Da Vinci Code Origins.

[antigrav]

Is Da Vinci Code author Dan Brown,s idea for his best selling novel taken from an earlier work called Foucaults Pendulem by Umberto Eco?

[China Doll]

Doubt he would admit to it if it is to be honest. Foucault's is far too intelligent for him I think. I'm sure I read somewhere that it's based on reseach he's done on the church.

[heathfield]

It could be that 'Foucault's Pendulum' (1988) was based on books such as 'The Holy Blood and the Holy Grail' (1982). Umberto Ecco leads readers on a dance that ends up poking fun of the whole idea.
Despite the outcome of the recent Dan Brown plagarism trial, my personal feeling is that he used 'The Holy Blood and the Holy Grail' extensively in his 'researches'.

[jake-the-peg]

I don't think Foucault's pendulum is that similar (I'm trying to avoid raving about Foucault's Pendulum but it's one of my favorite books ever)

In Foucault's pendulum the main characters start to deliberately invent the ultimate conspiracy theory so naturally there will be references to the Templars etc.

But while we're on the subject what about the Name of the Rose and Cadfael?

[jno]

I don't think Brown actually denied using Holy Blood & Holy Grail, he just said that, as it had been published, it was there to be used, and building a novel around someone else's historical theory isn't plagiarism. As others have said, I suspect Eco based his work on HBHG too, or at least was 'inspired' by it

[lynlockwood]

Foucault's Pendulum is a European shaggy dog story but on a massively intellectual scale (it is very readable though) The same with The Name of the Rose. I'm sure Eco would be very bemused to think the Da Vinci Code had anything to do with his books!