The 15th Century Voynich Manuscript has been described as the world's most mysterious book written in a complex code, an unknown language or simply a hoax
Posted on 02/23/2014 6:43:08 AM PST by SunkenCiv
The Voynich Manuscript, carbon-dated to the 1400s, was rediscovered in 1912, but has defied codebreakers since.
Now, Bedfordshire University's Stephen Bax says he has deciphered 10 words, which could lead to more discoveries.
The manuscript, which some think is a hoax, is full of illustrations of plants and stars, as well as text...
It largely disappeared from public record until 1912 when Wilfrid Voynich, an antique book dealer, bought it amongst a number of second-hand publications in Italy.
Since then, scholars and cryptographers have studied the document but have failed to find meaning in the text.
It was investigated by a team of code breakers during WWII, but they also failed to find meaning in the words.
Academics across the world have been trying to decode the manuscript.
In June last year, Marcelo Montemurro, a theoretical physicist from the University of Manchester, UK, published a study which he believes shows that the manuscript was unlikely to be a hoax.
Dr Montemurro and a colleague, using a computerised statistical method to analyse the text, found that it followed the structure of "real languages".
In February this year, a paper published in the journal of the American Botanical Council said one of the plant drawings suggested a possible Mexican origin for the manuscript.
Prof Bax, an expert in applied linguistics, said he had been working on the Voynich Manuscript for about two years.
He said he had managed to find the word for Taurus, alongside a picture of seven stars (seen as part of the zodiac constellation of Taurus) and the word Kantairon alongside a picture of the herb Centaury.
Prof Bax said he had been trying to crack the manuscript using his knowledge of medieval texts and his familiarity with Semitic languages like Arabic.
(Excerpt) Read more at bbc.co.uk ...
The 15th Century Voynich Manuscript has been described as the world's most mysterious book written in a complex code, an unknown language or simply a hoax
Inside the book there was a letter thought to be dated to 1666. It claimed the book once belonged to the Emperor Rudolf II, a member of the house of Habsburg, known to be a patron of artists and scientists
Not so much a hoax as a whimsical prank.
Worthia remusng dorplat igmungium. Dowtop soldera ya de manga
What you said.
Ah yes.... the Doo-Wop soldiers of Manga.
Apparently Ovaltine was originally made from many exotic herbs.
Klingon?
What I had read in a different article recently was that many of the plants depicted in the book were recognized as Mexican, and the language was found to be an obscure Aztec dialect. The speculation was that the manuscript was likely written by a native convert soon after the Conquest.
Not so much. During the time period that this was written in, seeking secret knowledge was often frowned upon and even persecuted. Those who still sought to seek the unknown would create secret codes that weren’t easily broken.
So while this particular book may not have been that important in the realm of the sciences, it may have been done to protect what the author discovered that was previously unknown.
“scholars and cryptographers have studied the document but have failed to find meaning in the text.”
Then why bother
it's... it's a cookbook!
Joking aside, an interesting mystery that I read about several years ago. Thanks for posting.
I had that reaction reading your post.
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/chat/3115696/posts
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/news/2672785/posts
:’)
Sorry, I wrote this while drunk in a small bar in France. I didn’t realize anyone would take it seriously.
I don't know...looks like High Valyrian to me.
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