Interesting.
Apparently, they were expected.
揋erard,?he said to Vilamur, 搊nce we arrive up at the abbey, I will need your help to gain access. They will ignore my requests, but they would be hard-pressed to keep the doors locked to their archbishop.?
He抎 intentionally not said much on the trip. Nor had Vilamur said much hours ago on the nocturnal return to the rectory, after they抎 dealt with de Foix. He decided that perhaps some explanation was now in order. 揑 told you yesterday that popes were fools. But these maidens? They are anything but fools. Which is why they have remained hidden for so long.?
揌ow did you know they exist? To know to even look for them??
He was waiting for the others to arrive, so he decided a bit more explanation was in order. Especially to a new ally.
揃y the thirteenth century and the Albigensian Crusade, Marian worship was firmly entrenched within the Church. She had her backstory, feast days, and countless churches dedicated to her. She possessed a cult of worship and had become a vital part of our religion. But there抯 also The Testimony of John, which contradicted one of the basic tenets of the Blessed Virgin. She did not ascend body and soul into heaven. She died and was buried here on earth. Rome has long been aware of les Vautours and their connection to a possible tomb for Mary. How? I have no idea. That information has been lost. But during the Albigensian Crusade, Pope Innocent III instructed the Dominicans to find them. They tried, repeatedly, but were not successful. They did manage to locate a copy of The Testimony of John, which was hidden away in the Vatican.?He paused. 揟hen, in 1933, a new document was found in the Vatican archives. An odd manuscript. But telling. Would you like to read it??
Vilamur nodded.
He stepped back to the car, found the iPad in his briefcase, and opened to the file. He handed it to Vilamur. 揟his is a translation into English. It came to us in Flemish. We are not aware of its origins, but the best guess is it was written by Lambert, Jan van Eyck抯 brother, who completed Jan抯 unfinished works after Jan抯 death in 1441.?
He watched as Vilamur read from the screen.
Praise and glory for the work,
Of paintings made by the one called Jan.
Born in Maaseik, the Flemish Apelles.
Study diligently, understand, and you will see.
Through his eye for detail we see his patience.
And it is just as clear that he has a grand memory.
Come, you art lovers of all sorts,
And look at this precious treasure of paint.
You will deem Saint Peter抯 wealth as nothing
Because this is the true heavenly treasure.
Come, but with diligence and wisdom,
And pay attention to all things, as you will notice
That there is a line to abundancy
Because even a maid wants to make
A best impression and be praised.
Who wouldn抰 be rejoiced by those devotees,
Since all could learn some purity.
Notice how triumphant those judges ride
Toward kings, princes, counts and lords.
Notice the faces, along with the maid,
All things can be seen, toward and past her
And how well you will understand
Where she rests in peace.
Look how sound and honorable are the parts,
Of elders and clergy, standing and lying.
Here you see nothing but extraordinary,
Examples of all that is good.
But among the judges one sees the princely painters,
All the faces dissimilar, decorated with gracefulness
And without error, save for two.
His flower shot early off this world.
The one who came from Maaseik.
His life ended in Bruges.
But he will live for eternity
Among the holy.
揓an van Eyck died in July 1441. He was buried in the graveyard of the Cathedral of St. Donatian in Bruges,?Fuentes said to Vilamur. 揑n 1442 his brother Lambert had the body exhumed and placed inside the cathedral. But when that tomb was opened in the mid-eighteenth century it was found to be empty.?
揧ou think he抯 here? Among the maidens??
揟hat is hard to say. But, if so, then this poem would be authentic. Before today, we had nowhere to look to verify.?
揂nd that抯 why the Just Judges was so important??
揅orrect. This poem clearly references the altarpiece and that particular panel. It implies that the Just Judges can lead you to the Vultures. We were actively investigating that possibility in 1934, but the panel was stolen before we could examine it.?
揥hy was Rome so intent on it??
揚ius XI was planning to declare the Assumption of Mary as dogma. But he wanted the matter of les Vautours, and what they may or may not possess, resolved. So the commission began an active investigation, involving both The Testimony of John and the poem.?