Templar which were originally said to be patterned on the Holy Sepulcher in Jerusalem which had originally been built by Constantine in the 4^th century.

This part of the story is now leading us to the possibility that Constantine had been entombed beneath the Temple Mount in a tradition what would spark a great deal of “Man in the Mountain” mythology later in history including the story of one Christian Rosencrantz. If true we may be seeing how Constantine appreciated some of his former pagan faith along with a form of Christianity that took that into account. This may have actually aided in the development of what would later be termed Rosicrucian beliefs. Even today the modern Rosicrucian’s of the American Rosicrucian Order still value Egyptian imagery and concept as part of their belief system. There are also indications that Charlemagne was fully aware of all of this and also explains why and how these beliefs were brought to Europe and developed somewhat prior to the formation of the fabled Knights Templar.

In simple terms the original members of the Knights Templar including Bernard of Clairvaux may have been privy to information from Charlemagne and his descendants that told a different story of Christian history. It is clear that Charlemagne’s Aachen Cathedral may have been in part inspired by the design of the Dome of the Rock. As Holy Roman Emperor Charlemagne was known to have an affinity for Byzantine and Roman culture. He had even brought spoilia or captured elements of architecture from Ravenna for use in his new Cathedral in Aachen. Even the name Aachen infers “the eight.” It is not too far out to speculate that Charlemagne had had an influence on any subsequent alternate Christian belief as the Holy Roman Emperors through history have often found themselves at odds with the hierarchy of the Roman Church. It is interesting to note here that the name “Clairvaux” means “Clear view” as well.

Seborga

One of the factors that clouds the truth about the origins of the Knights Templar lays in a kind of nationalistic misinformation. Each country or culture that the Templars were involved in has a story that may emphasize their role in the creation of such a storied organization. France, England, Scotland, Portugal, and what would become Italy all have versions of Templar history that emphasize their role in the exploits and creation of the Order.

Here we will examine one of those stories in relation to subsequent historical events and people that may indicate a link to the fabled treasure and lost relic legends present at places like Rennes le Chateau, Shugborough Hall and Oak Island Nova Scotia. Many of the fabled treasure or lost relic stories associated with these places have been emphasized or have been popular over a wide span of history. We may even note that the same phenomena came to the Americas after the arrival of the colonial powers in great numbers after the time of Columbus. Later we may see why it was important that Columbus was originally from the Republic of Genoa and sometimes signed his name in Greek. Just as in the case of some of this older mythology the stories in the Americas may have also in part been designed to assign a kind of folklore identity to places that did not include these myths and legends prior.

In 1079 the Principality of Seborga in far western Italy was formed not far from what is today the border of France and the Principality of Monaco. Seborga is said to have been the first and only Cistercian state in history. So here we have an entire yet small country that was totally under the control of the Cistercian Order that was headed and created in part by Bernard of Clairvaux.

These places were also in turn associated with the Republic of Genoa which per chance displays the Cross of St. George on its flag just as the original flag of England does. In fact the flag of England is directly related to that country’s ties to the Republic of Genoa as noted by many sources. England is even said to have paid Genoa a tribute each year to continue using the flag. Seborga may represent an important link in understanding the why’s and how’s this is all true. Though little discussed the Republic of Genoa had a large involvement in the First Crusade and even supplied organizations like the Knights Templar with ships to ferry troops, material, and pilgrims to the Holy Land in subsequent Crusades. This may have a bearing on any theory involving the “lost Templar Fleet” at La Rochelle France.  

The history of Seborga is directly related to the creation of the Knights Templar. According to several sources in 1117  Bernard of Clairvaux who was in part responsible for the creation of the Order arrived in Seborga. At this time along with Abbots Gondemar and Rossal the original members of the order were invested in the Order of the Temple of Solomon and went off to Jerusalem as the Poor Knights of Christ. It appears Seborga was the last place in Europe the Templars visited prior to going to the Holy Land as an official sanctioned Knighthood of the Cistercian Order. If Seborga were indeed a Cistercian State this makes a great deal of sense. It is also said that their time in Seborga included meetings with the Grand Master of the Knights of St. John Hospitalier and a bishop of the Cathars.

In 1127 the original members of the order were then said to have returned to Seborga from the Holy Land with what is termed a “great secret.” At this time it is said that Hugh de Payens was made the Grand Master of the Order of the Temple at that time by Bernard of Clairvaux himself. Here in the obscure history of Seborga we may find some indications that later history supports the notion that this is all true. Sources that tell this version of the origins of the Knights Templar also state that the original members were all made Princes of Seborga at that time.

Here we may speculate as to what the “great secret” was. Is it possible that the secret was comprised of some grand relic that is related to Christianity? Why would this be considered a threat to the church or something that had to remain a secret in the first place. The only conclusion is that the “great secret” was indeed a threat to the Latin Church which in turn had chartered the Knights Templar and Cistercian Order. It may be that no matter what the secret was that they were reluctant to expose this information for fear of destabilizing their own position in the hierarchy of the Church. This may also point to what ever they had found whether it be material or information being of an equal threat. If they had an item or relic of importance that displayed an alternate version of Christianity then either way it would have been deemed to controversial to have exposed to the public or church at that time. Given this it is also possible that this secret had effected the way the people who knew about with regard to their allegiance to the Church or a value of what ever tenet of the Church this had questioned. In many ways this author believes that the answer is told in Ravenna, Italy among the many interesting pieces of artwork and architecture there. Empress Theodora herself seemed to have practiced some alternate form of Coptic beliefs and this could have some relation to any conclusions the Templars came to with regard to the secret they had found.

Some later aspects of history also indicate that Seborga was an important place to the Knights Templar.

“In 1611 the last vow of silence was taken in the presence of Father Cesario da San Paolo, the Grand Master of the Order of St. Bernard. To mark the event every roof in the principality was decorated with the letters C.S. and the Templar Cross. Seborga remained a Cistercian State until 1729 when it was sold to Vittoria Amedeus II of Savoy, Prince of Piedmont and King of Sardinia.”

(The Microstates of Europe: Designer Nations in a Post-Modern World By P. Christiaan Klieger P. 177)

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Later Seborga would be included in the territory of the Republic of Genoa. In fact if we look back to the beginning of the First Crusade we may understand more about how all of this came to be in relation to the Knights Templar. As it turns out several figures from the Republic of Genoa became financiers and backers of the Latin Kings at that time. Members of the Ibelin and Embraciero families also came to control large swaths of the Latin Kingdoms. In this capacity they also became close to the Lusignan family who in turn held the families of de La Roche, Rochefoucauld, and de La Tour as septs or subsets of their families. The traditions of this group of families along with their associations with the Republic of Genoa may be very revealing with regard to any historical truths that have been hidden in association with the Knights Templar. It is clear that any association with the Latin Kings and Knights Templar was valued over a wide swath of history all stemming from the Republic of Genoa and what they helped to accomplish in their role in the creation of the Knights Templar.

These crusaders from Genoa had brought back from the Holy Land what is known of as the Sacro Catino. The Sacro Catino is described alternately as the serving dish that was used to display the head of John the Baptist. Other theories state is was the serving dish used at the last supper. The Sacro Catino most closely resembles what Wolfram Von Eschebach describes as the Holy Grail in his literary work “Parcival.” The Sacro Catino though found to be of a later Roman manufacture serves as an example of the mania for collecting relics many of the Crusaders had. It was not only relics they were interested in but some of them had also recovered great fortunes doing business in the Holy Land while they were there. In addition many of them were in a position to collect taxes from local inhabitants as well as pilgrims. There are also some broad hints that the early banking and credit practices of the Knights Templar was backed by the Republic of Genoa as well.

What we may be seeing here is the true rationale as to why the Templars have a reputation for revolutionizing banking practices in this era. It is no secret that the Republic of Genoa were bankers for many European royal families also over a wide period of history. It is clear that even Queen Isabella of Spain famous for funding the voyages of Columbus had a close banking relationship with the Republic of Genoa as later Queen Elizabeth I of England also did. With regard to England this relationship dates to the fourteenth century when England began to use the same flag as the Republic of Genoa which incidentally includes the Cross of St. George which in turn is directly associated with the Knights Templar. It is also fascinating that Christopher Columbus paid the Republic of Genoa where he was from ten percent of his earnings from his colonial enterprises. It is possible that the exploits of famous Pirate Peter Easton may have even included paying off one of Elizabeth’s debts to the Repulbic of Genoa.

It appears that it is possible that Seborga is an important yet overlooked place associated with both the Cistercian Order, Bernard of Clairvaux, and the very origins of the Knights Templar. It is interesting to speculate what the Templars were told during their time in Seborga prior to their duties in the Holy Land. In addition it is also strange that such a story infers that they returned to Seborga prior to their return to France where many of them were supposed to be from. Then of course the most enigmatic part of this story includes the fact that they returned to Seborga with a great secret just as the other mythology of the Knights Templar suggests. Was this a great secret that included golden riches that once comprised the Temple Treasure as many speculate? While there is nothing to suggest this is true it is clear that this story in relation to Seborga may have been told for a specific purpose. An alternate theory may also involve the Templars having found proof that the stories of Mary Magdalene and Christ having been married were true. This indeed would have represented a threat to the way the Catholic Church views the role of women in that faith.

As in many other historical stories or legends the story of Seborga does indeed factor in the presence of not only a large treasure but also infers that the Templars had hidden eight great treasures throughout the world.  A large incised boulder in Seborga includes many cryptic designs and crude artwork. Legend holds that this large rock in Seborga encodes the locations of the said eight treasures of the Knights Templar. Indeed the boulder most obviously is inscribed with a horizontal numeral 8 that resembles the infinity symbol. The large inscribed letters of “S” and “T” are also obvious in the photographs that are available of this stone. Though this stone is said to be associated with the Knights Templar no one as of yet has noted when it was discovered or if anyone has decoded its strange series of symbols and lines. Is it possible the stories of Oak Island and Rennes le Chateau are included in this tally of eight fabled treasures of the Knights Templar?

Seborga seems to include all of the strange legends and myths told about the Knights Templar in what is said to be a four square kilometer independent principality that didn’t seem to have been owned by any particular entity until the mid eighteenth century when it became part of the Kingdom of Sardinia which in turn eventually became part of the country of Italy.

It would be easy for us to write off the legends of Seborga as nationalist attempts to related the origins of the Knights Templar to this interesting principality. But is there more to the story? Had any subsequent historical events or individuals given us clues as to what was really going on there? Is it possible that later Masonic groups had painted the history of this strange place in a way that was complimentary to their heritage or national identity?

As it turns out two very famous people may be associated with Seborga in the seventeenth century. This would include one of the most famous astronomers in history Giovanni Domenico Cassini and one of the most famous if not successful Pirates to ever be recorded in the pages of history Peter Easton one of the famous Captains of Queen Elizabeth’s! The Cassini Space Probe would be named for Giovanni Cassini. Peter Easton left the maritime waters of what is now Canada with a treasure said to be worth two million English pounds as valued during that era. After the recovery of this massive treasure Easton took it to the very region surrounding Seborga and eventually was made the Marquis of Panclieri which is a title of the House of Savoy. Easton would marry into the famous Grimaldi family that may in reality hold a distant family relation to Sir Francis Bacon himself. Interestingly one of Cassini’s astronomical mentors was also from the same Grimaldi family that Peter Easton had been associated with just a little earlier in history. It is no coincidence that the Pallavicini and Savoy families also had English branches of their familes. This accounts for the famous Savoy Hotel in London.

Amazingly Cassini had been born and raised in the small village of Perinaldo which is part of the Principality of Seborga. Cassini eventually became one of the most sought-after astronomers and astrologers in Europe. His greatest accomplishments came after he was appointed the astronomer of King Louis XIV himself. Cassini’s accomplishments include the establishment of the Paris Meridian as well as the beginning of the famous Cassini map of France. Subsequently three of his descendants would also be directors of the Paris Observatory. Many researchers of odd history also associate the Cassini family with the famous landscape mystery of Rennes le Chateau which in turn is associated with another similar strange mystery in Perillos, France. Perillos is said to have been a located wherer Cassini III had based himself while still working on the Map of France. It appears that some entity tried to infer a kind of New Jerusalem in the landscape around the small village of Perillos that later became associated with the strange goings on at Rennes le Chateau. Of course Rennes le Chateau fits the template of the Arcadian mysteries and is also said to include a large hidden treasure somewhere in the environs of this small village on the northern slopes of the Pyrenees.

Authors Note: This involves the Cremona Document map that displays the longitude for Oak Island in roman numerals. The zero longitude or prime meridian used to plot those numbers was created by Giovanni Cassini. This meridian was also a dividing line between sections of the famous Cassini map of France which is still accurate using modern standards. This meridian had been established long before the Cassini Map of France was finished and was used to do experiments that established the exact size and shape of the earth for the first time thus making navigation and cartography more accurate. So the fact that someone associated Oak Island with this meridian does link us to Cassini. What is interesting about Cassini’s link to Seborga and the legend of the eight Templar Treasues is that Fortress Gisor, Montsegur, and Montserrat are all present on this same meridian or line of longitude. Each of these places had legends of Templar Treasure or the Holy Grail. So something is going on there that needs to be addressed with regard to Oak Island. This may also show that the Cremona Document was not actually produced until after or during the life of Giovanni Cassini. See additional article about the Cremona Document and Francis Bannerman also linked in the index here above. Thank you.)