THE RENNES-LE-CHATEAU CHURCH

HOLY WATER STOUP

The Holy Water Stoup is situated just inside the entrance to the Rennes-le-Chateau church dedicated to Mary Magdalene.

It is made up of two main parts:

A Devil or a Demon at the bottom. Who supports a shell that holds the Holy Water. Though there is no proof that it was Saunière's intention, his Demon is now commonly referred to as Asmodeus, the legendary guardian of Solomon's Treasure.

Four Angels each indicating one point of a cross, at the top. Religious visitors, whose faith warrants it, will dip a finger in the Holy water and make the sign of the cross. As mimicked by the four angels.

Between these two pieces of artwork are two Basilisks with a round plaque in the center between them. B . S has been inscribed on this plaque.

This artwork, as well as most of the others in the church, were made by Giscard, a religious statuary manufacturer from Toulouse.

It seem l'Abbe Sauniere may have seen this Basilisk design, either in Gisgcard's catalogue or at his workshop, and then decided to use it as a decorative support for his four angels.

The bottom Basilisk design appears on l'Abbe Sauniere's Holy Water stoup and the top design appears on the Stations of the Cross in a church in Tarn, Haute-Garonne, France. As you can see by the above comparison, ignoring the colour difference, they are identical. (image acknowlagement to François Pous)

Tarn de Garonne Stations of the Cross 14 (image acknowlagement to François Pous)

The Basilisk plaque on the Station of the Cross frame has been used to identify the station's number. Sauniere had BS put on his.

Headless Basilisks (image acknowlagement to Rat Scabies)

In 19?? Rat Scabies visited Rennes-le-Chateau and filmed in the church. The footage of the Basilisks on the Holy Water Stoup reveals there heads were missing, perhaps stolen or removed until they could be fixed more securely. It is not known if the ones we see today are replacements or the originals.