America's Stonehenge in NY Times

Nice article in today's NY Times regarding America's Stonehenge site in Salem, NH. For those who haven't visited, I highly recommend it as a site that appears to evidence exploration and settlement of America by ancient European peoples. The winter and summer soltice alignments are amazing, and kids will enjoy the Oracle Chamber in which a priest, hiding prone in a narrow stone chamber, spoke through a stone tube, projecting his voice in a way that it seemed to be coming from the mouth of a sacrificed animal (or human?) lying on a sacrificial stone slab.

http://travel.nytimes.com/2009/12/11/travel/escapes/11stonehenge.html

Groton and Acton Events

I'll be signing copies of Cabal of the Westford Knight at Groton's Main Street Cafe's Author Table on Thursday, 12/10, 10:00-11:00, and at Willow Books in Acton on Saturday, 12/12, 1:00-3:00.

Booksignings, Nashua, NH and Salem, MA

The Barnes & Noble in Nashua has invited me for a booksigning on Thursday, December 3 from 6:00-8:00. And on Saturday, December 5, I'll be at Cornerstone Books in Salem, MA from 1:00-3:00. Always nice to see familiar faces!

Upcoming Events--Middleborough and Nashua

I have a booksigning at the Borders in Nashua, NH this Saturday, 11/21, at 2:00. Also, I'll be speaking at the Middleborough Library Tuesday, 11/17, 6:30.

Nashua Masonic Temple

I'll be giving a talk about pre-Columbian exploration in America at the Masonic Temple in Nashua, NH this Saturday, 11/7, at 5:00. Public is welcome. Address is 196 Main St, Nashua.

Boston Area Library Talks

I'll be speaking at a few Boston area libraries this week:

Westborough, Tu, 10/13, 7:00

Leominster, Th, 10/15, 7:00

Nahant, Sun, 10/18, 3:00

Atlantic Conference

Last August I attended the Atlantic Conference in Nova Scotia and met many of the world's leading experts in the study of pre-Columbian contact in America. This year the conference is being held on-line and is this coming weekend. The list of speakers is very impressive, and I've already learned a ton from watching some of the presentations. The on-line connections are simple to make--just go here:

http://www.atlanticconference.org/

Enjoy!

Stoughton and Westborough, MA Events

I'll be giving a talk about "Cabal of the Westford Knight" at Stoughton Library, Th, 10/1, 7:00. And a booksigning at Tatnuck Books in Westborough, Sat, 10/3, 1:00-3:00.

Cranston, RI Booksigning

I'll be signing copies of Cabal of the Westford Knight at the Cranston, RI Borders, 1:00-3:00, on Saturday, September 26.

History Channel Documentary

The History Channel will be airing a documentary Sunday, 9/20 at 8:00 entitled "Holy Grail in America." The title is overly-sensationalized, but the documentary does a good job focusing on the various sites and artifacts--most of which are discussed in "Cabal of the Westford Knight"--that evidence medieval exploration of America. I am interviewed discussing the Westford Knight and Boat Stone carvings. I think the show will be repeated frequently over the coming months. Good to see this subject getting the attention it deserves!

Dunstable Library 9/17

I'll be discussing the research behind "Cabal of the Westford Knight" at the Dunstable (MA) Library, Thursday, Sept. 17 at 6:30.

Quincy Library; Danvers Library; Braintree B&N

A busy week for appearances:

Tuesday, 8/18, 7:00 for a talk at the Crane Library in Quincy, MA.

Wednesday, 8/19, 7;00 for a talk at the Peabody Institute Library in Danvers, MA.

Thursday, 8/20, 5:00-7:00 for a booksigning at the B&N in Braintree, MA.

Portland, ME and Cranston, RI

I'll be appearing in Portland, Maine and Cranston, Rhode Island this weekend for booksignings. The Portland event is on Friday night, Aug. 14, at 6:00 at Books Etc in Falmouth, ME. On Saturday Aug. 15 I'll be at the Borders in Cranston at 1:00.

Cape Cod Event

I'll be on Cape Cod at the Falmouth Library this Wednesday, August 12, at 7:00 for the "Death and Dessert" mystery panel discussion. This is always a fun, and tasty, event!

Fitchburg Booksigning

I'll be discussing and signing copies of Cabal of the Westford Knight on Saturday, August 8, 2:00-3:30 at the Rabbit Hole Bookstore in Fitchburg, MA.

Talk in Salem, MA

I'll be giving a talk about "Cabal of the Westford Knight" on Friday, 5:00, at the Athanaeum in Salem, MA.

Radio Interview

I was a guest on Rick Osman's Oopa Loopa Cafe radio show last night. This show is devoted to pre-Columbian investigation and research. Some interesting conversation:

http://www.blogtalkradio.com/oopa-loopa-cafe

Vinland Map Declared Authentic

A team of Danish experts has declared the Vinland Map to be authentic. The map, dated circa 1440, depicts North America. This is consistent with the theory that the New World was known to Europeans as well as Norsemen well before Columbus. The map is housed at Yale University and has been long believed to be a fake. Here's the entire article:

http://www.reuters.com/article/scienceNews/idUSTRE56G58320090717

History Channel, 9/21

The History Channel will be airing a documentary on September 21 that tracks much of the research in "Cabal of the Westford Knight." The film crew came to Westford last summer to do interviews and film the local artifacts, which are featured prominently in the documentary. This article, which focuses on the Minnesota side of the story, shows some neat reeanactment scenes.

http://www.chaskaherald.com/news/entertainment/changing-history-controversial-documentary-sold-history-channel-107

Arlington, MA Library Talk

I'll be giving a talk about the artifacts and research behind "Cabal of the Westford Knight" on Tuesday, July 14, at 7:00 at the Robbins Library in Arlington, MA.

Peabody Signing

I'll be signing copies of Cabal of the Westford Knight on Saturday, July 11, 1:00-3:00 at the Barnes & Noble in Peabody, MA.

Book Events

For those looking for Father's Day gifts or just a good beach read, I'll be signing copies of "Cabal of the Westford Knight" in Hyannis, MA this Friday, June 12, at 7:00 at Barnes & Noble. Also in Methuen, MA on Saturday, June 13, 1:00-3:00 at Borders.

Talk and Signings

I'll be giving a talk about the research behind "Cabal of the Westford Knight" at the Chelmsford, MA library this Thursday night, June 4, at 7:00. On Friday, I'll be signing copies of the book at the Barnes & Noble in Boston (Prudential Ctr) from noon to 2:00 before heading up to Portland, ME for a signing at Longfellow Books at 7:00. Then on Saturday I'll be signing at Barnes & Noble in Holyoke, MA, 1:00-2:30.

Book Events

I'll be discussing and signing Cabal of the Westford Knight at a couple of book stores this weekend: 1) Friday, May 22, 7:00-9:00, Barnes & Noble, Braintree, MA; 2) Saturday, May 23, 11:00-1:00, Fox Tale Books, New Durham, NH.

Booksignings May 15-17

I'll be signing copies of Cabal of the Westford Knight Friday, May 15, 7:00-9:00 at Barnes in Noble in Burlington, MA; Saturday, May 16, 1:00-3:00 at Borders in Shrewsbury, MA; and Sunday, May 17, 1:00-3:00 at Cornerstone Books, Salem, MA.

Booksigning in Sharon

I'll be signing copies of Cabal of the Westford Knight this Saturday, May 9, 1:00-3:00 at Annie's Book Stop in Sharon, MA.

Millbury, MA--Booksigning

I'll be signing copies of Cabal of the Westford Knight at the Barnes & Noble in Millbury, MA on Saturday, 3:00-5:00.

Booksigning--Portsmouth, NH Barnes & Noble

I'll be signing copies of "Cabal of the Westford Knight" this Sunday, April 26, 3:00-5:00 at the Barnes & Noble in Newington (Portsmouth), NH.

Nashua Barnes & Noble--Talk and Booksigning

I'll be doing a talk followed by a booksigning for "Cabal of the Westford Knight" at the Barnes & Noble in Nashua this Saturday, April 18, 1:00-2:30. As always, it's nice to see familiar faces.

Manchester and Laconia, NH--Booksignings

I'll be doing a talk and booksigning at the Barnes & Noble in Manchester, NH on Friday, April 10, 6:00-8:00. Also a booksigning at Sundial Shop in Laconia, NH on Saturday, April 11, 11:00-1:00.

Templars and Shroud of Turin

Interesting story yesterday that the Vatican has confirmed the Knights Templar brought the Shroud of Turin out of the Middle East during medieval times and kept custody of it for over a century in France. This is consitent with what many believe: that the Templars took many religious artifacts from Jerusalem during the Crusades and brought them back to Europe for "safe keeping." Here's a link to the story:
http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/comment/faith/article6040521.ece

"Trigrammatron"

For those who have read "Cabal of the Westford Knight," much is made at the end of the book of the possibility that the Tetragrammatron (the 4-letter Hebrew name of God which most know as Yahweh) may be a feminine word. This dovetails with the theory that the Knights Templar may have run afoul of the Church during medieval times because they believed in and worshiped the "feminine" aspect of the Godhead and rejected the strict patriarchal Church teachings. See the attached image, taken at Notre Dame Basilica in Montreal by Tim Suess, showing what appears to be the Tetragrammatron inside a triangle, framed by rays of light commonly denoting divinity. This image is directly overhead in the pulpit in the middle of the nave. Upon closer inspection, the Tetragrammatron is actually a Trimgrammatron, with the first letter ("Yud" in Hebrew) omitted. Without the "Yud," the word reads "Chava"--or "Eve" in English. Importantly, this Basilica is believed to have been built by Colonial-era followers of the Templar traditions. Could it be that the Basilica's Templar builders purposely portrayed the divine in a feminine form?

Booksignings/Talks--Exeter, NH and Westford, MA

I'll be doing a talk and signing books this weekend in 2 places: Water Street Books in Exeter, NH on Saturday at 7:00, and the Westford (MA) Museum on Sunday at 2:00.

Coast to Coast Radio--Scott Wolter

Scott Wolter, who is probably the world's leading expert on medieval exploration of America, will be speaking about the Kensington Rune Stone and related sites/artifacts in New England on Coast to Coast Radio. The show airs early this Monday morning, 1:00-4:00 EST. In Massachusetts, it is aired on 680 AM WRKO. If you happen to be awake, Scott is fascinating to listen to.

Nashua (NH) Barnes & Noble--Booksigning

Booksigning this Sunday, March 22, 2:00-4:00 at the Barnes & Noble in Nashua, NH.

Talks/Booksignings--Weston and Cape Cod

I have a couple of talks followed by booksignings this weekend: 1) Saturday, 3/14, 2:00 at Dragon Books in Weston, MA and 2) Sunday, 3/15, 2:00 at Titcomb's Bookshop on Cape Cod (E Sandwich, MA).

Booksigning--Framingham, MA

I'll be signing copies of "Cabal of the Westford Knight" at the Barnes & Noble in Framingham, MA on Friday, March 6, 7:00-9:00.

Booksigning--Middletown, RI

I'll be signing copies of "Cabal of the Westford Knight: Templars at the Newport Tower" at the Barnes & Noble in Middletown (Newport), RI on Saturday, Feb. 28, 2:00-4:00.

Newport Tower & Orkney Islands Connection

Working from the premise that Prince Henry Sinclair was involved in the construction of the Newport Tower, it stands to reason that the architecture of the Tower should have similarities to that of northern Scotland, where Prince Henry ruled. Other researchers have identified the unit of measurement used to build the Tower as the Scottish "ell," and have also noted that the Tower's double flue system in the fireplace is consistent with medieval Scottish architecture. This above image of ruins of a Cistercian church at Eynhallow in the Orkney Islands (on the left), side-by-side with a Tower archway, is another eye-popping, vivid illustration of the probable Scottish origin for the Tower architecture. To make the connection to Prince Henry and the Sinclair clan even stronger, the Abbot in charge of Eynhallow in the mid-12th-century was Abbot Lawrence, previously known as Henry Sinclair of Rye.

Film Documentary

Committee Films is producing a documentary that is based on much of the same research I used in writing "Cabal of the Westford Knight." The producers were chosen as the "Emerging Producers of the Year" at the National Association of Television Program Executives (NATPE) conference in Las Vegas based on their work on this film. Check out the trailer here: http://www.committeefilms.com/secrethistory_trailer2.html
It blew my away--I can see why it won 1st prize! The film will be out sometime this summer or fall.

"Cabal of the Westford Knight" is now live

As of this week, "Cabal of the Westford Knight" is now live on Amazon.

http://www.amazon.com/Cabal-Westford-Knight-Templars-Newport/dp/0977389871/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1228244647&sr=1-1

Some nice reviews so far, which is gratifying. Even more exciting is that a number of fellow researchers from around the country have contacted me to weigh in with different observations and commentary. It seems like many people are working on proving pre-Columbian contact, all coming at it from a different angle, but all apparently meeting at the same place: How could there be absolutely no trans-Atlantic contact for 500 years between the time of the Vikings and Columbus?