The Money Pit 9-Levels of Questions Interview: Corjan Mol

Welcome to our “MONEY PIT 9 LEVELS OF QUESTIONS INTERVIEW: CORJAN MOL.” Corjan is a distinguished Oak Island researcher, theorist and author based in the Netherlands. He has featured in several podcasts, television documentaries and TV shows, including “The Curse of Oak Island”, where he has been a recurring guest since 2019. Recently, Corjan has scouted various places in Europe for the Oak Island team. And without further ado, here is Corjan:

Q. What brought you to Oak Island for the first time?

A. I received an e-mail in July 2019 from what was described as a docuseries who where looking for an expert on French classical painter Nicolas Poussin and esotericism. I had studied Poussin for a long time as part of my research into the mystery of Rennes-le-Château, and I had published quite a bit about him. I was curious to find out which docuseries was interested in him so I replied. About a week later I was invited for a video call to be interviewed about Poussin. When I entered the call and the camera opened up on the other side, to my surprise, I was in the Oak Island war room with half the team sitting there. I knew the series but I had never made the connection between the island and things that happened in Europe, let alone Nicolas Poussin.

We had a great conversation in all sorts of directions and towards the end of the session I was asked if I saw a connection between Poussin and Oak Island, to which I answered ‘no’. Still, since this 17th century painter kept popping up in theories they were presented with, I agreed I’d have a look. I then realized that Nova Scotia had first been named ‘Arcadia’ by Giovanni de Verrazano in 1525, roughly 100 years before Poussin would receive a commission to create a painting featuring a tomb with that very word inscribed. We had another call on a Friday night and 2 hours later I had a ticket to Halifax. That Sunday, I first drove across the Oak Island causeway.

Q. Can you tell us about how you and Christopher Morford met?

A. I met Chris on Oak Island, the Monday after I arrived there. We were introduced by Rick Lagina who asked us to sit down together and compare notes. As it appeared, Chris was one of the researchers who had developed a theory involving the works of Nicolas Poussin, and by then, so had I. Later that week we both recorded separate War Rooms to present our findings. In the background we had been working to bring our theories together, which eventually led to the discovery of the Arcadia stone at the Eye of the Swamp which was aired as part of Season 7. There was a great buzz on the island about our discovery together and our last War Room ended only a few hours before I needed to be on a flight back to Europe. On my way out, Rick asked us to keep collaborating, having witnessed first hand the energy and results we could generate as a team. And so we did. Chris and I have been working together on an almost daily basis ever since. We are a fully complementary team. He is the fountain of knowledge, I make the timelines to connect the dots. We still have our individual research projects but they often end up being part of the same narrative one way or another. I consider Chris one of my best friends.

Q. Because of your involvement with the show, do you see an increase of interest in the Netherlands? How do people feel about the show there?

A. I do see more interest, especially since the trip to Portugal was televised as part of Season 9. The Curse of Oak Island is both the most watched and highest rated show on the Dutch History Channel. The Portugal episodes drew a lot of attention and people in the Netherlands were surprised to see a Dutchman was involved. I started to receive reactions, questions and comments from Dutch and Belgian viewers (who speak the same language). I have been a guest in some Dutch language History & Mystery podcasts and some newspapers have been writing about my work for the show. The Dutch love their history and many people are well aware of early Dutch involvements in the birth of North America and the United States. I hear viewer numbers are up, against the tide, in the Netherlands and I hope it stays that way.

Q. How do you think that the Fortress of Louisbourg and Oak Island are tied together? Who do you believe was at the forefront of this connection and why?

A. Building fortress Louisbourg was one of the last decisions of the Sun King Louis XIV of France, before his death in 1715. I have always been intrigued by two tunnels in the shape of a Latin cross that extend underground from the King’s bastion at Louisbourg. On early plans made for King Louis XV, they are indicated by a Templar Cross. When they were first discovered in the 1960’s archeologists referred to them as counterminer tunnels. In my opinion that is not what they are. They are quite small and would have been quite useless in the location where they are. Given the skill applied by French engineers to the rest of the fortress, it beats me why anyone would put these here. The tunnels were blocked off when found, making the archeologists conclude the entrance had been hidden when the French lost Louisbourg to the English. In other words, the English never knew the tunnels were there. After they had lost the fortress, the French went to enormous lengths to get it back. First they mounted the largest French armada ever to sail the Atlantic with 66 ships and 11,000 men under the command of the unfortunate Duke of Anville who died on arrival in Nova Scotia. It spared him having to witness his fleet fail at every objective. Not a single French ship reached Louisbourg. What the French did next has been hidden in the myst of time and was nothing short of astounding, but it did, at least temporarily, give them back control of the fortress at Louisbourg. The timing of these events coincides with Money Pit datings on Oak Island and I think that the two things are part of the same chain of events.

Q. Before your interest in Oak Island, you did extensive research on Rennes-le-Château. Do you think both places are connected in some way?

A. Good question. A few years ago I would have said no. Today I am not so sure. I found something recently that has turned the whole thing upside down for me. Work in progress.

Q. You have traveled to many places for your Oak Island research. If you could pick one place that you have visited, that you feel has an important connection to the island, which place is it and why?

A. Tomar, Portugal. On March 13, 1455, Santa Maria do Olival, the pantheon church of the Order of Christ in Tomar, by Papal bull, was granted ecclesiastical jurisdiction over any overseas territories in Asia, Africa and America. This means if anything happened on Oak Island after that date, it would have fallen under the spiritual jurisdiction of the Order of Christ. I am convinced the Portuguese visited the Oak Island area during the Age of Discovery. They knew the way and it would have been easy enough to find, lying in the bay behind Aspotogen Hill, the highest feature on the coast of Nova Scotia. Oak Island had a very big front door.

Q. Over the past few years, you’ve been on the island to participate in the search. If you could exchange places with one of the team members for 24 hours, who would you choose and why?

A. That’s a hard question but in the end I think I would love to operate an excavator for a day. One with a mosquito screen and air-conditioning if that’s ok.

Q. You and your research partner, Christopher Morford have an upcoming book in 2024 called the "Jerusalem Files". This must be an exciting moment for both of you. We expect some major revelations. Could you give us a teaser of what we will learn in the book?

A. One of the most important players in the wider mystery of Oak Island is someone no-one has ever heard of. Yet, he lies buried in Westminster Abbey, England’s national funerary hall of fame in London, in one of its most exclusive and revered spots. To make room for his memorial, the exquisite tomb of one of England’s greatest minds was cut up. Why on earth? We found the breathtaking answer to that question.

Q. Are there any other mysteries that you would like to research?

A. I’d like to solve two mask mysteries. Who was the man in the iron mask and why was he visited before his death by Louis XIV’s famous gardener André Le Nôtre? Who was the masked man that arrived on Duke d’Anville’s flagship the night before the French armada set sail for Louisbourg?

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The Compendium would like to thank Corjan Mol for taking the time to answer our questions. We are looking forward to reading the upcoming "Jerusalem Files" written by Corjan and Christopher Morford. We wish you both great success with the book.

Good day from the Compendium