O.U.O.S.V.A.V.V (NEW CONCEPTS)

[Angus McOatup]

These letters appear on a monument in the grounds of Shugborough Hall, Staffordshire, England, the home of the Earls of Lichfield (circa 1748-63).

O.U.O.S.V.A.V.V

The monument is a sculptural reconstruction of Nicolas Poussin's painting Et in Arcadia Ego (itself a most mysterious painting).

The question is: Whatever does it all mean?

The monument and the remodelling of Shugborough was paid for by Admiral George Anson who, on a world voyage, managed to capture a Manila treasure ship containing 1,313,843 gold pieces of eight. Thus making him very rich..... mmm?

[Mick Harper]

I play a teensy part in the Rennes-le-Chateau mystery of which Shugborough is itself a mainly unconsidered offshoot (via Et in Arcadia Ego). The priest who supposedly discovered the treasure, Henri Boudet, wrote a very odd book called Le Vrai Langue Celtique, the true language of France.

Apart from being odd in itself (perhaps someone could read the English translation now it's out http://www.scribd.com/doc/50133581/Henri-Boudet-Le-Vrai-Langue-Celtique-English-Translation),
the book (I think) advances the odd notion that Celtic (ie Breton) was the original language of Gaul. What's odd about this is that orthodoxy happens to believe this to be the case too, so why write a revisionist book claiming it to be so? (Unless it wasn't orthodoxy in the nineteenth century ... I don't know.)

But then M J Harper came along and in THOBR proved that French is the true language of France thereby rendering Boudet's book once more revisionist.

I cannot guarantee the accuracy of the above, it's been a long time since I wallowed in the Great Mystery of Rennes-le-Chateau. Including the greatest mystery of all: is it all a bunch of bollocks?

[Angus McOatup]

[Angus McOatup]

[Mick Harper]

Angus, there's no need to paste up all these quotes. We can follow the argument without them.

[Angus McOatup]

sorry mick , but the Boudet book has been electronically translated ie it's pretty much gobbledegook.

[Mick Harper]

And we have nobody here who speaks French except Hatty but she dislikes all the Holy Blood stuff and Ishmael who's a French Canadian but will never admit it. However, I seem to recall when I ploughed through some version of Boudet there's not much there.

Perhaps I didn't realise I was reading an electronic version ... are you sure ... I seem to recall corresponding with the translator years ago. But, still, the whole thing is a little spooky.

[Angus McOatup]

it appears very dilettante....making Hollingshead's History appear a model of clarity.

If the 'English' translator was a Frenchman, that would explain the strange syntax?