Costly Absolution

October 25, 2007

Finally back to my Florence home after an exhausting day at the Vatican's secret archives.

The centerpiece of the meeting was the 300-page Processus Contra Templarios (Trial against the Templars). Shown in its full glory, the document clears the good name of the Knights Templar by revealing that Pope Clement V initially absolved the medieval order of heresy.

Measuring more than 5 metres, the forgotten Chinon parchment chronicles the trial of the knights, the accusations of heresy, the Templars' defense, and the Pope absolution. Here is my detailed report and video on the rediscovery.

The press conference was interesting and stressing at the same time. It's not easy to get your work done at the Vatican. You need special permissions for everything - even to shoot interviews at a press meeting.

What struck me is the Vatican's decision to publish the reproductions of the ancient documents in a very exclusive and expensive edition - only 799 copies at €5900 (US$8377) apiece.

Sure, the life-sized replicas are printed on a special synthetic parchement. They are enfolded in a soft leather case, which is almost the size of a small dinner table, and come complete with a faithful replica of the original papal wax seal.

According to the prefect of the Vatican Secret Archives, Msgr. Sergio Pagano, "the book is a work of art and it's costly because of its own nature."

"The archive follows a humble style," Msgr. Pagano said. "We are among the few who believe that books are published to be read and studied, not to be presented."

In fact, most copies have been already reserved by sheiks, fashion designers, and "internationally famous" people.

"I hope that in a few months the Vatican will publish a more affordable edition. Many scholars could really use these documents in their studies, but cannot afford such exclusive publication," Franco Cardini, a medieval historian, told me.

At last, you might think that a copy of the precious publication was given free of charge to Vatican archives researcher Barbara Frale, who rediscovered the parchment after it had been wrongly catalogued for more than 300 years. Nope.

"After all, I would not know where to put it," Frale told me. "The only place I can think of is a box under my bed, but I think it would not be the best company to sleep with."