Fuck Yeah, Book Arts!

The Voynich manuscript, described as “the world’s most mysterious manuscript”, is a work which dates to the early 15th century, possibly from northern Italy. It is named after the book dealer Wilfrid Voynich, who purchased it in 1912.

Some pages are missing, but the current version comprises about 240 vellum pages, most with illustrations. Much of the manuscript resembles herbal manuscripts of the time period, seeming to present illustrations and information about plants and their possible uses for medical purposes. However, most of the plants do not match known species, and the manuscript’s script and language remain unknown and unreadable. Possibly some form of encrypted ciphertext, the Voynich manuscript has been studied by many professional and amateur cryptographers, including American and British codebreakers from both World War I and World War II.

As yet, it has defied all decipherment attempts, becoming a cause célèbre of historical cryptology. The mystery surrounding it has excited the popular imagination, making the manuscript a subject of both fanciful theories and novels. None of the many speculative solutions proposed over the last hundred years has yet been independently verified.

(Source: Wikipedia)

infoneer-pulse:

Unknown language found stamped in ancient clay tablet

In deciphering the tablet seen above, John MacGinnis of the University of Cambridge found that many of the names on the list are not from any currently known ancient language. “One or two are actually Assyrian and a few more may belong to other known languages of the period, such as Luwian or Hurrian,” he says, “but the great majority belong to a previously unidentified language.”

» via New Scientist

(via bookuse)

bookmobility:

The Library Phantom strikes again—but for the last time! As RadioLab’s Robert Krulwich reports, via This is Central Station, a woman has been leaving tiny paper sculptures in libraries and museums across Edinburgh.

These gorgeous pieces, details from a few of which you can see above, were secreted away with a few clues here and there. The sculptor wrote in a final statement that she offered them as “[a] tiny gesture in support of the special places,” a truly valuable sentiment as the very idea of libraries as distinct and public institutions comes increasingly under attack.

(Source: bookmobility)