Anyone who has ever seen the figure known as the "Tree of Life", closely associated with Qabala (which has various other spellings), will immediately notice a vague similarity between the Oak Island Cross configuration and the upper parts of that figure. It is rather obvious that the configuration was somehow derived from this figure but there is clearly much more involved than a simple emulation of the Tree of Life because the differences between the two figures are quite substantial, especially at the scale of the Oak Island Cross. For instance, the top stone of the Cross is actually over 62 feet lower than it would be if the Cross were a true duplicate of the upper part of the Tree of Life. The second stem stone has no counterpart in the Tree of Life at all and if the lower stem stone were positioned at the bottom edge of the corresponding Tree of Life circle, as it appears to be when viewed at the scale of the images on this page, it would be off by about 2 feet from its true surveyed position. No way would the people who positioned the other stones so perfectly (both arm stones being exactly 360 feet from the stem and at exactly 90 degrees to it) have made such glaring errors.
I have discovered that the configuration of the Oak Island Cross, which I will abbreviate hereafter as "OIC", was derived from the Tree of Life figure not directly but through a series of very obscure elaborations on the basic figure. In fact, it is only these specific elaborations which will yield a configuration which is an acceptably accurate duplication of the OIC. By acceptably accurate I mean that the resulting figure, when scaled up to the size of the OIC, must have the same dimensions within a tolerance of about one inch in all cases. Anything with an error in significant excess of one inch in any dimension would indicate, as far as I am concerned, merely a close approximation to the true OIC rather than a legitimate duplication thereof.
Assuming that the people who positioned these boulders were consciously trying to position them in spaces of exact foot measurements, which seems to be a logical assumption based on the surveys, we can surmise that the geometric figure on which this arrangement was based must have had dimensions which were extremely close to these perfect numbers of increments. Had the dimensions been off from even feet by more than an inch in any dimension, it is unlikely that they would have scaled it up to that size in the first place. Any discrepancy over one inch would have been quite obvious to the builders but it would be realistic to think that a discrepancy of less than an inch at that scale would have been considered acceptable. Incidentally, the granite boulders composing the Cross are all conical in shape and the measurements were taken at the highest points of the tops of the cones which is easily ascertainable within a fraction of an inch. Since the ground is a very hard clay, there would have been no shifting of the stones even over several centuries. In case readers think that these stones may simply be a product of natural positioning, one of them was dragged out of position with a backhoe and pieces of a wrought iron pot-bellied stove were found beneath it, the kind used in sailing ships centuries ago. This conclusively proves that the stone was purposely placed there by man and since all of the other stones composing the Cross are of the same type and shape it is reasonable to assume that they were also purposely positioned. There are no other similar shaped granite boulders of that size anywhere else on the entire island. There is no serious question that the OIC was built by man and I am literally the only person on earth who can provide a credible explanation of why.
Anyone could easily derive a close approximation to the OIC configuration (within a tolerance of several inches) through any number of possible geometric procedures but I defy anyone to produce a true duplication with the degree of accuracy which I will demonstrate. The procedure would, of course, need to have some logical geometric basis.
Shown in the image below is my theory for how the Oak
Island OIC configuration was derived from the Tree of Life. The dark kite-like figure at the top of the Star of David is the OIC.
As can clearly be seen, the Tree of Life geometry is derived from a double hexagram/hexagon. By extending the two outer vertical lines of one of the hexagons upward to intersect a horizontal line drawn a cross the top of the Star of David figure, which we can see is also derived from the same double hexagram geometry as the Tree of Life, we obtain the positions of the two additional circles (known as Sephiroth, plural, or Sephira, singular) which must be added to the standard Tree of Life to produce a 12 Sephira Tree of Life, which I theorize was a secret Rosicrucian form of the Tree of Life. There is also an empty space in the middle of the upper hexagonal part of the Tree of Life figure where one would be expected. This would be a thirteenth Sephira.
Here is an interesting quote from the publication "The Rosicrucian Cosmo - Conception," by Max HeindelOnce; "Like all other Mystery Orders the Order of Rosicrucians IS formed on cosmic lines: If we take balls of even size and try how many it will take to cover one and hide it from view, we shall find it will require 12 to conceal a thirteenth ball. The ultimate division of physical matter, the true atom, found in interplanetary space, is thus grouped in twelve around one. The twelve signs of the Zodiac enveloping our Solar System, the twelve semitones of the musical scale comprising the octave, the twelve Apostles who clustered around Christ, etc., are other examples of this grouping of 12 and 1. The Rosicrucian Order is therefore also composed of 12 Brothers and a 13th." So you can see how this 12 Sephira Tree of Life could have been a special Rosicrucian modified version.
Once the two additional Sephiroth are in place, we are in a position to perform further geometric procedures to eventually produce the OIC configuration, the first procedure being to produce a particular circle as I will now describe.
See how there are three Sephiroth in vertical rows on each side of the Tree of Life? What we need to do is to draw a circle which will pass through the centers of the two outer circles of each of these two rows. It is shown here in magenta (light purple). There are actually three of these magenta circles shown. The first one produced is the central of the three and the other two are simply duplicates of the first. Once these three circles are drawn in the positions shown, the upper one being centered at the middle of the upper horizontal hexagon line and the lower one being centered at the middle of the Star of David, we can perform the next step.
This is a convenient time to mention that the Sephiroth are all duplicates of the prototype Sephira which is produced at the very bottom of the Tree of Life. You can clearly see how the center of this prototype Sephira is located at the middle of the lower horizontal hexagon line and it is sized to touch the bottom point of the Star of David. The rest of the Sephiroth are duplicates of this one.
The huge light green circle at the top of the image gives us the position of the "extra" stone part way up the stem of the cross. As can plainly be seen, this circle is centered at the top of the upper magenta circle and its size is based on the centers of the two additional Sephiroth that we added to the standard Tree of Life. The scaled up dimension yielded is 428.9213614 feet, which is .9436632 inch short of the survey data, still within a one inch tolerance.
Finally, to produce the bottom stone position we draw the circle shown in orange. In this case, the top of the orange circle is positioned at the top of the upper magenta circle and it is sized to perfectly touch the two additional Sephiroth. The center of this circle is established using the T shaped dark green construction which has one of its lines going from the center of the left outer Sephira to the center of of another Sephira added just above the center of the light green circle. I made that added Sephira purple. I guess this would make a 13th Sephira, and it sort of looks like a head on a goddess figure, the rest of the Tree being the body. The scaled up dimension between the centerstone and bottom stone is 721.9533877 feet, which is only .559341192 inch short of the survey data.
The T figure then provides us the means to produce the dark green circle at the top of the Cross. The center of this circle actually gives us the top point of the Cross, rather than vice versa. As can be seen in the diagram, this circle is produced between the two light blue circles.
Since we have a clear similarity in the positioning schemes of the orange and dark green circles, the case is strengthened for this theory being the actual derivation procedure for the OIC configuration rather than simply an arbitrary procedure which happened to produce the results we were looking for. We have continuity in the fact that the sizing of both the light green circle and the orange circle were based on the same two additional outer Sephiroth.
There are just too many interconnected facets of this proposed derivation theory to be written off as simple coincidence. There is a logical train of events here.
Why was this figure reproduced on Oak Island? I theorize that this was a very secret geometry known only to a few members of a secret society who had some interest in the Jewish mysticism known as Qabalah. By leaving this marker on Oak Island it would indicate the ownership of the Oak Island treasure, sort of a territorial marker, and might also serve to identify the island to members of this secret society in case knowledge of the location were somehow lost, probably only being known to a very few individuals who might happen to be killed in battle or mishap.
As to what secret society was behind this, I can only think of one that was involved with Qabalah in the time period in which the treasure would have been buried, probably somewhere between approximately the years 1500 and 1750. That would be the secret society known as the Brotherhood of the Rose and Cross or, more commonly, as the Rosicrucians. They fit the profile perfectly and publicly claimed to possess treasures capable of establishing a kingdom (in their publications Fama Fraternitatis and Confessio Fraternitatis).
The designer of this geometry probably tried numerous other elaborations on the Tree of Life figure but this one would have been considered especially interesting because of the unique dimensional characteristics displayed in the OIC,ie; the fact that when the arms are divided into 360 units that all of the other dimensions can also be evenly divided into the same units with only a miniscule error. This error being so slight that even when scaled up to the huge size of the OIC it is still barely perceptible, being mere fractions of an inch in all cases. Also, the figure could be seen as a combination of a Christian crucifix and the mystical Jewish symbols known as the Tree of Life and the Star of David. Such a combination would be very reflective of the nature of the Rosicrucians. They have basic Christian beliefs but they are of a much more mystical nature than the standard forms of Christianity and seem to involve more Old Testament or Judaic aspects, along with good measures of alchemy and Hermeticism.
Shown below are images of a print from the 1618 Rosicrucian publication Mirror of the Wisdom of the Rosicrucians showing how the OIC/Tree of Life geometry was used as the basis for the layout of some of the features. The alignments are far to numerous and precise to be attributable to simple chance. The first image shows only the cross itself and the second image shows both the cross and the rest of the Tree of Life figure with it.
One particularly telling fact is that when the small sword in the lower right of the print is extended upward, as I have done with a red line, it perfectly intersects with the top of the cross. Considering the distance between the sword and the top of the cross, even a slight difference in the angle of the sword or the position of the top of the cross would have precluded this intersection .
The only reasonable conclusion is that the Rosicrucians really did design this print around this geometry proving conclusively that they were the builders of the OIC and since it is highly unlikely that they chose to go to all the trouble of moving those ten ton boulders into that very precise configuration without good reason, it is reasonable to conclude that they were marking the location of their "great treasures of gold", as mentioned in the Confessio Fraternitatis, especially considering that there is a known treasure pit only a few hundred feet from the cross in which two six foot deep vaults (or 6 feet high, if you were inside) have been identified, through exploratory drilling, at levels of 98 and 153 feet below ground, both containing several large oaken casks or chests filled with "soft metal in bars and pieces". I'd say there's a pretty good chance that the treasures of the Rosicrucians are there.
In the images below, there is a dark green circle at the right side of the Tree of Life figure. That circle is part of an earlier version of the first diagram on this page, which was later removed. I didn't want to have to change all those other images after I revised the first diagram so just ignore that green circle please.
The image below is a closer view of the previous image.
You may wonder if the Rosicrucians put any clues into the print to suggest to us the presence of the Tree of Life figure. The alchemical "Tower of the Art" is usually shown (eg, in Medicina Catholica by Robert Fludd, 1629) with four turrets and a cloud above with the Hebrew word for "God" in the middle, just as seen in this print. The difference, however, is that the usual depiction shows four angels holding swords rather than four knights holding palm branches. Here we have an anomaly. The fact that knights are shown instead of angels with wings suggests to me that a religious military Order such as the Knights Templar were involved in this in some capacity. The most glaring anomaly is the substitution of large date palm branches in the place of the usual swords. We don't often see knights wielding palm branches.
The palm tree is known in Biblical lands as "the tree of life". Here is a quote explaining the association of both the pagan goddess Asherah and the palm tree with the term "tree of life". QUOTE: Asherah is the Tree of Life, a life-giving goddess of well-being. The palm tree, particularly the female date palm which bears clusters of dates, is the tree of life in the arid Near Eastern desert - having shallow roots, it must grow near a source of water; it provides shelter from the sun; its leaves make thatch for roofs; its trunk can be used for building; its sap can make sugar (like maple syrup) and even be fermented into an alcoholic beverage; and the fruit of the date, both fresh and dried, is a commonly eaten food. ´Asherah was honored as a sacred tree and worshipped in sacred groves, sometimes depicted in a tree of life stance between two animals. Since She is "upright" and "straight," upright posts or living trees represent Her. END QUOTE
Whether or not the goddess Asherah is of any significance in relation to the print is unknown but the palm tree/tree of life connection certainly is interesting. There appears to be no logical reason for the four knights to be holding palm branches until we learn that the palm tree is known as the tree of life and that the figure also known as the Tree of Life is hidden within the features of this print. Then we have a perfect explanation for the anomalous depiction of palm branches.
What makes me think that something secret may have been concealed within the Rosicrucian print from Mirror of the Wisdom of the Rosicrucians? You can read the publication yourself by entering the above title into a search engine. You'll find the following passage contained in the text.
"Contemplate my figure properly and well, the most important thing is hidden therein and it is impossible to indicate it more clearly. No father would place it more clearly before the eyes of his son than I have done before thee, wherefore I beg and enjoin thee (lest thou desire aught more useful and profitable to find in this): let this figure be highly and well recommended to thee, observe it, contemplate it, examine it not once but often, for there is nothing included in it in vain, but can be seen with our open eyes, that thou mayest boldly believe, for I am not here as a deceiver but as a brother and friend, wherefore I have not minced my words) but spoken everything freely, openly and roundly, against the will and good opinion of many".
They just flat out told us that the most important thing is hidden therein. I would say that gives me a good reason to think that my hidden geometry theory is very plausible, not to mention the obvious fact that it was incredibly unlikely that I would have been able to place the OIC figure perfectly within the features of the print by simple chance, much less that I would then have been able to also place the whole Tree of Life figure complete with its complex elaborations just as perfectly within the features of the same print.