French village fears hunters will return for mythical gems

A TINY French village has woken up to discover a gaping hole in front of its church, the latest of many dug by seekers of a mythical treasure trove.

Rennes-le-château has a population of only 70, but the story that a priest buried a trove of gold coins and gems there at the end of the 19th century has spread across France.

The village near Carcassonne, 55 miles south-west of the southern city of Toulouse, became a magnet for treasure-hunters after several books recounted versions of the myth.

The mayor was forced to ban unauthorised digging as far back as 1960 after complaints that Rennes-le-château was starting to look “like Swiss cheese” – but to little effect.

François-bérenger Saunière, the priest, is also credited with a role in the conspiracy theories raised in The Da Vinci Code, Dan Brown’s best-seller. Jacques Saunière, one of the novel’s main characters, is named after him.

Fewer treasure-hunters have been sighted in recent years, but the hole has raised fears that it is about to be swamped by a new wave of unwanted guests.

According to a popular version of the myth, Saunière discovered treasure buried by the Bishop of Alet as he fled to Spain during the French Revolution.

Saunière also renovated the Church of Saint Mary Magdalene, which dates from the 10th or 11th century. Some believe that the priest himself buried what was left in the church grounds.

However, most historians concluded that the treasure never existed and the priest raised money by stealing donations and charging for church services.

Some say that after his death in 1917 he was punished by being transformed into the stone figure of a horned devil supporting a basin in the church.