Welcome to the Website of
Bill Putnam and John Edwin Wood

Have you read Dan Brown's Book The Da Vinci Code?
Have you heard of the Priory of Sion?
Do you know about Rennes-le-Château?
Are you more interested in historical accuracy than myth and legend?
Do you want to know more?

Then this site should have something of interest for you.

Bill Putnam is a retired university archaeologist and John Edwin Wood a retired scientist. Together, over a period of several years, they have investigated the story of the treasure of Rennes-le-Château and the Priory of Sion, using the same rigorous methods as they employed during their professional careers.

They have discovered that there are many inaccuracies in the published books, and a great deal of unsupported speculation. By looking carefully at the original evidence, such as the departmental archives of the Aude, files from the French National Library in Paris, the council records of Rennes-le-Château, and the material evidence of buildings and the local archaeology, they have pieced together an amazing story of invention, deception and commercial exploitation.

Their results are documented in a book, The Treasure of Rennes-le-Château - A Mystery Solved, published by Sutton Publishing Limited in November 2003. A revised paperback edition appeared in July 2005.

Rennes-le-Château is a little village in the south of France, not far from Carcassonne. It was a very poor parish, but in the eighteen nineties the priest Bérenger Saunière came into a lot of money, nobody knew from where. With it he restored his church, built a luxurious new presbytery and a tower which he used as a library. He laid out handsome gardens. The story grew that he had found treasure, but what really was the priest's secret?

The authors reveal the answer in their book, and much more besides.

See also the website of Paul Smith at www.priory-of-sion.com