A-Voynich Transcription

A glyph-based transcription of the

Voynich Manuscript



Contents


Overview page 1

Some Transcription History page 2

Glyph Construction Theory page 5

A-Voynich Font Equivalents page 8

Sample Transcription Pages page 12







Overview





The A-Voynich Transcription is a product of many
years and testing of many different theories on character
identification. While this is a project I would have liked
to have taken on and mastered many years ago, it has
been only recently that quality images of the Voynich
script have been released by Beinecke Rare Book Library
at Yale. When these images are compared against the
black and white copyflo, it becomes evident that much
information has been kept from the hands of Voynich
enthusiasts over the years. The new images confirm that
many strokes are routinely connected, and if written in
a fluid and connected fashion must most probably be
individual glyphs. While my transcriptions have always
maintained that certain strokes comprise individual
glyphs, my own methods are in need of revision, and in
the process perhaps this effort will bring others to the
realization that stroke-based transcriptions are very
unlikely to lead to a solution of the Voynich Manuscript.
Any reasonable transcription methodology should
be based on a fairly sound glyph construction theory and
incorporate enough information about the characters to
make alteration of the transcription a simple matter,
without the need to retranscribe large sections of the text.
It is with this in mind that this transcription is
undertaken, and it is my hope that this effort proves to be
beneficial to all Voynich enthusiasts.




Some Transcription History



However complex and interesting the drawings are, the script in
which the bulk of the manuscript is written is undoubtedly the most
intriguing part of the elegant enigma. It has a deceptively flowing,
rhythmic quality that suggests long practice and familiarity on the
part of the scribe or scribes. The script seems like a reasonable,
workable, well-constructed system of writing, with a look of ease and
natural flow. On closer inspection, the surface appearance of
simplicity vanishes, and a still more seductive and captivating
character emerges, in the form of an intricate but structurally logical
system of ligaturing or compounding of simple forms to build up more
complex outlines. Whatever else may be alleged concerning the value
of the manuscript as a whole to science, I am convinced that an
understanding of the construction of this writing system cannot fail to
be of great interest in the study of human thought. It appears to be a
tour de force of artistry and ingenuity.
M.E. DImperio

Thus begins Chapter 4 in M.E. DImperios paper The Voynich Manuscript An
Elegant Enigma, a statement that rings in the ears of all Voynichologists. Rather than rewrite
the general makeup of early attempts, I quote here DImperios synopsis taken again from
Chapter 4:

It has been concluded by most students that the Voynich script
includes at least some compound symbols. Various attempts have
been made to arrive at a rationale to explain the ligatures and resolve
them consistently into component elements. Some students have
proposed that the symbols may have been built up from elementary
strokes in a manner similar to the method upon which they supposed
that the Chinese writing system was based. Tiltman suggested that
missionaries visiting the Far East, who had studied the Chinese
system, might have brought back a description of it which then might
have inspired some fifteenth- or sixteenth- century scholar to design
the Voynich script (unpublished notes). A. W. Exell, in his letter to
Tiltman, 30 August 1957, refers to a theory (not further specified) that
early Arabic numerals were built up from one, two, three, four or
more strokes in a similar Oriental manner; he suggests a sketchy and
incomplete correspondence between Voynich symbols and
conventional numerals along these lines.

The earliest modern attempt at decipherment was by William R. Newbold, who
identified the Voynich script as a shorthand cipher, based on an ancient Greek system of
abbreviation. His system of transcription involved the use of a magnifying glass and the
dissection of each Voynich glyph into several strokes. While Newbolds methods were publicly
refuted, the appeal of stroke-based transcriptions has not diminished.

Other early transcriptions included those of Tiltman, the First Voynich Study Group, the
Second Study Group, Currier, Krischer, and DImperio. While these tended to universally
handle certain Voynich glyphs as individual characters, such as the gallows i, h, g and f, or
the glyphs a, e, o, and w, there was a decided split of opinion when it came to some other
common glyphs, primarily the ' series glyphs. Currier transcribed the strokes 'N and ''N as
'M and N respectively, while others chose to transcribe them as a series of glyphs. The
Second Study Group and the Currier transcriptions are unique in assigning single transcription
characters to the more common Voynich combination glyphs. DImperio considered the
various transcription approaches to embody the theories of individual transcribers, and I believe
this is a fair assumption.
Somewhere in the 1990s a new transcription methodology popped up, called Frogguy
and Neo-Frogguy, the work of Jacques Guy, a linguist extraordinaire. The apparent purpose
of this transcription was to make the Voynich characters pronounceable. This transcription
was heavily stroke-based in orientation, and a clear departure from the transcriptions generated
in the cryptographic arena. Frogguy was used as the basis for a complete Voynich transcription
project conducted by Gabriel Landini and Rene Zandbergen, entitled the EVA transcription.
What sets the EVA transcription apart from cryptographically oriented transcriptions is
the use of multiple characters to represent the strokes that compose a single Voynich glyph.
Where Currier transcribed a G with a single character, and The First Study Group transcribed
it with two, (a combination of g and w), EVA transcribes it with three characters, meant to
represent c, g, and Z. While I prefer Curriers representation of the G as a single glyph, there
is logic in the First Study Groups combination of g and w, since both are very common
glyphs in their own right. Occurrences of Z as a single glyph are very rare indeed, and no other
transcription divided the extremely common glyph w into two parts, c and Z as they occur in
the EVA transcription. EVA also transcribes the very common W glyph as a combination of 2
and Z, when in fact 2 is a standalone glyph that has little to do with the construction of W in
this sense. The Voynich combined form X does exist, as does the form x, but these
differences are ignored in the EVA transcription. This transcription seeks to encode these
differences in common Voynich glyphs.





Voynich Glyph Construction Theory



. . . . . It is my feeling that we need not look beyond the system of
Latin abbreviations, familiar to all learned men of the Middle Ages
and Renaissance throughout Europe, combined with early forms of
Arabic numerals and some common alchemical and astrological
symbols, to find the inspiration for the design of the Voynich script.
M.E. DImperio

I couldnt agree more with any statement made by any other Voynichologist, but the fact
remains that esoteric theories of glyph origination and construction still abound. Tiltmans
Chinese Theory is still out there, and the belief that the Voynich is a representation of some
unknown language is very much alive and well.
I hold to the opinion that the Voynich is a manufactured script, hiding some underlying
cryptographic system. Those who view the Voynich from this position have little difficulty
comparing this script to known stenographic systems and artificial cryptographic alphabets.
The alphabets outlined in Trithemius, Agrippa, Vigenere and Porta have common elements,
namely the fact that they are a set of symbols that are variations of a base set of glyphs. An
alphabet tableau from Portas De Furtivus Literarum Notis Vulgo. De Ziferis, reproduced on
the following page, provides a visual example of the human tendency to create glyph variations
based on singular forms.
The Voynich script is in my estimation not very different in construction from the
artificial alphabets found in these books, with the exception that it appears to be more
tachygraphically based than any known artificial alphabet. It would be nice to be able to break
down the construction of the Voynich glyphs into three sets, simple, compound and
combination, but the line is not always clear on which is which. Since the actual intention of
the author may not be entirely clear, this theory should be considered but one attempt at
drawing the lines of definition, and as with any beginning theory, the room for improvement is
a very large room indeed!




(A page from Portas De Furtivus Literarum Notis Vulgo.)




Simple Strokes
A mere two strokes appear to form the basis for the majority of Voynich glyphs, these
being the c and the ' strokes. Since these two also stand individually, they are to be
considered simple glyphs and not just strokes. The c glyph stands at the base of other glyphs,
those being a, e, o, 8, 9 and 2. The ' glyph stands at the base of only two glyphs, the N and
the s. All but the 8 are formed by adding a simple stroke. The 8 adds a loop, or perhaps it is a
combination of glyphs, the c and the e.
One other glyph appears to be used to form the gallows characters, this being the 4
glyph with a loop attached. There are two basic forms of the gallows glyphs, the i and the g.
These forms are modified on the left side to create the h and f glyphs.

Compound glyphs
From the two simple glyphs c and ' come the compound set a, e, o, 2, 8, 9, N, and s,
to which may be added the w glyph, the only standard compound glyph in this set containing
three strokes instead of two. The 4 glyph generates the standard set 4, i , h, g and f. There
is some discussion whether the string 4o isn't a single glyph comprised of a combination of the
4 and the o. While it does appear almost exclusively at the beginning of a word, its occurrence
doesnt appear to be any higher than that of the strings 89 or oe. Transcribing the string 4o as
two characters does allow for a global change to a single character if necessary, which allows
for alternate readings of this set of glyphs.
Variations

A wide range of variations exist for most compound glyphs, and sometimes those
variations appear to be dependent on where the glyph is located within the Voynich word or
line. It has been noted for instance, that the g and f glyphs appear a very high percentage of
the time in the first line of a paragraph, but very rarely in the body. One is tempted to conclude
that these are variant forms of the i and h glyphs. The simple glyph ' when located in the
middle of a word appears as a ', but at the end of a word appears with a tail, thus N. This tail at
the end of words may be an artistic embellishment having little or nothing to do with the
meaning of the glyph itself.
Cases in point would be the combination sets c, C, and D. When D ends a word, it
almost always has a tail, d. The same is true of the combination sets ', u, and U found in
the middle of words. One is tempted to conclude that these are no different than the N, n, and
m glyphs found at the end of words. an 8 in the middle of a word many times appears as an *
at the end, and there are probably a few more examples Ive omitted.

Combinations

From many of the standard glyphs come sets of combination glyphs. c generates C,
D, and d. c combinations also include characters such as @. ' generates u, U, n,
m, and N, and when combined with the s glyph generates S and t. Another similar series
is generated with the * glyph. When the ' is added, we get glyphs such as p and P.
The w glyph has a set of combination glyphs all its own. This glyph gives us the
variations W, x X Y y and also z and Z. (There is one occurrence on folio 1v of the
glyph .) When combined with the gallows glyphs we get I, H, G and F. As is to be
expected in a handwritten and laboriously composed document, many minor variations of these
standard glyphs are present in the Voynich. Some wierdos are probably errors or corrections,
and others may indeed have altered meaning.

As DImperio suggested, this transcription differs little from others in that it embodies the
above theory of construction, but steps have been taken to encode enough information to allow
for easy global changes in the event another Voynichologist wishes to test another approach.







What follows are the current assignments for the A-Voynich
Transcription, which, while incomplete at this point, demonstrates
the current methods of transcription, and invites others to offer
criticism designed to improve on this model.



A-Voynich Glyph Set

Chr Code Name A-V Chr Code Name A-V
!
33 Exclamation

=
61 Equals


34 Double quote

>
62 Greater than

#
35 Hash

?
63 Question mark
?
$
36 Dollar

@
64 At sign
@
%
37 Percent

A
65 A

&
38 Ampersand

B
66 B


39 Apostrophe

C
67 C
C
(
40 Open bracket

D
68 D
D
)
41 Close bracket

E
69 E

*
42 Asterisk
*
F
70 F
F
+
43 Plus sign

G
71 G
G
,
44 Comma

H
72 H
H
-
45 Minus sign

I
73 I
I
.
46 Period

J
74 J
J
/
47 Forward slash

K
75 K

0
48 Digit 0

L
76 L

1
49 Digit 1

M
77 M
M
2
50 Digit 2
2
N
78 N
N
3
51 Digit 3

O
79 O

4
52 Digit 4
4
P 80 P
P
5
53 Digit 5

Q
81 Q

6
54 Digit 6

R
82 R

7
55 Digit 7

S
83 S
S
8
56 Digit 8
8
T
84 T

9
57 Digit 9
9
U
85 U
U
:
58 Colon

V
86 V

;
59 Semicolon

W
87 W
W
<
60 Less than

X
88 X
X
Y
89 Y
Y
l 108 l

Z
90 Z
Z
m 109 m
m
[
91 Open square bracket

n 110 n
n
\
92 Backslash

o 111 o
o
]
93 Close square bracket

p 112 p
p
^
94 Caret

q 113 q

_
95 Underscore

r 114 r

` 96 Grave accent

s 115 s
s
a 97 a
a
t 116 t
t
b 98 b

u 117 u
u
c 99 c
c
v 118 v

d 100 d
d
w 119 w
w
e 101 e
e
x 120 x
x
f 102 f
f
y 121 y
y
g 103 g
g
z 122 z
z
h 104 h
h
{ 123 Left brace

i 105 i
i
| 124 Vertical bar

j 106 j
j
} 125 Right brace

k 107 k

~ 126 Tilde



A-Voynich Supplemental Glyph Set

Chr Code Name A-V Location
[folio/line]
Chr Code Name A-V
161 Inverted exclamation

f1v/9 188 One quarter

162 Cent sign

f11r/5 189 One half

163 Pound sign

f1v/7 190 Three quarters

164 Currency sign

f1v/10 191 Inverted question mark

165 Yen sign

f15v/2 192 A grave

166 Broken bar

f33v/8 193 A acute

167 Section sign

f42v/2 194 A circumflex

168 Umlaut or diaeresis

f42v/14 195 A tilde

169 Copyright sign

196 A umlaut

170 Feminine ordinal

197 A ring

171 Left angle quotes

198 AE ligature

172 Logical not sign

199 C cedilla

- 173 Soft hyphen

200 E grave

174 Registered trademark

201 E acute

175 Spacing macron

202 E circumflex

176 Degree sign

203 E umlaut

177 Plus-minus sign

204 I grave

178 Superscript 2

205 I acute

179 Superscript 3

206 I circumflex

180 Spacing acute

207 I umlaut

181 Micro sign

208 ETH

182 Paragraph sign

209 N tilde

183 Middle dot

210 O grave

184 Spacing cedilla

211 O acute

185 Superscript 1

212 O circumflex

186 Masculine ordinal

213 O tilde

187 Right angle quotes

214 O umlaut

215 Multiplication sign

236 i grave

216 O slash

237 i acute

217 U grave

238 i circumflex

218 U acute

239 i umlaut

219 U circumflex

240 eth

220 U umlaut

241 n tilde

221 Y acute

242 o grave

222 THORN

243 o acute

223 sharp s

244 o circumflex

224 a grave

245 o tilde

225 a acute

246 o umlaut

226 a circumflex

247 division sign

227 a tilde

248 o slash

228 a umlaut

249 u grave

229 a ring

250 u acute

230 ae ligature

251 u circumflex

231 c cedilla

252 u umlaut

232 e grave

253 y acute

233 e acute

254 thorn

234 e circumflex

255 y umlaut

235 e umlaut




Folio 1v


hw29 wo8am oe oeiwc9 was Fas ap

9icc9 was os ow9 8wo eho89 oho8as wo89

8o H9 Ho H9 x9 8hyC9 I9 hoiwo89 8ae

8oe wohco 8aS 8ap 2owc9 wo ho89

goio9 Woe 8aS Goae 8as wc9 io89 oioam Woy9

woh9 woe Ioe Woe ohae 8oewc9 wo8o eoe w9 I9

4o oe wo'@ wcoe 8oe Ic9 9hoe 8oe 8oeo 9hoe 8oewo89

ohoeWoe hoe hcw9 woe h9 woe Ioe wo89 woe 8am

Wos ohoe woe 8oeh9 8as Woe 8wos oiwo 8as o89

Ioos woiwc9 8ae wo89 2wo89 goe wo8as

Line 7 - 4o with a line over it may also be represented by code 163, .
Line 9 The character, code 164, appears to be unique.
Line 10 - While this g is probably a normal character, an alternate representation would be code
164, .
Folio 2v


hoom wcogwos oiamo8an wos 8aS Wi9

hwohw9 Wo Woe 4oiWo eoD2 4oi9 wos 8am

oiwo wos ey9 woe wo89 wo8an wI9 8am

Wo woeo wcos wo8am
Folio 4v

gwoom hyco hwo9 wogw9 8oe82 8eo8

oe wc9 w9 I9 xhwos Wco wcos9 woe89

Wo Wo wam Wam 8am 4o8am oasap

4ohw9 4oI9 woicoe 8am Ic9 woam

Wo s WC9 j oiom yc9 4oiwom wo8an

9iwo9 yohw9 Go89

iosw9 Wccos wos Wohw9 G989

oed wos Ioe Wo oios Ios9

4ooho Mw'o* wI9 Woh9 8am

oiam yco ohco89 woe wohco89

Wo hwcos Wo89 Wiam 4oioe 8am

4oh?9 Wo oicoe 2 hC9 Was was o89

yo89 2 wcos woho89 xo8am 4oi9

owo89 w9hc9 wio89
Folio 7v


goe9W9 Wc9 iwo89 4ogw9 oiWoe 898am iwo8o89

wow9 I9 8am 4oh9 wGZ9 8am Ioe I9 I8

4ohw9 89hw9 whC9 hy9 h9 i9 8os wcc9 oe wcoe89

woi'd oCas wo2w9 8an yo hW9 Woe 8Cc2 8oe

8wo8am 4oiw9 wC9 iwC9

hwos Wco8 Wco8am Wo8am ohWoeWoe 8aS 4o2

ohWo8DN wosw'os o8am woiw 8oe 8os am

4oiCco swowCo89 4oiwc9 ico ohwos 8am

wo hcco 8at woiw9 8os 8coe 89 8oe8am
Folio 10v


gam 8am Wco gwC9 4oi9 8am Ios oi989 2an

8an 8am H9 wIos wom 4oi wo8am I9 8am

8Wo 9ic9 hwoe oei9 woe 89

4oiw9ios Wom 8am 4oiwc9 Wciw9 9ios 8an

Wo9hC9 8am 4oiw9 4oios woe 8am 4ohw9 h9

Wom wos WI9 4oi9 4oiom 4ohoe wosam

4ohoe w9h9 woewch9 8am 8an wHaN
Folio 11r

iWoe 2woae F9 Wf98am G9 yc9 iwo89 yo9i9

2oIo89 4o8os9 iW9 8am 9iw9 9iw?h9 hwoe 8am

4oi9 woe I9 8os 9h9w9 woi9 8an wam 8am 8o8

8woe w9 hw9 89 8am

iwoe wos Wos 8h9 9 8am I9 89 wo8e 8am


o8e 829 oioe wam 9hwos 8aS wo89 I9 2 8am

4oiw9 ohwoe I9 89
Folio 11v


goe8wo89 WG9 Wos89 4oi9 Woe Gas 8aN 9

Woe 89 wH9 WI9 8am 8ap 9hw9 8an 8w9

oiwos 89 hw9 iw9 8as 4ohw8 oh9 woe89 89

4ohwos woeoeos w9h9 8w9 4oh9 Io iwc9 ia

2o989 4oiC9 4oi wos 89 889 Ios W9 asp

owcos hWo 8os Ic9 2 woe8
Folio 15v


gosos osW9 wom 8iwaN ogwos89

wos os oso s am I9 ian 8as

Ios 8am 4ohos ohcos oham

8om woh9 Woe4oh9 4oiwo8

oiwos wos wos 9iwos I9 2

4oiwc9 woi9 ham oiw9 s am

zo9 wot yo 2 w9 2 w9 ios oe2

9iwos wos oe om oi9 yoe 8am

oiwoeoIoe woe woe wo89 haN

2os wos Iom I9 4oham

2oe om wcos woe 8am I9

8am Ios woe wos

Folio 16r

gowco89 4ogwc9 29ham ogw98os 9w9 8am 89 wos osop

9w9hw9 oie9 hoe Xos o89 oio89 4o9 oC2os89

98os Wcae ohw9 4o9hom woh9 9haS

8ano8 9wcaeo8

iwos wos w2 9hw WoI9 ogw9 i9h9

oWam 89h9 oCc2 8Do8 am 8ioam

8am 8aew9 89h9 2 w9 2 am 8oae 4oh9

Woiw9 98an 9h9 Wo89 oioe 8am

2am 9iam

iosos 8ae98ae ogw9 fwoe 9gwoJ9 ohae

2ohw9 4ohoe woi9 ohw9 I9 w9 hw9

89wohw9 WI9 Wiy9 Wo iwoh98

4ohwos 8e 89 yc9
Folio 33v


iasas8am 98an Ic9 8oe2 Wch9 osam x

hw89 8ap 89 oh9 oiae 8an w?9 9iap oiap wap

8as wH9 89 89h9 H89 oh9 8ap ohas89 hop89

iohas W89 8ae 4ohos W8 oio89 wc89 9hc89 8o8e 8om

iw89 wo89 oham wH9 8os ase I9 89i989 9has wch9 89

9w2o 8as oeam ohas w89 w89 oe89 ohas w89

iW89 Wcfw89 WH89 oeic89 8am oh9 wcoe osan w89W89 gosas

8as as WC9 hC89 ohw9 ohas ohc89 w9 8am 889 8as am ohas9

2as osam wos os WhaS Woe os wH9 asam ohan 8ae89

ewoas os wc9 eo8am o os ohcc89 ohae9

ias ae hC9 osap
Folio 42v


iwoj Wcc9 4owo iam Woe2 woe wos 8an

8Wc9 iwc9 9 hwc9 wiw9 9 8aN 8an oioe 8am

yo woio89 woioe oh9 woe woe 8ewI9 oio9

4oiw9 whw9 2as 89 o8aue 9hw9 ohoe8*

wohcco s wc9 wciaN 2 as9 ohoe wciam

ohcohcos wcoiwas 29 2am Ias8ap

woh Wco hc9 hD9 8 wchcc2W9

2o8ae 2am

goWcos Wo was wchwc9 4oho8 yo Gco sw9

2wos ohwc9 w9 yoe oeos wcam ziw9 iwd 8

4o am 4ohcc9 hwoe wcae oicoe8 Wc9 icam 8

woiwcc9 woe oe wam oiccam whw9 iam 9

yo wc9 icos Wc9 wcIc9 8am wohcc9 8am

4oiC9 w9 hw9 I9 C2 woe9 2asas an ae

wohc9 woe ohc9 ohos o8cc9