The Secret of San Miniato

An ancient secret is enshrined in a mysterious inscription dated
1207,still to be seen on the ornate marble floor of the Basilica of San
Miniato in Florence. This story holds the key to that secret.
The narrative unfolds in the latter part of the 12th century when
Frederick Barbarossa, the Holy Roman Emperor, was forcefully
seeking to bring the Italian communes to heel under his rule in
Europe, and the Latin Kingdom of Jerusalem was reeling under the
mortal blows of Saladin in the Holy Land. Against the backdrop of
these dramatic events, Yosef, a young Florentine Jew, pursues his
search for the mysterious “stone” capable of imparting an
understanding of the whole of creation: the legendary Grail.
Gathering pace with every page turned, picking up speed as it rushes
headlong towards its arcane ending, the story hurtles along amid
Yosef’s heroic deeds and the moving love that binds him for eternity
to the beautiful Miriam.
This is the story behind Renzo Manetti’s The Language of the Angels,
revealing what could never have been revealed in that scholarly
tome. Truth or fiction? That is for the reader to decide.