
Fascinated by the Voynich Manuscript? Here are some other mysterious texts you can decode
If bodice-rippers are too boring for your summer reading, take a crack at these other books that have stumped researchers.
Held in the Beinecke Rare Book and Manuscript Library at Yale University, the Voynich Manuscript is often said to be one of the world’s most mysterious books. Filled with unreadable words in an invented script, and illustrated with plants,
The Art Newspaper
July 21, 2021
© Beinecke Rare Book and Manuscript Library, Yale University
fantastic creatures, astronomical symbols and nude bathing women, it has intrigued researchers intent on unlocking its secrets for generations. Was the book created by Leonardo Da Vinci, who was known to write in a mirror code? Does it show plants from Mexico? Is it simply gibberish? All of these theories are unlikely, yet all three—and many more—have been argued over for years as people seek to crack the Voynich’s code.
Related articles
The Art Newspaper
- The write stuff: new analysis on Dead Sea Scrolls sheds light on the scribes behind them (April 2021)
- Has Yale's mysterious Voynich Manuscript finally been deciphered? (June 2020)
SC Exhibitions
- John Dee at the Royal College of Physicians (May 2016)