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By Caleb McClain
“Find my treasure, the one who may understand it!” That’s what the annuls of history claim Olivier Levasseur’s last words to be as he threw his necklace into the crowd gathered around the gallows on his execution day. Legend has it that the necklace contained a small piece of parchment with a 17-line cryptogram written on it. Unfortunately, the cryptogram was hidden away for 200 years until it was published by a French historian in 1934, sparking a global treasure hunt. But what was this treasure? To understand that we must go back to the beginning.
Olivier Levasseur is somewhat a ghost in history, with no one knowing even the year he was born. What we do know is that his family was wealthy, and he gained a letter of marque from King Louis XIV during the War of Spanish Succession. When the war ended, privateers were to return home. But surrender his life on the high seas? Never! Instead, Levasseur joined forces with Benjamin Hornigold and Blackbeard at the Republic of Pirates in Nassau. It was in these early years that Levasseur became known as “La Buse” (or “the buzzard”) because he was so quick to swoop in on attack.
La Buse split away from Hornigold and Teach, partnering with various other buccaneer gangs over the next few years. During this time, he slowly worked down the coast of South America, across the Atlantic to hit wealthy slaving ports in Benin, then on to Madagascar where they targeted wealthy Muslims on their pilgrimages to Mecca. While La Buse occasionally made a good score, he had several major setbacks along the way, including losing 80 men and a ship in a storm, narrowly escaping with his life, and losing sight in one eye from an injury. But, to bastardize an old saying, even a bling buzzard finds a carcass every now and then.
One of several pirate flags attributed to Olivier Levasseur
In April 1721, La Buse captured the Portuguese galleon Nossa Senhora do Cabo without any fight. The ship was returning from Goa to Portugal, carrying immense amounts of wealth, including the Fiery Cross of Goa, a gold and jewel-encrusted cross reported to be 7-feet tall, requiring three men to even move it. Modern estimations of the treasure are anywhere from $140 million to several billion dollars. Regardless, it was enough to retire on.
For much of the next decade, La Buse was a ghost once again. In 1730, he was captured in Madagascar and taken to Réunion Island to be executed, where it is claimed he threw the cryptogram into the crowd. As for his treasure from Nossa Senhora do Cabo? It was never found.
When the cryptogram was finally published and deciphered, it read:
Next, take a pair of pigeons.
Remove their heads and entrails.
Take a spoonful of honey and, using the entrails, prepare a poultice.
Apply this mixture to the affected area.
If you wish to cast a spell, take two broken tiles found on a path; the roof must be only half-covered.
To prevent a woman from entering your home, simply bar the door.
To exact revenge, or to cast a binding spell:
To make a dog bite someone, throw some seawater onto the person.
To prevent a woman from having an affair or sleeping with another man:
You must cast a spell to create a rift between them.
Pure gibberish. While many have set out in search for Levasseur’s millions, many more believe the cryptogram to be a either a modern hoax or a cruel joke by La Buse, himself. Which of these it is, I cannot say. On one hand, Charles de La Roncière, the well-respected historian who published the cryptogram, certainly believed the provenance of it, and archeologists have recently confirmed the wreckage of the Nossa Senhora do Cabo; that certainly lends itself to authenticity. On the other hand, a 200-year gap in history is enough to create doubt. What I do know is that somewhere there lies a treasure of innumerable worth. If the hundreds who have set out to find it gain the adventure of a lifetime searching for it, then perhaps that’s the greatest treasure La Buse could have left behind.
The post Scavenging the Buzzard’s Treasure appeared first on Field Ethos.
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“Find my treasure, the one who may understand it!” That’s what the annuls of history claim Olivier Levasseur’s last words to be as he threw his necklace into the crowd gathered around the gallows on his execution day. Legend has it that the necklace contained a small piece of parchment with a 17-line cryptogram written on it. Unfortunately, the cryptogram was hidden away for 200 years until it was published by a French historian in 1934, sparking a global treasure hunt. But what was this treasure? To understand that we must go back to the beginning.
Olivier Levasseur is somewhat a ghost in history, with no one knowing even the year he was born. What we do know is that his family was wealthy, and he gained a letter of marque from King Louis XIV during the War of Spanish Succession. When the war ended, privateers were to return home. But surrender his life on the high seas? Never! Instead, Levasseur joined forces with Benjamin Hornigold and Blackbeard at the Republic of Pirates in Nassau. It was in these early years that Levasseur became known as “La Buse” (or “the buzzard”) because he was so quick to swoop in on attack.
Olivier Levasseur — The Buzzard
La Buse split away from Hornigold and Teach, partnering with various other buccaneer gangs over the next few years. During this time, he slowly worked down the coast of South America, across the Atlantic to hit wealthy slaving ports in Benin, then on to Madagascar where they targeted wealthy Muslims on their pilgrimages to Mecca. While La Buse occasionally made a good score, he had several major setbacks along the way, including losing 80 men and a ship in a storm, narrowly escaping with his life, and losing sight in one eye from an injury. But, to bastardize an old saying, even a bling buzzard finds a carcass every now and then.
One of several pirate flags attributed to Olivier Levasseur
In April 1721, La Buse captured the Portuguese galleon Nossa Senhora do Cabo without any fight. The ship was returning from Goa to Portugal, carrying immense amounts of wealth, including the Fiery Cross of Goa, a gold and jewel-encrusted cross reported to be 7-feet tall, requiring three men to even move it. Modern estimations of the treasure are anywhere from $140 million to several billion dollars. Regardless, it was enough to retire on.
For much of the next decade, La Buse was a ghost once again. In 1730, he was captured in Madagascar and taken to Réunion Island to be executed, where it is claimed he threw the cryptogram into the crowd. As for his treasure from Nossa Senhora do Cabo? It was never found.
The Buzzard’s Treasure
When the cryptogram was finally published and deciphered, it read:
Next, take a pair of pigeons.
Remove their heads and entrails.
Take a spoonful of honey and, using the entrails, prepare a poultice.
Apply this mixture to the affected area.
If you wish to cast a spell, take two broken tiles found on a path; the roof must be only half-covered.
To prevent a woman from entering your home, simply bar the door.
To exact revenge, or to cast a binding spell:
To make a dog bite someone, throw some seawater onto the person.
To prevent a woman from having an affair or sleeping with another man:
You must cast a spell to create a rift between them.
Pure gibberish. While many have set out in search for Levasseur’s millions, many more believe the cryptogram to be a either a modern hoax or a cruel joke by La Buse, himself. Which of these it is, I cannot say. On one hand, Charles de La Roncière, the well-respected historian who published the cryptogram, certainly believed the provenance of it, and archeologists have recently confirmed the wreckage of the Nossa Senhora do Cabo; that certainly lends itself to authenticity. On the other hand, a 200-year gap in history is enough to create doubt. What I do know is that somewhere there lies a treasure of innumerable worth. If the hundreds who have set out to find it gain the adventure of a lifetime searching for it, then perhaps that’s the greatest treasure La Buse could have left behind.
The post Scavenging the Buzzard’s Treasure appeared first on Field Ethos.
Continue reading...
