The Templar Meridians by William F. Mann is an interesting, if dry, book that goes in to some detail about what exactly the Templar treasure was.. In Mann’s opinion the true treasure of the Templars was knowledge.. Knowledge of navigation and metalurgy more than anything else..

The Templars relearned lost knowledge when they occupied Solomon’s temples.. They aquired the ability to travel great distances, across oceans, with a great degree of accuracy.. Enough accuracy that it was quite possible for them to travel back and forth between Europe and what would become Canada as early as the 1350s.. Yes, more than 100 years before the fabled adventure of Columbus.. This ability to travel back and forth gave the Templars, and many that followed them, access to the great wealth of North America, iron ores, gold, silver, and much more.. This was their true wealth in the opinion of Mann..

The book goes a long way toward tieing loose threads together with documented acheological information, painting, writings, and a whole lot of “if”.. I’m a firm believer that there were quite a few visitors to the North Americas long before the Columbus “discovery”, but Mann puts a lot of effort in to making the argument that North America was intended to become the new Jerusalem.. This is where I have trouble following the book and the strong scent of “if” starts to roll off of it..

All in all it’s a good read, but as I said, a bit dry.. If you are a fan of the Templars and exploration of the new world, you may find the ties between the Templars, the Masons, and the new and old worlds raised by this book entertaining..

~Fey