From prehistoric times to the Roman occupation

The site of Rennes-le-Château has been occupied by man since the most distant times. The discovery of piles of bones and skulls in various spots near the village and on the surrounding plateau indicates that the locality was inhabited long before the Roman occupation of Gaul.

Prehistoric carved stone This sandstone block was found at the foot of the Rennes plateau and is today on display near the Town Hall: carved into its surface are a dozen or so cruciform symbols.

Did you know…? In 1984 a number of dinosaur eggs were uncovered during excavations by a team led by Gérard Breton at the foot of the Rennes plateau: they have attracted much scientific interest.

Documents

"Mémoire sur deux roues de char antique qui sont dans le Cabinet de l’Académie",
in Mémoires de l’Académie de Toulouse, vol. II, 1784. 

Alexandre du Mège de la Haye, Archéologie Pyrénéenne,
Delboy Libraire éditeur, Toulouse 1862. ›  

R. Chirent, "Rennes-le-Château abrite un homme fossile"
in La Dépêche du Midi, 16.3.1966. ›  

Antoine Fagès, "Découvertes d’un ossuaire à Rennes-le-Château"
in Bulletin de la Société d’Etudes Scientifiques de l’Aude, Vol.18, 1907, pp. XLVI-XLVII. ›  

Albert Grenier, P.-M. Duval, "Rennes-les-Bains" in Carte Archéologique de la Gaule romaine pour le département de l’Aude (fascicule XII), Union académique internationale, 1959. ›  

Further reading

Kenneth Carpenter, Eggs, Nests, and Baby Dinosaurs (1999), p. 12.

Jean Fourié, Rennes-le-Château : L’histoire de Rennes-le-Château
antérieure à 1789, Jean Bardou, 1984. ›  

Breton G, Fournier R, Watt J-P. 1986. "Le lieu de ponte de dinosaures de Rennes-le-Chateau (Aude); Premiers resultats de la campagne de fouilles 1984". Annal. Mus. Havre 32:1–13. 

Homepage - Welcome to the museum From prehistoric times to the Roman occupation From the Visigothic to the Carolingian era The Middle Ages The church of Rennes-le-Château The Carolingian pillar The Knights’ Stone Rennes and its seigneurs - The Hautpoul family Legends of buried treasure Marie de Nègre d’Ables (1714–1781) The village of Rennes in Saunière’s day The Saunière family Bérenger Saunière, priest An eventful start First building works and discoveries Completion of work in the church Secular building projects The small world of Father Saunière Years of darkness – The court case The other Father Saunière The final years The Domain without Father Saunière The priest’s treasure The first books and ‘gold fever’ Treasure theories An ingenious treasure trail The Priory of Sion A secret linked to the church Mary Magdalene and her mystery The tomb of the Lords of Rennes Father Saunière’s singular colleagues A few words by way of conclusion

© 2009-2013 All rights reserved • Texts Antoine Captier, Christian Doumergue, Mariano Tomatis

Contributors Corjan De Raaf, Patrick Mensior, Octonovo, Morgan Roussel, Paul Saussez, Marcus Williamson.

Translation Karen McDermott Art Director Mariano Tomatis