The mysterious Voynich manuscript: will its secrets ever be revealed?

Did you know that there are still books in the world that we have not deciphered? One of them is the ancient Voynich manuscript with its handwritten, illustrated code. Scholars call the unknown writing system 'Voynichese.'

The code is written on about 240 pages of parchment, featuring illustrations of plants, floating heads, zodiac signs, fantastic creatures (including dragons), castles, bathing women, and astronomical symbols.

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Analysis of the parchment and the style of the symbols and drawings indicates that it may have been written in Italy during the Renaissance. It dates from some time in the 15th or 16th century.

Based on the illustrations, researchers have classified the contents into six sections: botanical, astronomical and astrological, biological, cosmological, pharmaceutical, and prescription.

Apart from this general structure, researchers have not deciphered anything in the document. Its exact origin, author, and purpose are still unknown. Countless hours have been spent in attempts to understand it.

The manuscript is said to have passed through several hands. Among them were those of the Holy Roman Emperor Rudolph II, who ruled in the 16th century. After changing owners several times, the mysterious text surfaced in a secret book sale in 1903.

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The manuscript got its name from the antiquarian book dealer who bought it from the Jesuit College near Rome in 1912. His name was Wilfrid M. Voynich.

The widow of the book trader sold the mysterious document to antiquarian Hans P. Kraus, who donated it to the Rare Book and Manuscript Library of Yale University in 1969. And that's where it still is today, waiting for the right person to uncover its meaning.

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The book measures 23.5 by 16.2 by 5 cm (or 9.3 by 6.4 by 2.0 inches), with the vellum pages folded together in 18 quires. While many estimate it has 240 pages, this number depends mostly on how one counts the foldouts of the manuscript.

The parchment on which the document was written corresponds with carbon made in the early 15th century (1404-1438). Analyses of the painting style also suggest that the document is from that century.

The manuscript is said to be a sort of medieval pharmaceutical and medical guide. However, not all of the plants described in it have been identified. There also seems to be a connection with certain astrological aspects, but any interpretation has been mere speculation.

Among the many scholars who have attempted to crack the code are Alan Turing, known for breaking the Enigma Code during World War II, and Elizabeth Smith Friedman who was also a cryptanalyst deciphering enemy codes in both world wars.

According to Yale Medicine Magazine, in September 2017 an amateur decipherer, Nicholas Gibbs claimed to have deciphered the Voynich manuscript.

Gibbs wrote in the Times Literary Supplement that the manuscript was "a reference book of selected remedies drawn from the standard treatises of medieval times, [and] an instruction manual for the health and well-being of the more affluent women of society."

According to the Times Literary Supplement, Dr. Lisa Fagin Davis of the Medieval Academy of America refuted Gibbs' claims: "Frankly, I'm a little surprised the TLS published it... If they had simply sent it to the Beinecke Library, they would have rebutted it in a heartbeat."

According to the website Snopes.com, some Canadian researchers tried to crack the code in 2016. They used a computer program that they had created themselves.

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They programmed the algorithm to decipher 380 different language versions of the 'United Nations Universal Declaration of Human Rights.' Based on that sample, they determined that 80% of the words in the Voynich manuscript could have a Hebrew origin.

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But no Hebrew translator could convert the text into coherent English. They even resorted to a tool well-known to all of us: Google Translate.

Using the app, they managed to get a sentence: "She made recommendations to the priest, man of the house, and me and people." In addition, Snopes reports, they found a few words: "herbal," "farmer," "light," "air," and "fire."

However, all in all, the result was disappointing. Moreover, the scientific community gave the project little importance, since the algorithm deciphered modern languages, not medieval ones, and Google Translate is not a reliable means to translate this type of document either.

While some still try to decipher the manuscript, some theories suggest that it's mere gibberish peddled by occult philosophers. Others, as indicated by Snopes, say the Voynich text is a pidgin prayer book of a heretical Christian sect.

And so the investigations are repeated, again and again, leaving only one certainty - that the Voynich manuscript is unique in its mystery. Will anyone ever succeed in deciphering it? We'll see if we have enough time to find out...