stv - Workers have discovered what are thought to be human remains at Rosslyn Chapel - the world-renowned religious site made famous by The Da Vinci Code.
STV News can reveal the bones were discovered at the chapel in Midlothian by workers carrying out conservation work at the world-famous heritage centre.
A spokesperson for Lothian and Borders Police confirmed the discovery, but said it was not being treated as a crime.
The famous building, built in 1446, has long been linked with a role in the history of the Freemasons and the Knights Templar. Most notably, it has also suggested as the burial place of the Holy Grail – the cup used by Christ at The Last Supper – or even the resting place of the mummified head of Jesus Christ.
Following the release of Dan Brown’s hit book The Da Vinci Code in 2003, the chapel was thrown into the worldwide spotlight. The work was then made into a film starring Tom Hanks, who filmed at the chapel for some scenes in the film. The Hollywood legend subsequently made a cash donation to the restoration and conservation of the chapel.
The bones, which were found on February 19, have now been removed from the site to be examined by archaeologists to discover their age, type and if they are human or animal. They were discovered under a slab while a new heating system was being installed inside the chapel. There is no record of a burial site in this particular area of the chapel.
Rosslyn Chapel has declined to comment on the discovery.
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ROSSLYN CHAPEL AND THE TEMPLARS
As with many other aspects of this mystery, the importance of Rosslyn Chapel is unclear and seems to have been obfuscated, unfortunately. Its owners, the Sinclairs, claim to be the hereditary patrons of Scottish Freemasonry, to have explored the New World (particularly Nova Scotia and Oak Island) a century before Colombus, and to be connected to the Templars through marriage and descent. Some of this appears to be in doubt, because it's based on the work of Jacobite historian Father Hay, who used documents that were lost in a fire... in any case, we do know William Sinclair did build Rosslyn in the 1400s, it does contain very unusual carvings (particularly people who look like Templars engaging in things that seem like Masonic rituals), and it does incorporate unusual geometry. (SOME say that this geometry replicates the Temple of Solomon.) Pierre Plantard seems to have changed his name to "de St-Clair" in order to claim affiliation with the Sinclairs of Scotland.
Rosslyn, Gisors, Rennes-les-Chateau, Rennes-les-Bains, and Mont St. Michel are some places mentioned in the documents by name. Stenay (Satanicum) was Dagobert II's capitol, and the current home of Le Cercle Dagobert. Guidebooks suggest it is infamous for falling frogs. Mont St. Michel, according to the "prieure documents," was where "Et in Arcadia Ego" was first uttered, by Abbot Robert de Torigny in 1210. Author John Michell claims a "St. Michael Ley" runs between Mont St. Michel and St. Michael's Mount in Cornwall. St. Michael's Mount is surrounded by the sea but the "Atlantis" legends of Ys and Lyonesse claim that it is sitting in a place where there was once dry land, which has now become submerged.NOTE: there have been reports over the years of the 'White Lady', an apparition that frequents the chapel...Lon
Source: www.fiu.edu