THE HOLY GRAIL IS ONE of the most powerful myths in Western Culture. At the centre of this myth is the story of the chalice containing the Holy Blood of Christ, shed when Longinus pierced his side at the crucifixion. The search for the Grail has inspired artists and mystics for hundreds of years. Many churches and cathedrals were built on sites that claimed their part in this sacred mystery.

IMBUED WITH THE SPIRIT OF the ancient quest and aware of its power as an antidote to our modern spiritual malaise, Ean and Deike Begg travelled throughout Europe, researching sites of the Holy Grail, the Precious Blood and their associated myths. This book is an illustrated account of their search and a practical, informative guidebook for travellers and seekers. It is full of fascinating information, such as the name of the Spanish cathedral that holds the cup of the Last Supper, the story of how a fig tree carried the Precious Blood to France and the secrets of the Grail castles of Germany.

'I believe that Ean and Deike Begg have done something of great importance in exploring the myth of the Holy Grail that played such a vital part in the deeps of Jung's spirit, and in re-establishing how now it is still one of the most dynamic elements in the search of the lost and bewildered modern soul for wholeness.'-Sir Laurens van der Post

'Deike and Ean Begg have revitalized the idea of pilgrimage.'-Michael Baigent

'An exemplary and vividly written guide to the many strange and beautiful sites associated with the Grail quest throughout Europe.'-Count Nikolai Tolstoy

Why are more than five hundred of the world's Madonna images black or dark? Why is so little known about them? Black Virgins?a resurfacing of the powerful pagan goddesses of sexuality, the underworld, and earth wisdom?they are symbols of power and majesty, the other side of the traditional Madonna's virginity or tender maternity. They personify the Holy Grail and the Ark of the Covenant in a quest for lost feminine wisdom and the search for soul.