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Modern Mysteries

Voynich manuscript 'written in two languages'

By T.K. Randall
April 24, 2017 · Comment icon 17 comments

Is the Voynich manuscript gibberish or is there hidden meaning in its pages ? Image Credit: PD
Russian scholars have been making headway in deciphering the pages of the mysterious medieval text.
The enigmatic codex, which was first discovered in an Italian monastery by book dealer Wilfrid Voynich back in 1912, contains 240 pages of strange, indecipherable characters and images.

Written on fine calfskin parchment, the book has been dated back to the 15th century however all efforts to derive meaning from its contents have so far resulted in failure and frustration.

A solution to this mystery has remained so elusive in fact that some researchers believe that the manuscript was actually created as a hoax designed to fool 15th century book collectors.
Now though, a team of scientists at the RAS Institute of Applied Mathematics in Russia have determined through statistical analysis that 60% of the book is actually written in two languages - English and German - and that all the vowels and spaces have been deliberately removed.

The remaining 40% of the text is thought to be written in Italian, Spanish or Latin.

Given that the images on its pages depict what look like seeds and vegetables however, not everyone on the team is convinced that the book's contents are even worth deciphering.

"I don't know why understanding the text can be important today because, judging by the drawings, it explains in what part of the year you need to sow poppy seed in order to later obtain opium," said study co-author, Yuri Orlov.

Source: Rbth.com | Comments (17)




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Recent comments on this story
Comment icon #8 Posted by I hide behind words 7 years ago
oh someone free source this so amateur parapolysemist can practice. it be so easy yet challenging to give a translation and maybe another for fun. hope it was written for that purpose, even not knowing and seeing the art of editing of it all might work as a cryptolabyrinth to reimprint on a mind like mine and yours.  
Comment icon #9 Posted by Rolci 7 years ago
Somehow this whole business reminds me of that with the Copiale cipher. The funniest part for me is always people crying "hoax" as soon as they're confronted with something they don't understand. I always wonder if these individuals realize it or not that they're not helping. For some, developing a baseless opinion, it seems, is the end of their "creative" abilities. Or should I say "for most"? What year is it again? Or is the post-modern information age synonymous with the dark ages?
Comment icon #10 Posted by fred_mc 7 years ago
Interesting research. Yes, I also think that the contents of the book might be uninteresting but that doesn't matter I think, it is not the content that is the interesting part about this book, the interesting challenge is how the book is encoded and how to decode it, and also why the author(s) have chosen to encode the contents like they did.
Comment icon #11 Posted by I hide behind words 7 years ago
I am interested to know what the illustrations of women next to stars means. One has 30 pairs, each female is paired with a star, holding the star,  sometimes tethered by her arm to the star. In astronomical section. Then there is an image of a walled castle and outside on the ground are stars. On page 158.  
Comment icon #12 Posted by back to earth 7 years ago
back in those days ???   The True Story of a Government-Ordered Book-Burning in America    https://www.countway.harvard.edu/events/true-story-government-ordered-book-burning-america-wilhelm-reichs-books-and-journals
Comment icon #13 Posted by back to earth 7 years ago
God or Goddess associated with a star or asterism is a common theme throughout history   - yellow portions .   or, more recently than this, it could be a  ' person's  star' ......  at times ; that one nearest the ascendent in the natal horoscope.  ... just hope yours is not Algol !   ( Ra's al Ghul, { Arabic} the Demon's Head , a Mischief-maker , Rosh ha Satan, Satan's Head { Heb.} , Tseih She, the Piled-up Corpses ,  The 'Head of Medusa',  The Gorgon. It is of the nature of Saturn and Jupiter. " It causes misfortune, violence, decapitation, hanging, electrocution and mob violen... [More]
Comment icon #14 Posted by third_eye 7 years ago
Ya knows what I means ya smarty pants ... ~
Comment icon #15 Posted by Orphalesion 7 years ago
To me it almost looks like they are meant to be stars associated with the zodiac? I don't know much about historical astrology so I don't know if it's a thing, but to me it looks that way. Secondary stars and/or spirits (or characteristics even?) associated with the zodiac at the centre, personified as naked women (because scribes often were perverts)  
Comment icon #16 Posted by Ell 7 years ago
I doubt that those Russians are right.
Comment icon #17 Posted by quiXilver 7 years ago
i doubt doubt. It's so doubtful


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