Back in the 18th century when Île de France was owned by France, the French gave the island their laws. And when the British took it over (and renamed it ‘Mauritius’) at the start of the 19th century, they left (as I understand it, please correct me if I’m wrong) almost all existing laws intact.
Further: because of all the destructive treasure hunting activity that went on in Mauritius in the early 20th century (imagine large groups of overexcited treasure hunters with hundreds of sticks of dynamite, and you’re basically there), additional modern legislation has been passed forbidding treasure hunting: or, rather, making it almost impossible for anyone to benefit from deliberately going treasure hunting.
All which has the side effect of making the Republic of Mauritius – arguably one of the best places in the world to go treasure hunting, in terms of artifacts that are probably buried there (e.g. pirate treasure) – one of the worst places to benefit from being a treasure hunter. Because if you do find something that you went looking for, you then automatically lose the right to benefit from finding it. And so Mauritian treasure hunting lore is full of stories of people not just finding treasure, but also stealing that treasure away to sell via the black market.
In a very significant way, this has had (I think) the effect of criminalizing treasure hunting. Hence the only clear way you can honestly benefit from finding lost treasure in Mauritius is if you literally stumble upon it while doing something else. (Article 716 of the Mauritian Civil Code says that, in this case, 50% should go to the accidental discoverers, and 50% to the Mauritian state.)
What The Two Hikers Found
Back in August 2018, the ‘something else’ that two ecologists were busy doing (while definitely not looking for pirate treasure) was hiking around the island of Rodrigues. (Just so you know, this is according to the affidavit the two filed with Juristconsult Chambers, which L’Express had seen.)
The first thing they did was stumble upon three nearby rock faces with curious signs and marks, and took some photographs. However, when they (later on) enlarged those photos, it became quickly clear to them that the marks were not natural marks, but were instead man-made ones (made using a chisel). Hence they decided to return to take a closer look.
On their next hike to the same place, one of the two squeezed into the narrow gap between the three rock faces and took photographs of the cavity behind them. This time when enlarged, their new photographs revealed (drum roll, please) a rusty chest, decayed rope from a pulley setup, a metal rod that had fallen from the chest, and finally (leaving the best until last) a goat’s skull mounted on a shiny metal body, that might possibly even be gold.
As far as I can tell, this was as far as our two intrepid (and as-yet-not-named-in-public) Mauritian eco-hikers went: that is, they didn’t try to excavate the find (no, not even with dynamite, even if that has become something of a ridiculous Mauritian tradition).
For a bit of local colour, I found this 1:38-long video (that doesn’t, to be honest, show a great deal of interest, apart from blurry shots of the cavity, queues of people driving to visit the site, plus excited locals being interviewed) on MBC here:
What has become clear this week is that the site (in the East of Rodrigues) is very much as the two hikers described it, and that what they found there is indeed almost certainly pirate treasure, all of which the local administration now has soldiers guarding 24/7. Which is nice.
Treasure Finding (Not Treasure Hunting)
Because the two ecologists found their (probable) pirate treasure while hiking (i.e. they weren’t looking for it), this almost certainly counts, under Mauritian law, as a genuine treasure-finding scenario (as opposed to a treasure-hunting scenario).
But here’s where the whole story gets more than a tad political.
By way of background: though Rodrigues was taken over by the British at around the same time as Mauritius, it was made a district of the Republic of Mauritius in 1968 (when Mauritius gained independence); and was then made an ‘autonomously administered region’ within the Republic of Mauritius (though under Mauritian law) in 2002. So even though it’s still part of Mauritius, its politicians like to think of themselves as largely independent of Mauritius.
Hence you can probably guess how the three-way battle is now unfolding. On the one hand, you have the two ecologist hikers, for whom Lady Luck (and indeed Mauritian law) currently seems to be on their side. On the other hand you have the Mauritian central government who is (by way of its own law) the find’s other 50% beneficiary. And on the third hand (just to muck up the whole hand-based thing), you have pretty much everyone in Rodrigues’ autonomous administration, who feel that Mauritian law is clearly an ass, because Rodrigues should obviously benefit from this whole affair, even if the Mauritian treasure-finding legal computer says no.
And so many Rodrigues politicians are now desperately spinning round in circles trying to concoct quasi-legal ways by which ‘their’ pirate treasure can become less of a Mauritian cash cow and more of a Rodriguan regional asset. The word on everyone’s lips seems to be “patrimoine” (patrimony), though the specific details of how that can be mobilized remain rather more than a little challenging. For example, there is talk of applying to make the cave a UNESCO site of special historical significance, even if this perhaps seems a tad optimistic for what seems to be little more than an unexcavated rocky hole in the ground.
How will this whole affair now play out? Even though SAJ (better known as Rodrigues’ Ministre Mentor Sir Anerood Jugnauth) is keen to stress that the Law is King of this particular jungle, it would seem that there are plenty of legal eagles hovering above this piratical carcass, eager to pick the bones clean for themselves. Anyone who would happily bet on the ultimate outcome at this stage would, in my opinion, be fairly unwise.
Pirate Treasures of the Indian Ocean?
It should be no surprise that virtually every news report so far has name-checked Olivier Levasseur (AKA “La Buse“) and the mysterious cryptogram speculatively linked to him by Charles de la Roncière (and since then by several generations of gullible treasure hunters), all of which I’ve covered numerous times on Cipher Mysteries. (e.g. here, here, here, here, etc).
Some reports have further tried linking the story to Bernardin Nageon de l’Estang, with many claiming (about as incorrectly as can be) that Bernardin was some kind of royal pirate treasure collector (not even close, sorry, and where does that misinformation even come from?) *sigh* (Again, all of which I’ve covered too many times to even link here.)
But in fact, arguably the most genuinely interesting (and apparently unasked) question here is whether any of the curious marks that the two hikers found link up in any way with other stories of curious marks that the Indian Ocean pirate treasure literature abounds with. Most notably, Le Clézio’s “Voyage à Rodrigues” (why do I seem to be the only person commenting on this that mentions Le Clézio? How bizarre is that?) has plenty of specific interest here, but once La Buse gets mentioned, everyone’s minds seem to turn to mush, which is a shame and a half.
For me, there’s a huge amount of historical and research interest to be had here, but the reportage surrounding the story so far just isn’t cutting it yet. I normally like L’Express, but their plucky journalists only seem to have got their teeth into 10% of the (much bigger) story so far. Let’s hope things starts to pick up soon.
Of course, if anyone out there wants to fly me to Rodrigues (purely in the interests of historical research, you understand), I’m sure I could be reasonably accommodating. It really wouldn’t take me that long to pack my factor 50 and special pack of piña colada straws research laptop, I swear. 😉
Dear Nick,
I’m an old fan of yours, and a nephew informed me yesterday that some treasure had been found in Rodrigues. He knew I would be interested as I had written a book on the Dodo, followed by one on the Solitaire, and also a book on Pirates of Mauritius and Rodrigues. I went onto Google and found your informative article, written with your usual sense of humour. I’m pleased to see that you have ruled out La Buse which must be the only treasure site not attributed to him. I now live in Mauritius after working here for sometime with the British Council. If you do come I will treat you to a drink at the Gymkhana Club which has generated its own history since 1844. Keep up the good work.
Best wishes, Alan.
dear nick, could you please remove the innacuracies, else put on the sources one by one? Also, it’s a chest, nobody knows if it is a ‘pirate treasure’ yet
Arveen: there is indeed a lot of hype and overexcitement combined with a dearth of factuality. My posts up until now have tried to reflect the media’s coverage, but my next post will be more about what I think and how I feel about it all (which is extremely pessimistic, perhaps unsurprisingly).
Surely if somebody is so smart to eventually figure out La Buse’s cryptogram he or she must benifit from it.So do I understand clearly that if that happens an a person can locate the treasure he gets nothing according to law?But if you by accident stumble over it you get 50%.Say for instance I figure out his Cryptogram,what must I do? Tell the university or Government just to find out I broke the law and secondly I benifit nothing from it.Doesn’t La Buse’s words before he died say.Whoever decifer my cryptogram owns the treasure.The government overides his testament in other words.Or will a person benifit if you can locate the treasure and inform the authorities first before you go looking? Can somebody please explain the logic of this law to.me?
Frederik: please don’t believe even 5% of all the “La Buse cryptogram” bullshit on the Internet and elsewhere. Relying on that would be like going to a history conference having only ever read Chariots of the Gods.
There’s a high chance that this was a genuine (if miscopied and badly misunderstood) cryptogram, but everything else now attached to it seems to be faked-up treasure-hunter backfill, sorry. And no treasure!
@ Frederick
It depends on which country you are in. Then it depends on how old the treasure is and whether it is robbery. After 100 years it will be decided how relevant it is for mankind and whether it really belongs in a museum. Many countries only refund the material and not the art value. If you find a 2000 year old statue made of stone, you are probably unlucky. Copper would still be at least 50.
I think you come from Germany, the federal states decide. ( Bundesländer )
You really dont believe in the cryptogram hey Nick, the cryptogram and the contents of it are real. Who it really belonged to is the real question. But i guarantee you the cryptogram is a real document that points to a considerable cache of treasure.
Ty: as you already know, I really don’t believe that “une paire de pijon” etc leads to some fantastical pirate treasure cache. But don’t let me stop you, you have your own life to waste etc. 😉
My reply is a little late lol, never got a notification that you replied.
You are correct how on earth can a pair of Pijons lead you to the treasure Island. It appears Labuse got you confused as was his plan. The crypto references physical landmarks of what to look for. He used alot of homonyms in the crypto. Google what the French word Pijon means… It means to dupe someone, to trick them. So from the first line he is confusing his readers by duping them in looking for Pijons. With substitution cipher, you substitute the “j” from Pijon with a “t” and what do you get Une Paire De Piton Triskele, find a pair of pitons in three. If you want a pic of the island, let me know I will send it along with all the 17 lines of the crypto and corresponding clues, even the dog having pity. All pragmatic research and evidence.
So, Ty, I’m sure the cryptogram is real in fact I know it is. Some of your decrypting seems to be going in the right direction but you need more help in deciphering the decrypted clues. Every time you go in the wrong direction and make no sense others will not follow or understand. As it is, many don’t even understand what Olivier is trying to say and that is one of the biggest problem. Nick created this site so people could help people in decrypting or decipher information that has never been defined. A couple of his members, including Nick, have brought to light several cipher clues. It is hard to get passed the cipher clues because you have to make sense of where Olivier is taking you and without the knowledge of Olivier most people will not be able to help you. The only one that can help you passed this point is someone who has studied the pirate in question. One who knows how pirates operate and are familiar with their ways. A pirate that is family with the area and understand why the pirate did what he done. There is three things that you have to know which is the history, the place, and the pirate.the treasure map is going to take you through three levels of cipher. The cryptogram, the ciphertext, and the symbolic cipher map. I hunt for treasures from the comfort of my own home and I have everything that I need to know. Nick and friends can help you get passed the first level or sure but it takes a treasure hunter to get you to the next one. Then there is one more that will lead you to the place and there is a high possibility that when you get there you will miss the spot because you don’t understand what Une paire de pijon triskele! Mean! Why do I give away this secret? Be cause you have been in the area and probably will again! And your going to need a pirate like me to get you there if you don’t figure everything out with what I just said. Cruise-Wilkins is never going to find the treasure because his in the wrong place. Trust me
Hi everybody,
The treasure found in Rodrigues was one of the 9 Butin’s treasure!
It was the treasure Le Clezio’s grandfather looked for in the early 19th century.
The deciphering of the cryptogram did not lead them to the treasure but documents of Nageon de Lestang’s testament …
@Nick. You should believe in the cryptogram… it is so incredible and bluffing..
@Ramiro valdez the treasure is not in Seychelles. OK for the pigeons but the pigeons triskele????!!!! What is a symbolic cypher map?
@Nick 4 levels of encryption:
1- the deciphering of the templar encryption cryptogram
2- the understanding of the translated cryptogram into latin alphabet/french
3- the finding of a real map on the cryptogram
4- the finding of the treasure location but there is not a x on the map??
Regards
Un autre vOilier
Dear Nick,
I’m an old fan of yours, and a nephew informed me yesterday that some treasure had been found in Rodrigues. He knew I would be interested as I had written a book on the Dodo, followed by one on the Solitaire, and also a book on Pirates of Mauritius and Rodrigues. I went onto Google and found your informative article, written with your usual sense of humour. I’m pleased to see that you have ruled out La Buse which must be the only treasure site not attributed to him. I now live in Mauritius after working here for sometime with the British Council. If you do come I will treat you to a drink at the Gymkhana Club which has generated its own history since 1844. Keep up the good work.
Best wishes, Alan.
dear nick, could you please remove the innacuracies, else put on the sources one by one? Also, it’s a chest, nobody knows if it is a ‘pirate treasure’ yet
Arveen: there is indeed a lot of hype and overexcitement combined with a dearth of factuality. My posts up until now have tried to reflect the media’s coverage, but my next post will be more about what I think and how I feel about it all (which is extremely pessimistic, perhaps unsurprisingly).
And I look forward to your post Nick.
Surely if somebody is so smart to eventually figure out La Buse’s cryptogram he or she must benifit from it.So do I understand clearly that if that happens an a person can locate the treasure he gets nothing according to law?But if you by accident stumble over it you get 50%.Say for instance I figure out his Cryptogram,what must I do? Tell the university or Government just to find out I broke the law and secondly I benifit nothing from it.Doesn’t La Buse’s words before he died say.Whoever decifer my cryptogram owns the treasure.The government overides his testament in other words.Or will a person benifit if you can locate the treasure and inform the authorities first before you go looking? Can somebody please explain the logic of this law to.me?
Frederik: please don’t believe even 5% of all the “La Buse cryptogram” bullshit on the Internet and elsewhere. Relying on that would be like going to a history conference having only ever read Chariots of the Gods.
There’s a high chance that this was a genuine (if miscopied and badly misunderstood) cryptogram, but everything else now attached to it seems to be faked-up treasure-hunter backfill, sorry. And no treasure!
@ Frederick
It depends on which country you are in. Then it depends on how old the treasure is and whether it is robbery. After 100 years it will be decided how relevant it is for mankind and whether it really belongs in a museum. Many countries only refund the material and not the art value. If you find a 2000 year old statue made of stone, you are probably unlucky. Copper would still be at least 50.
I think you come from Germany, the federal states decide. ( Bundesländer )
You really dont believe in the cryptogram hey Nick, the cryptogram and the contents of it are real. Who it really belonged to is the real question. But i guarantee you the cryptogram is a real document that points to a considerable cache of treasure.
Ty: as you already know, I really don’t believe that “une paire de pijon” etc leads to some fantastical pirate treasure cache. But don’t let me stop you, you have your own life to waste etc. 😉
My reply is a little late lol, never got a notification that you replied.
You are correct how on earth can a pair of Pijons lead you to the treasure Island. It appears Labuse got you confused as was his plan. The crypto references physical landmarks of what to look for. He used alot of homonyms in the crypto. Google what the French word Pijon means… It means to dupe someone, to trick them. So from the first line he is confusing his readers by duping them in looking for Pijons. With substitution cipher, you substitute the “j” from Pijon with a “t” and what do you get Une Paire De Piton Triskele, find a pair of pitons in three. If you want a pic of the island, let me know I will send it along with all the 17 lines of the crypto and corresponding clues, even the dog having pity. All pragmatic research and evidence.
Hello mr Ty, am interested with your concern,can you tell me more or send me the details please
Thank you
[email protected]
TY I would also be interested to receive an email please [email protected]
So, Ty, I’m sure the cryptogram is real in fact I know it is. Some of your decrypting seems to be going in the right direction but you need more help in deciphering the decrypted clues. Every time you go in the wrong direction and make no sense others will not follow or understand. As it is, many don’t even understand what Olivier is trying to say and that is one of the biggest problem. Nick created this site so people could help people in decrypting or decipher information that has never been defined. A couple of his members, including Nick, have brought to light several cipher clues. It is hard to get passed the cipher clues because you have to make sense of where Olivier is taking you and without the knowledge of Olivier most people will not be able to help you. The only one that can help you passed this point is someone who has studied the pirate in question. One who knows how pirates operate and are familiar with their ways. A pirate that is family with the area and understand why the pirate did what he done. There is three things that you have to know which is the history, the place, and the pirate.the treasure map is going to take you through three levels of cipher. The cryptogram, the ciphertext, and the symbolic cipher map. I hunt for treasures from the comfort of my own home and I have everything that I need to know. Nick and friends can help you get passed the first level or sure but it takes a treasure hunter to get you to the next one. Then there is one more that will lead you to the place and there is a high possibility that when you get there you will miss the spot because you don’t understand what Une paire de pijon triskele! Mean! Why do I give away this secret? Be cause you have been in the area and probably will again! And your going to need a pirate like me to get you there if you don’t figure everything out with what I just said. Cruise-Wilkins is never going to find the treasure because his in the wrong place. Trust me
Hi everybody,
The treasure found in Rodrigues was one of the 9 Butin’s treasure!
It was the treasure Le Clezio’s grandfather looked for in the early 19th century.
The deciphering of the cryptogram did not lead them to the treasure but documents of Nageon de Lestang’s testament …
@Nick. You should believe in the cryptogram… it is so incredible and bluffing..
@Ramiro valdez the treasure is not in Seychelles. OK for the pigeons but the pigeons triskele????!!!! What is a symbolic cypher map?
@Nick 4 levels of encryption:
1- the deciphering of the templar encryption cryptogram
2- the understanding of the translated cryptogram into latin alphabet/french
3- the finding of a real map on the cryptogram
4- the finding of the treasure location but there is not a x on the map??
Regards
Un autre vOilier
Ty please send me those also please thank you. I believe I can help with the rest of the cypher also. [email protected]