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This is the "Site Map" of http://www.voynich.nu/ . It provides some guidance to the use of this site and some background information. It includes:
I am not a medievalist - I am a space scientist. The Voynich MS has interested me since about 1994. More about that can be read in the FAQ. After a few years of interaction with like-minded people, it became clear to me that for newcomers to this manuscript there wasn't any good online collection of reference material. It would take everyone a long time to find out about all the basics: what is known, what is suspected? Why does John Dee have nothing to do with the Voynich MS? What is the meaning of text entropy and why is it important? As a result, newcomers tended to repeat the same things that so many others already had done before. I decided to create a web site in order to collect all this information, with the aim of curing this problem.
Presently, the situation is almost the opposite. There are so many web resources dealing with the Voynich MS that it is very difficult to get a clear overview. There are wikipedia entries about the Voynich MS in several languages, but (in my humble opinion) this site is more extensive and more up to date. There are dozens of blogs about the Voynich MS, but I dare say that this site is more organised than these. Of course, these blogs contain an enormous wealth of information and detail that cannot be included here. References to these online resources may be found here. I feel honoured that the Beinecke rare book and manuscript library of Yale University refer to this site as a source of information about the most famous manuscript in their collection.
Since the inception of site around 1997 or so, then at "Geocities", it has being growing without any great plan in mind, and some areas received much more attention than others. In recent years, I have put a bit more effort in making it a more consistent reference site for the Voynich MS. I am still ironing out some of the inconsistencies that are typical for a 25-year patchwork.
The main mystery of the Voynich MS is of course the question what its text says. I do not have any answer for that. My aim is to present all information in an objective manner. My more speculative thoughts about all topics may be found on a dedicated page.
At the highest level, this site consists of three main parts:
For the core section, and for part of the reference section there is a detailed Table of Contents.
Following is a summary table of contents for all three parts:
Throughout this site there are many links either to other pages at this site, or to other (external) sites. Links to external sites are preceded by a double caret: ">>".
Some standard links are included on most pages. For reference material:
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to go to the full Table of Contents |
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to go to the site map (that is this page) |
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to browse the entire MS through a full set of thumbnail images with links to page-by-page descriptions. |
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to search this site for any keyword |
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to go to the picture galleries |
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to go to the bibliography / references / web sites page |
For navigation purposes:
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to return to the home page of this site (www.voynich.nu) |
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to go to the start of the core section |
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to go to the next page of the core section |
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to go to the previous page of the core section |
There are a number of additional pages that discuss specific topics in more depth. These are reached by links from the core section, or from other additional pages. These pages are typically reached, and left, using the following icons.
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(followed by a short description): to go to a more detailed treatment of a particular topic |
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to return to the point from where this page was entered (equivalent with the 'BACK' button on the web browser) |
The "Contents", "Home page" and "Site map" links (see above) are usually provided on these pages as well. An additional index page collects links to each of these pages of additional material.
In several places, text of the Voynich MS is represented at this site. Generally, this will be done using the EVA transliteration alphabet, which is explained in some detail here. The Voynich MS characters should in principle appear in your browser. You may verify this here: the following line will either appear in the Voynich MS script, or it will say "fachys ykal ar ataiin" (EVA transliteration of the start of the Voynich MS).
fachys ykal ar ataiin
In principle, the font should be downloaded automatically (in WOFF or TTF format), but the implementation of that feature on this site may not be perfect and it is also not supported by all browsers / operating systems. If it doesn't work, it is possible to download the True Type font manually using a link below, and to install it locally.
Similarly, text may be represented using the v101 font designed by Glen Claston. This transliteration alphabet and font are explained briefly here. At present, this will most probably only work if you have installed the True Type font: "Voynich 1.01" locally. The following line will let you test this. If it says: "fa19s 9hae ay Akam" you do not have this font installed. You may download it below.
fa19s 9hae ay Akam
Please note that use of the Eva font is specifically permitted for display of this web site, or for private use. Commercial use of the Eva font requires prior agreement by the font designer Gabriel Landini.
The Voynich MS is preserved at the Beinecke Rare Book and Manuscript Library of Yale University. I am grateful to the Beinecke Library for the publication of a complete set of high-quality, high-resolution digital images of the MS at their web site, and for the many very helpful interactions I have had with many of the Beinecke Library staff, over more than 15 years now.
Many other libraries make available digital images of their materials. I would specifically like to mention the >>Vatican library, whose images I am regularly referring to at this site. Not being certain about the exact permissions, I am showing only miniature images with links to the images at the original site.
I have used several invaluable printed sources, roughly in order of importance:
These were all printed several decades ago. I have not yet incorporated all information contained in the important recent publication Yale University Press: Clemens (2016).
A significant amount of the 'newer' material presented in these pages originates from people communicating via internet resources since around 1992. Special mention for adding to our knowledge or for providing services to this Voynich community I feel is deserved by (alphabetically): G. Claston, J. Gillogly, J. Guy, G. Landini, Ph. Neal, N. Pelling, J.K. Petersen, M. Ponzi, R. Prinke, J. Reeds, R. SantaColoma, D. Scott, J. Stolfi, E. Velinska
Additional acknowledgments for contributions on specific topics may be found on individual pages.
Not all of the material presented at this web site is "mine" (see
Acknowledgement above), however the presentation is.
When using material from this site, you are requested to acknowledge the source and it will be appreciated
if you put a link back, either to the home page of this site
(http://www.voynich.nu/)
or directly to the location you are quoting.
This is not an "official" site of the Voynich MS, in any sense. I am not affiliated with the Beinecke Rare Book and Manuscript Library, whose web presence can be found here. This site does not represent the opinion of Yale University or the Beinecke Library. At the same time I wish to express my gratitude to the Beinecke library for the excellent understanding over many years now.
This site includes links to various resources that are outside this site and not under my control. I do not necessarily share any opinions expressed at these resources, and I object to all contents that are illegal, offensive or defamatory to institutions or persons, or otherwise inappropriate. I would appreciate hints from readers if such content is encountered, and I will remove such links when justified.
The information presented at this web site is a combination of my own work / research and the above-mentioned sources (see Acknowledgement above).
I may have missed some attributions of insights or statements to their originators. For such cases, apologies are offered, and correction promised, in advance.
People who would like to contact me may use the following E-mail address:
You may also:
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