Author, researcher, speaker. My first book, The Map and the Manuscript: Journeys in the Mysteries of the Two Rennes, was published by Ignotum Press in 2022. I blog here on topics connected with the book, including landscape alignments, ancient sites, France, the Pyrenees, Jean Richer, Rennes-les-Bains, alchemy, geometry, Jung, Gérard de Nerval, Le Serpent Rouge, the Affair of Rennes, and more.
Welcome to my new blog
Beyond The Map and the Manuscript:A blog about the book. And beyond.It's now been just over a year since the publication of The Map and the Manuscript: Journeys in the Mysteries of the Two Rennes, and a lot has happened in that time. It's been quite a rollercoaster ride. I've been really thrilled with the reaction the book has received from many readers. At the same time, it's probably fair to say that, from some quarters, the response has not been quite what I had expected, or hoped. Which is fine, and also fascinating. All in all, it has been an incredibly satisfying experience to watch the book make its way into the world and find its readers. I decided to start this blog as a place to write more on topics from the book and to present further developments in my work. This will include new and updated material, as well as different perspectives on the subject matter from other sources. There might be some surprises too. Maybe I'll post on some of the easter eggs hidden in the book, we will see. I also hope to discuss some of the feedback, questions and comments received from readers. There have been some excellent opportunities offered to me to talk about the book and my work in various forums, and I have been very grateful for these. The first was an online zoom discussion for Sky High Creations in November 2022. This was followed by a talk at Miles Johnston's BASES conference at the end of 2022. I was really pleased to be invited also to speak at Megalithomania 2023 in Glastonbury in May. A video of this presentation will be available on line shortly. Megalithomania was a natural venue for the material in The Map and the Manuscript. Many speakers over the years have presented discussions on solstice alignments and zodiacs in ancient landscape, so it was a pleasure to be able to talk about the ideas in my book to such a receptive audience. In March, Graham Hancock's website selected me as Author of the Month, and ran a 5,000 word article which I wrote for the occasion. More recently, I was interviewed by Rick Palmer from the Some Other Sphere podcast, and we spent an hour discussing topics from the book. There was also a two part discussion on The Map and the Manuscript at Mysterious Universe podcast (here and here). Perhaps I will discuss in more detail in a subsequent post the curious (non)-reaction, in general, of the Rennes-le-Château affair community, but there has been one notable exception. Lara Martinez of the Rhedesium blog and Journal has been an unstinting supporter of the book since reading it soon after publication. She has written some very kind posts about it. Thanks Lara! So it's off and running. I hope to write one or two posts per week, but we will see how that goes. I hope you enjoy the blog, and thank you for joining me on this journey beyond The Map and the Manuscript. |
The Map and the Manuscript: Journeys in the Mysteries of the Two Rennes Available in Kindle, paperback, hardback and ePub. Now available in ePub: click here to purchase and download. |
Beyond the Map and the Manuscript
Author, researcher, speaker. My first book, The Map and the Manuscript: Journeys in the Mysteries of the Two Rennes, was published by Ignotum Press in 2022. I blog here on topics connected with the book, including landscape alignments, ancient sites, France, the Pyrenees, Jean Richer, Rennes-les-Bains, alchemy, geometry, Jung, Gérard de Nerval, Le Serpent Rouge, the Affair of Rennes, and more.
Beyond the Map and the Manuscript Revisiting the Château d'Arques: Geometry in Stone Château d'Arques, Arques, Aude, France. Shown above is the main tower of the château, an imposing tall square structure with impressive turrets on the corners, aligned to the cardinal directions. The photograph is taken looking north; the side of the tower facing the viewer, with the door, is the south side of the tower. Image credit: Cathar Wars (@CatharWars) at https://x.com/CatharWars The Château d'Arques...
Beyond the Map and the Manuscript Clive Prince's review of The Map and the Manuscript Illustration accompanying the Clive Prince article at Magonia Review. This week, Magonia Review has published a review of The Map and the Manuscript. It was written by Clive Prince, author with Lynn Picknett of many well- known books, including The Sion Revelation, which remains one of the best overviews of the affair of Rennes in print. The review is very positive. Prince has clearly read the book...
Beyond the Map and the Manuscript The Alignments of Brigantia Published in 1976, Guy Ragland Phillips' Brigantia: A Mysteriography, is a special book. It's a wide-ranging compendium of folk knowledge and oral history about the land fomerly known as Brigantia, now corresponding roughly to northern England. Yet such a description barely does it justice. What makes this book one of my favourites is that it records traditions and local lore which have surely all but passed away now. It is truly a...