1500 year old Christian church in Conneticut?

For anyone who enjoys archeology and the stories behind it. Even though this story is now many years old, I haven't found it posted before.

It's from American Archeology Magazine Vol.8 Issue 54:


The Article can be read HERE.

Brief :

In the stillness of Cockaponset State Forest, southern Connecticut, near the town of Guilford, masterfully carved from solid rock, stands North America’s oldest Christian church. Recent epigraphic evidence found here suggests that it is 1500 years old, and linked to a voyage of Christian Byzantine monks who fled from North Africa during the 5th Century, in the wake of the Vandal invasions. Greek and North African inscriptions, Greek cupule patterns in the form of Chrismons (monograms of Christ), baptismal fonts, a cathedra or throne, candelabras and an altar have been found at the site.

About the author:

John Gallager is a historical detective. He has a B.A. in history from Fordham University, New York City, NY. He is the former epigrapher consultant for the American Institute of Archaeological Research in New Hampshire. He has written several articles on the early explorations into North America.

Very nice find I am a believer myself...Christ is on his way back my friend

reply to post by monkcaw

If true, then I wonder what ever happened to them? They probably just assimilated into the Native American population. Anyways, this story if true has HUGE implications for historians.

good find ....I want to go read that article and do some thinking....S&F I find it strange this is not well known ,although there may be indications within Native stories ....peace

reply to post by monkcaw


this actually makes me think, even though its a little more north, that oakes island is hiding the arc of the covenant. good find.

reply to post by Myendica


Oak Island is certainly hiding something! In my opinion that is one of the most mysterious places on Earth. For me it ranks right up there with Easter Island and the Great Pyramids. The complexity of the protections in place there are amazing!!

It is becoming more and more clear that Christopher Columbus was seriously behind in his "discovery" of the American continent. In fact, he may be a representative of the last civilization on Earth to realize there was a continent here.

Very interesting, thanks for the post.

reply to post by harrytuttle


My question too, what happened to them? Did they return to their own country after it's troubles? Did they get slaughtered or die from disease?

You'd think that if they stuck around there would be deeper sign of civilization. I suspect they waited out the turmoil in their homeland and retuned years later.

reply to post by Myendica


Oak island is definitely a weird place but as for the Ark of the Covenant....you don't think the Copts in Ethiopia have it?

i love it when there are new finds that mess up historys timeline as we know it!

Well, if Jews fleeing Jerusalem after the Second Revolt in 35 c.e. could accidentally get lost at sea on a Phoenician style ship that was rounding the Rock of Gibraltar and later make shore in Tennessee, then I don't see why it's not possible for Christian Monks to have accidentally got lost at sea and made it to the New World a scant few centuries later.

Although Roman and Greek ships from ancient times would not have likely survived the journey it's already been proven that earlier Phoenician and Egyptian ships were entirely capable of making a Trans-Atlantic voyage.

So let's see if we have this straight:

1st Century - Jewish Accidental Tourists
5th Century - Christian Monk Accidental Tourists on the East Coast and Chinese Buddhist Accidental Tourists on the West Coast.
6th Century - St. Brendan the Navigator of Clonfort (most likely lost *AND* drunk)
10th Century - Moorish Explorers
11th Century - Viking Settlers
12th Century - British Explorer-Prince Madoc (although likely a fictitious response to Viking boasting).
13th Century - Knights Templar Navigators
14th Century - Mali Explorers
15th Century - Columbus rediscovers what everyone else apparently already knew about.

reply to post by fraterormus


Looks about right to me.

I have a friend that teaches High School History. I think I will leak your list to some of her students! That should make for an interesting class session! I am entirely certain that she has never heard of any of those previous discoveries!

reply to post by fraterormus


I have seen some of those before, but not all of them. I don't know where he gets it from, but my dad claims that Columbus "found" America because he read about its existence in a book. If any of the groups you list ever made a return journey, I could see that being the case.

What happened to them? This is the most likely scenario if they didn't return. They were Byzantine monks, celibate, cloistered monks. They probably said to the locals "just ignore us. We won't interfere with your life-choices" they lived a happy if not self-mortified life of the bloodless martyrs of the time, and then died off.

No women, no lineage, and no one to replace the dead. I doubt they would have converted to many locals at that time.

I wonder if they left any writings hidden in their church that would confirm or deny my theory. Hmm?

Please do not further investgate Oakes Island. It took me ages to dig that pit and lay the traps. If my wife finds out there is where my insurance papers are, I am as good as dead.

On a more serious note though, I think that over history, many civilisatioins have stumbled across the American continent and acurately mapped it. There is a theory that Columbus already had a map and knew exactly where he was going.

Originally posted by monkcaw
For anyone who enjoys archeology and the stories behind it. Even though this story is now many years old, I haven't found it posted before.
It's from American Archeology Magazine Vol.8 Issue 54:
The Article can be read HERE.
Brief :

In the stillness of Cockaponset State Forest, southern Connecticut, near the town of Guilford, masterfully carved from solid rock, stands North America’s oldest Christian church. Recent epigraphic evidence found here suggests that it is 1500 years old, and linked to a voyage of Christian Byzantine monks who fled from North Africa during the 5th Century, in the wake of the Vandal invasions. Greek and North African inscriptions, Greek cupule patterns in the form of Chrismons (monograms of Christ), baptismal fonts, a cathedra or throne, candelabras and an altar have been found at the site.

About the author:

John Gallager is a historical detective. He has a B.A. in history from Fordham University, New York City, NY. He is the former epigrapher consultant for the American Institute of Archaeological Research in New Hampshire. He has written several articles on the early explorations into North America.

Couple of things here...first, I have been unable to find the American Institute of Archaeological Research but I think I smell the legacy of Barry Fell.
Secondly, while your link says American Archeology, it takes us to Ancient American, which is kinda like mixing up the National Enquirer with National Geographic in terms of credibility.
Finally, not much hint of peer review going on so I wouldn't bet the farm just yet.

If I may be allowed, while pieces like this are excellent for inspiration, they are just starting points in research...not the end product. So, in the words of the prophet:
Don't step in that, Wilbur...

Originally posted by DragonsDemesne

I have seen some of those before, but not all of them. I don't know where he gets it from, but my dad claims that Columbus "found" America because he read about its existence in a book. If any of the groups you list ever made a return journey, I could see that being the case.

Your dad knows his stuff.

Columbus wasn't going on blind-faith but had charts. It is doubtful that Queen Isabella and King Ferdinand II would have sponsored and paid for his expedition if he didn't have a compelling argument with which to convince them (although granted, whatever Columbus had to convince them wasn't sufficient enough to convince the Portuguese, Genovese, Venetian, or English Courts).

Columbus's grandfather was a captain (some accounts say an Admiral) for the Knights of Christ (the Knights Templar who changed their name to avoid persecution after the Inquisition in 1308). It is believed that Columbus had used his grandfather's charts (remember, the Knights Templar, who invented modern Navigation, had journeyed to the New World and back in the 13th century).

Now this isn't the only possible source for Columbus having obtained maps of the New World.

His brother Bartolomeo was a cartographer in Lisbon, and had access to many different charts that were brought in to be copied by various merchants and navies. He could have compiled a composite chart from numerous sources which he had given to Columbus. Bartolomeo did lobby various courts on Columbus's behalf, which shows a cooperative and collaborative effort going on there.

The most important connection that lends credence to the possibility that Columbus was using pre-existing charts was the chart drafted by the Zeno brothers who accompanied Prince Henry St. Clair (the later of which was the Grand Master of the Knights of Christ) to Newfoundland and Nova Scotia in 1380. This chart had been passed down to the School of Navigation that was founded at Cape St. Vincent in 1433 (a copy of the Zeno brothers chart made by one of their grandsons is still extant today, proving this not to be just a legend), which just so happens to be where Columbus's ship sank in 1476 when he happened upon a sea battle between the French and Portuguese navies. This is further reinforced when Columbus embarked upon a Trading expedition to Iceland in 1477, less than a year later, most likely to determine the veracity of the Zeno brothers chart.

Also, Spain had just kicked the last of the Moors out of Spain at the time of Columbus. Remember, Moorish Explorers had supposedly been to the New World in the 10th century (a fact that is recounted in 10th century Chinese books, of all places!). There is a distinct possibility that amongst the spoils of war that were taken from the Spanish Moors was a chart of their expedition that either fell into the hands of Columbus himself, the cartography shop where his brother Bartolomeo worked, or into the hands of King Ferdinand II. Of course, putting faith in a 500 year old chart that belonged to your enemy is a definite gamble, but it is yet another possible source for Columbus having had access to charts of the New World.

So, although we do not have an extant copy of such a "secret" chart that Columbus may have possessed, there are at least four plausible explanations of how he would have happened to already had gained possession of such a chart to the New World prior to his attempt to gain sponsorship for an expedition. It is far more likely than not that he did indeed have a such a "secret" chart or map.

Originally posted by JohnnyCanuck
Finally, not much hint of peer review going on so I wouldn't bet the farm just yet.

If I may be allowed, while pieces like this are excellent for inspiration, they are just starting points in research...not the end product. So, in the words of the prophet:
Don't step in that, Wilbur...

That is always sagacious advice.

For example, the archaeological discovery of the first century Jewish settlement in Tennessee was originally published in Biblical Archaeology Review, which is a very credible source, but very politically biased publication (which means you sometimes have to take it with a grain of salt). Ever since the discovery came under peer review no credible archaeologist will touch the subject with a 10 foot pole lest they put their academic credibility in jeopardy. It is far easier (and safer) to refute findings than to actually study them. To my knowledge, no further study has been done on these artifacts, as many just assume it to be a hoax rather than acknowledge the more likelier possibility that it was a random fluke of history and a genuine discovery in the consideration that there is no evidence to reinforce the assumption that it is a hoax.

Likewise, history is replete with examples of frauds, swindlers and con-artists that fabricate legends and artifacts. Their works are sometimes later uncovered by archeologists who, if they were to accept their findings at face-value, would have egg on their face and be out of a job. One such forgery that was unearthed was a Rosetta-like stone that was discovered in Arizona (or was it New Mexico) back in the mid-1970s that contained Ancient Egyptian, Ancient Mayan, Cherokee and several other Native American languages. The initial discovery set the media ablaze however just a short time later it was discovered to be a 19th century forgery made by a Mormon con-artist. The embarrassment was so great that I can't even find reference to this artifact anymore anywhere. I only have my childhood memory of the story to go on. Archaeologists might be great at digging things up but they are even better at burying their darker, more scandalous embarrassments they'd rather forget and keep secret as if it never happened.

reply to post by monkcaw


I have encountered nothing but circular redirects and misdirected links for your thread. The Connecticut State Parks and Forests have no listings for this 6th century church. I respectfully request that you provide a working link to the correct destination where you found this information. John Gallager is a historical detective. He has a B.A. in history from Fordham University, New York City, NY. He is the former epigrapher consultant for the American Institute of Archaeological Research in New Hampshire. He has written several articles on the early explorations into North America.

Originally posted by debris765nju
He is the former epigrapher consultant for the American Institute of Archaeological Research in New Hampshire. He has written several articles on the early explorations into North America.

Yes, as was said. I have been unable to find this organisation...could you give it a try, please?

Originally posted by fraterormus
The most important connection that lends credence to the possibility that Columbus was using pre-existing charts was the chart drafted by the Zeno brothers who accompanied Prince Henry St. Clair (the later of which was the Grand Master of the Knights of Christ) to Newfoundland and Nova Scotia in 1380.

Proof, please?