Evidence the Knights Templar Migrated to Brazil
In the heart of Brazil lies a cave with carvings that may rewrite history. Long before Columbus set foot in the New World, a Medieval society had already taken root. Now researchers are looking for what drove this group across the Atlantic Ocean.
What were they in search of, and what secrets do they now offer the world? A new documentary titled, “The Brazilian Templars Mystery,” sheds light on one of the most overlooked clues to our past and one of the most intriguing and misunderstood cult of warriors — the Knights Templar.
Around 1118 A.D., Hugues de Payens, a French knight, created a military order, along with eight relatives and acquaintances, who became known as the Knights Templar. The order grew rapidly into a large organization of devout Christians during the Middle Ages, charged with an important mission: to protect European travelers on their pilgrimage to the Holy Land and carry out military operations that would ensure a free flow of unhindered pilgrims.
The members of this colorful order of knights swore oaths of poverty and chastity and wore a distinctive badge bearing a red cross on a white mantle. As pilgrimages grew in intensity, so did the numbers of Templars until they became Medieval Christendom’s leading military order.
Over time, the Templars gained a reputation as a wealthy, powerful, and mysterious order that was well-known for their activities as droves of travelers made their way to the holy sites of Jerusalem. When Christian armies wrested control of Jerusalem in 1099 A.D., the Templars opened the floodgates for more and more pilgrims to join.
While the Templars met with some criticism at the outset, everything quickly changed in 1129 A.D., when the warriors were given a blessing by the Catholic Church. Ten years later, Pope Innocent II granted them special rights, including exemption from paying taxes, permission to build their own oratories, and freedom from all authority except that of the Pope. However, nearly 200 years afterward, the Knights Templar fell out of favor, leading the French King Philip IV to not only strip them of their rights and privileges but also to imprison hundreds of their legion in a well-fortified dungeon in Domme, southwestern France.
The Brazilian Templars Mystery is the story of Dr. Kathleen Ball — explorer, researcher, historian, and adventurer — whose travels take her and her friend Adele deep into a land of breathtaking vistas, running waterfalls, and lush mountainous jungle.
As they explore the area, they come upon a stranger who tells them of a mysterious vein of quartz rock stretching for miles nearby. With their curiosities piqued, Bell and her friend set off with the man across the hilly terrain. Soon after, they come across a discovery that could forever transform history’s understanding of the Knights Templar: Finding a nondescript cave in the thick brush, Bell and her companion are struck with images of the Templar’s cross etched into the cave’s walls.
Immediately, Ball connected the engravings in the Brazilian cave with those in a dungeon in France that she visited six years prior, in May 2009. The prison once held hundreds of Knights Templar that were sentenced to death by King Philip IV in the early 1300s. Still adorning the dank, porous walls of the French prison are carved depictions of crosses, male figures, and other images.
Ball took hundreds of photographs, stunned by the eerie environs of the French prison. There was no mistaking the similarities between what Ball found in the Medieval dungeon and what she discovered in Brazil. Both had the mark of the Knights Templar indelibly carved into the walls.
Knowing they had lost their stronghold in the Holy Land and that their entire order was in jeopardy of annihilation, the Knights Templar took drastic measures, leading them to traverse the Atlantic Ocean in search of their own New World.
The Templars arrived in Brazil in the 1200s, centuries before Columbus would announce the discovery of the Americas to Europe. Fleeing across the world to safety, this band of Templars effectively escaped the fates of their comrades at the hand of King Philip IV.
Ball notes, “‘The Templars, as is well known, owned most of the ships during the 12th-through-14th centuries, and commanded the most powerful and organized fighting army and sailing crews, and had amassed a huge fortune and were being persecuted by both King Philip the Fair and the Catholic Church. They needed lands where they could further their agenda.” The biggest mystery still seems to be the how, when, and who of their epic resettlement.
There already exists a tremendous mystery around the Knights Templar and their secret mission to secure their religious practices from persecution from the Church, and Ball uncovers a seemingly impossible trail from France, to Portugal, to the Brazilian wilderness, where the Knights Templar were able to regroup and settle.
Exploring the Ancient Pyramids of the World
If there is one structure that still gives rise to great amounts of interest, speculation and awe, it’s the ancient pyramids.
Oftentimes when we think of the pyramids, we concentrate our attention on the most famous –– the Egyptian pyramids so often featured in movies and travel magazines.
But there are actually many more pyramid locations other than Egypt, including Central America, China and beyond. You may be surprised by the varied places you can find pyramids across the world –– including underwater.
By delving into more pyramid facts, we can unlock more information and understanding about these sizable structures, their prominence throughout the world, and even their relevance for those throughout the world.
What Exactly is a Pyramid?
While you may have initially learned about the pyramid shape in geometry class, architectural pyramids are a bit more complex.
Generally the shape of pyramids include at least three outer triangular surfaces which join together at a point at the top, with the base being any number of shapes with multiple sides. This means that the base of a pyramid could be a square or other polygon.
Pyramids were generally built this way in order to distribute the majority of the weight closer to the ground, meaning less pressure coming from the top. This also allowed the builders of the pyramid to more easily constrict the structures using dry stone construction.
Pyramids in Ancient Civilizations
While the general pyramid structure generally remains the same, each civilization that constructed pyramids did so in a slightly different way. Let’s take a look at a few of the civilizations that lay claim to impressive ancient pyramids, and why each one is worth a closer look.
Egypt
The three famous ancient pyramids found in Egypt are what most people think of when they think of the pyramids. Current Egyptologists believe the Great Pyramid was constructed for Pharaoh Khufu, and is situated the furthest north.
Said to have been constructed in 2551 B.C., it used to measure about 147 meters, it now stands at around 137 meters, and contains more than 2 million blocks. The Great Pyramid was deemed one of the Seven Wonders of the World by the Greeks, and is the only one that has survived to the present day.
Another one of the over 100 pyramids in Egypt is the Pyramid of Djoser, built for his namesake the Pharaoh as a mausoleum. This pyramid is more of a step pyramid design, which involved six successively smaller layers and a flat top.
