1. What is the Voynich Manuscript?
“A book can survive its author, its language, and even its meaning.”— Unknown
The Voynich Manuscript is:
- A 240 pages tome written in the 15th century.
- The script used to write the manuscript is still not decoded.
- Official name of the book is Beinecke MS 408.
- Stored in Beinecke Rare Books Library.
2. Key Facts
- The book contains drawings of real and imaginary plants, zodiac signs etc.
- It is still not decoded.
- The book was last held by Wilfrid Voynich, a Polish bookseller. The name Voynich comes from his name.
3. Theories
1
Written in Cypher
Belief that the book is written in a cypher to hide the details.
2
Hoax
Some believe the Voynich Manuscript is a hoax created by Voynich.
3
Written by Roger Bacon or John Dee
But there is no conclusive evidence that either of them wrote it.
4. Notes
- The book had a letter written in Latin when Voynich got it. It was addressed to Athanasius Kircher, a German Jesuit scholar.
- The tall letters in the Voynich Manuscript are called Gallows.
- William Friedman tried solving it for 4 decades and failed.
- The book came into Voynich's possession under dubious circumstances.
- Before Voynich got hold of the book, it was in the college of Jesuits, Rome - 1912
- The origin of the book is still not clear.