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The mystery of the Voynich Manuscript, written in an unknown language

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The Mystery of the Voynich Manuscript

The Voynich manuscript is one of the greatest enigmas in the history of literature and cryptography. Discovered in the early 20th century, this ancient book is written in an entirely unknown language and alphabet, featuring enigmatic illustrations that depict plants, astrological symbols, female figures, and incomprehensible diagrams. Despite the efforts of numerous scholars, cryptographers, and linguists, the manuscript remains undeciphered, fueling speculation and theories about its content and origin.

Origin and History

The manuscript is named after Wilfrid Voynich, a Polish bookseller who purchased it in 1912 from a Jesuit library near Rome. However, its origins go much further back. Carbon analysis has dated the manuscript's parchment to the first quarter of the 15th century, approximately between 1404 and 1438. Despite its age, the manuscript appears to be in good condition, with its roughly 240 pages still intact.

Content

The manuscript is divided into several thematic sections, each characterized by specific illustrations:

  • Botanical Section (pages 1-66): Contains 113 drawings of unknown plants, accompanied by descriptive texts.
  • Astronomical Section (pages 67-73): Features 25 diagrams that seem to depict astrological diagrams, zodiac symbols, and depictions of stars and constellations.
  • Biological Section (pages 75-86): Shows nude female figures, often immersed in liquids or connected to intricate tubes. Immediately following this section, there is a sheet folded six times,
    depicting nine medallions with images of stars or figures vaguely
    resembling cells, petal-like spokes, and bundles of tubes.
  • Pharmaceutical Section (pages 87-102): Includes drawings of plant parts and pharmaceutical vessels, with detailed annotations.
  • Recipe Section: The last section of the Voynich Manuscript begins with folio 103 and continues to the end. Contains long paragraphs of text, presumed to be recipes or instructions. It contains no images, except for small stars to the left of the lines,
    leading one to believe that it might also be some sort of index.

Attempts at Decipherment

Numerous experts have attempted to decipher the manuscript, often with conflicting and controversial results:

  • William Friedman, one of the greatest cryptographers of the 20th century, failed to unravel the mystery despite his intense efforts.
  • Gordon Rugg proposed that the manuscript might be an elaborate hoax, created using a technique called the "Cardan grille."
  • Stephen Bax, a British linguist, claimed to have identified some words based on analogies with medieval texts, suggesting that it might be a medical or botanical text.
  • Recent studies using artificial intelligence have sought to find patterns that could suggest a natural language, with some preliminary results indicating similarities with Asian languages, but nothing conclusive.

The mystery of the Voynich Manuscript, written in an unknown language
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Theories and Speculations

The theories about the Voynich manuscript are varied and fascinating:

  • Elaborate Hoax: Some believe it is a work of fiction created to deceive collectors of ancient books.
  • Herbal Manual: Others hypothesize that it is a compendium of lost botanical and medical knowledge.
  • Secret Code: There are those who think it is a coded message used by a secret society or an alchemist.
  • Lost Language: A captivating hypothesis is that the manuscript is written in a completely lost or unknown language.

The Voynich manuscript remains a fascinating and unresolved enigma. Despite numerous attempts at decipherment, its content and purpose remain shrouded in mystery. This ancient book presents a challenge to our understanding of history and linguistics, and perhaps one day, with new technologies or insights, we will finally unlock its secrets. Until then, the Voynich manuscript will continue to stimulate the curiosity and imagination of scholars and enthusiasts around the world.

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22
guest's profile picture
@guest

Your site has information about the Voynich manuscript.

I am deciphering the Voynich manuscript and received a positive result.

There is a key to cipher the Voynich manuscript.

The key to the cipher manuscript placed in the manuscript. It is placed throughout the text. Part of the key hints is placed on the sheet 14. With her help was able to translate a few dozen words that are completely relevant to the theme sections.

The Voynich manuscript is not written with letters. It is written in signs. Characters replace the letters of the alphabet one of the ancient language. Moreover, in the text there are 2 levels of encryption. I figured out the key by which the first section could read the following words: hemp, wearing hemp; food, food (sheet 20 at the numbering on the Internet); to clean (gut), knowledge, perhaps the desire, to drink, sweet beverage (nectar), maturation (maturity), to consider, to believe (sheet 107); to drink; six; flourishing; increasing; intense; peas; sweet drink, nectar, etc. Is just the short words, 2-3 sign. To translate words with more than 2-3 characters requires knowledge of this ancient language. The fact that some symbols represent two letters. In the end, the word consisting of three characters can fit up to six letters. Three letters are superfluous. In the end, you need six characters to define the semantic word of three letters. Of course, without knowledge of this language make it very difficult even with a We can say that the Voynich manuscript is an encyclopedia of knowledge that humanity needs today. I managed to partially solve the mystery of mount Kailas ( for example, its height is 6825 meters). The manuscript indicates the place where the Grail Is hidden, as well as the Font and Cradle of Jesus.

3 months ago
lostcivilizations's profile picture
Lost Civilizations (@lostcivilizations)

Thank you very much for your message.

Below is a copy of page 14 of the Voynich Manuscript (from the Yale University Library). Can you please explain how to decrypt it? where exactly is the key located?

Would like to know more about it, especially what the Voynich Manuscript says about the Holy Grail 😊

3 months ago
guest's profile picture
@guest

The key is on the back of this sheet. The first character in the text. About the Grail. The manuscript indicates its location. I can only inform this place personally under the signature. You know, this is a very important question. In this region, in 1941, German specialists were already looking for the Grail. But they did not reach this place.

3 months ago
DrWatson's profile picture
@DrWatson

This is very interesting! Can you share the translation with us? Did you publish the translation elsewhere ?

3 months ago
guest's profile picture
@guest

The fact is that for a complete translation it is necessary to know well the language that was used when encrypting the manuscript. About 50% of the characters correspond to 2 letters of the given language. Therefore, it is difficult to find a word in the dictionary if up to 4 or more letters are superfluous in the original word. I managed to translate a lot of words consisting of 2-3 letters and several sentences that fully correspond to the drawings. And I'm already old, and it's hard for me to do this painstaking work. If you tell me where to send the results I have received, I will be happy to do so. Nikolai/

3 months ago
lostcivilizations's profile picture
Lost Civilizations (@lostcivilizations)

Please send me a private message, and I will give you an email address where you can send the translation.

In the meantime, I have found the back side of page 14, where the key to decipher the manuscript is located 😊

3 months ago
eZine's profile picture
eZine lover (@eZine)

The first letter of the first word on the back of page 14 appears to be a large 'P'. This same letter, but smaller, is found in the second word. It seems like a dropped capital, a large decorative capital letter used at the beginning of a paragraph in many books. If correct, this would indicate that the text is written from left to right and from top to bottom.

3 months ago
DrWatson's profile picture
@DrWatson

According to a previous message by @guest, "The key is on the back of this sheet. The first character in the text."

How can that letter be the key to deciphering the text? The dots inside the letter are probably important, but how?

3 months ago
guest's profile picture
@guest

It's not a letter, it's a sign. By the way, this sign corresponds to 1 letter of the alphabet. And what do you think, why did the author hide several dots in this sign?

3 months ago
guest's profile picture
@guest

This is just the beginning of the key.

3 months ago
lostcivilizations's profile picture
Lost Civilizations (@lostcivilizations)

Could you please share more information about the translation of the document? I am very interested and would like to know more 😊

I am not sure what the dots in the sign represent. Can you explain?

3 months ago
guest's profile picture
@guest

Do you want me to open the key to the cipher? I will tell you the basis of the key to the cipher of the Voynich manuscript. It is necessary to know our real history.

3 months ago
guest's profile picture
@guest

I can forward some of my results. Tell me where to send it.

3 months ago
lostcivilizations's profile picture
Lost Civilizations (@lostcivilizations)

Please send me a private message, and I will give you an email address where you can send the translation.

I will then update the article.

3 months ago
DrWatson's profile picture
@DrWatson

Yes please, open the key to the cipher for us! Tell us the basic on how to translate the text.

3 months ago
guest's profile picture
@guest

I have such an immodest question. And what will I get out of it?

3 months ago
guest's profile picture
@guest

The code for the Voynich Manuscript was estimated at 3 million euros...
eg.ru "tech/science/44247/

A billionaire philanthropist from the Netherlands wished to speed up the decryption of the Voynich Manuscript. He is ready to pay $ 3 million euros to anyone who explains the meaning of the symbols scattered on 248 pages of the most mysterious manuscript in the world.
But that was a long time ago and I didn't have a key then.

3 months ago
DrWatson's profile picture
@DrWatson

According to a recent publication (March 2024), the mysterious medieval text is about sex.

Abstract: "The Voynich manuscript is a famous European enciphered manuscript of the early fifteenth century featuring herbal, pharmaceutical, astrological and anatomical illustrations, including hundreds of naked women. Some hold objects adjacent to or unambiguously pointed towards their genitalia. This paper therefore investigates the culture of self-censorship, erasure and encipherment of women’s secrets, with a focus on Dr Johannes Hartlieb (c. 1410–68). Hartlieb had enduring apprehensions about the propagation of women’s secrets in vernacular Bavarian, which culminated in a call for ‘secret letters’ to hide recipes for abortifacients and contraceptives. Other cases of encipherment relating to sexual intercourse and genitalia will be described. On the basis of this evidence, we propose that the Rosettes, the largest and most complex illustration in the Voynich manuscript, represents coitus and conception. This hypothesis explains many of the illustration’s features and establishes a variety of future research possibilities."

https://doi.org/10.1093/shm/hkad099

3 months ago
guest's profile picture
@guest

A person with a limited level of thinking can come up with such a thing. There is nothing about sex in the manuscript. There is only information about maintaining the health of women in order to give birth to healthy offspring. Where the manuscript was written, this issue was given the most serious attention. The manuscript contains information for women during pregnancy under different zodiac signs. This information is in great demand today.

3 months ago
guest's profile picture
@guest

Possibilities of mathematical analysis methods for deciphering
the Voynich manuscript.

In this paper, the analysis of the possibilities of deciphering the Voynich manuscript using methods of mathematical analysis is carried out. A method of decoding using artificial intelligence is proposed.

To each next generation of earthlings, the previous one leaves its secrets. The modern generation is no exception. Among the many mysteries left to our generation, a special place is occupied by the so-called"Voynich Manuscript". It got its name in honor of the famous antiquarian Wilfrid Vonich, who bought it in 1912 at a sale of one of the libraries in Rome. From that moment to this day, numerous attempts have been made to decipher it. But there is no result yet. The manuscript is written in letters that until today could not be identified with the letters of the alphabet of any language. In General, the manuscript is a collection of drawings and text. Most of the drawings depict various plants. In appearance, it can be attributed to some kind of encyclopedic reference book. Currently, this is one of the most mysterious books. It should be borne in mind that this was done not only by highly qualified specialists in various fields of knowledge, but also by scientists from various fields of science.
after analyzing the methodology of the approach to deciphering the Voynich manuscript, various experts found one characteristic feature. the vast majority of them tried to see the letters of the alphabet of any language in the signs that the manuscript is written with. then, using statistical methods of mathematical analysis, they tried to find a language whose statistical parameters correspond to the statistical parameters of the sign system used in the manuscript. This did not give a positive result. One of the conclusions based on the results of these works may be the need to change the method of approach to decoding the manuscript. As a variant of the approach to decoding the Voynich manuscript, we can take an algorithm in which the basis for consideration is not one single sign, but the entire system of signs as a whole.
Analyzing the entire system of signs, it was possible to find its characteristic feature. The entire system of signs consists of three separate groups of them, United by common features. After examining the alphabets of many languages, we were able to find a language whose alphabetic structure is similar to the structure of the sign system used in the Voynich manuscript. Moreover, the number of characters in two groups strictly corresponds to the number of letters in similar groups of the alphabet. As for the third group of characters, there were two times fewer than the letters in the corresponding group of the alphabet. There is a hint of this in the text of the manuscript. Using this hint, we had to assign two letters to each character in this group. In addition, the characters in this group turned out to be numbers, but the number system is not decimal. Thus, it was possible to identify the system of signs of the third group used in the manuscript, and the letters of the third group of the alphabet of the language that was used when writing it. This can be considered the second level of encryption. It should be noted that this language currently exists and there is a dictionary of this language with a translation into Russian on the Internet. The translation of quite a large number of words and even a few sentences confirmed the correctness of the attribution of letters to signs and the methodology of the approach to decoding in General.
And that's not all. Further analysis of the text, taking into account the above, revealed another feature of the handwritten cipher. In the text, at the beginning of words, there are completely no letters denoting vowel sounds. These letters are rarely used inside words. This can be considered the third level of encryption. This means that the author was faced with the task that even if there is a key, the text can only be read by those who know this language perfectly, that is, relatives.
Now, having obtained the results, there is a reason to evaluate the possibilities of mathematical analysis when deciphering the Voynich manuscript. Initially, let's call it "static" mode, we have two systems – the system of signs that the manuscript is written with, and the system of letters of the alphabet of the language that was used when writing it. Ideally, to get a positive result, the correlation coefficient of these systems should be equal to "1". In fact, we have fewer characters, because some characters have two letters assigned to them. Their number is 72 % of the total number of letters in the alphabet. That is, the correlation coefficient is already less than "1". Now let's go to the text and call it the "dynamics" mode. Characters in the text that represent vowel sounds are less than 2%. In fact, they should be about 40-45%. In the alphabet of this language, vowel sounds make up 30%. Therefore, in the" dynamics " (or in the text), the characters are even less than the original one by 30% (ignoring 2%). Finally, we have a correlation coefficient between the system of letters that make up the actual text of the Voynich manuscript and the symbols that represent this text, which is only about 0.3.
there is another fact to keep in mind. Signs with two letters attached to them are twice as common in the text as each of the letters they represent, but they are counted as a single letter in the analysis. at the same time, they significantly affect the results of the analysis, and not for the better. The correlation coefficient between the system of letters in the alphabet and the system of signs in the text of the manuscript is less than 0.3.
Under these conditions, it is at best not logical to talk about the similarity of the system of signs used in the text of the Voynich manuscript and the system of letters of the alphabet of the language used. You can't expect their statistical characteristics to be similar in principle. Moreover, under such initial conditions, under certain conditions, the system of distribution of characters in the text of the Voynich manuscript can be considered chaotic. This is confirmed by the fact that no language was found whose statistical parameters of the alphabet would correspond to the statistical parameters of the sign system of the manuscript.
All of the above in the end allows us to draw the following conclusion. Any methods of mathematical analysis in determining the language used in writing the Voynich manuscript are unacceptable. Practical results carried out in this direction in multiple numbers by various specialists did not give a positive result, which is a confirmation of this conclusion.
In turn, this conclusion gives reason to believe that all the work carried out and carried out to decipher the Voynich manuscript using mathematical analysis methods can be considered insignificant.
Recently, some experts have tried to use a computer to decipher the Voynich manuscript. I believe that this is not possible under such initial conditions. But if you create a high-quality decryption program that contains the key and dictionary of this language, then, in my opinion, you can count on a positive result. At the same time, it is necessary to involve a specialist who knows this language well.
After analyzing the text of the Voynich manuscript, taking into account the translated words, it was possible to find out what secrets there is information about in the Voynich manuscript.
1. There is information about the mysterious mount Kailash.
2. There is information about the Holy Grail. And not only.
3. there Is information about the mysterious pipes of mount Baigun.
Surely these are not all the secrets that I was able to get information about.
N. Anichkin.

3 months ago
DrWatson's profile picture
@DrWatson

Do you want to tell us what the key is and how to decipher the text or do you prefer to keep it secret?

3 months ago
eZine's profile picture
eZine lover (@eZine)

Eleonora Matarrese has studied the manuscript and discovered that the language used is a Middle German dialect from the Carnia region. According to her, the book was written by at least five different people. She is working on a complete transliteration of the entire manuscript.

3 months ago
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