If you google Wilfrid Voynich, Wikipedia lists his professions as: Revolutionary; Antique Book Seller. How’s that for an interesting shift in live(s)?  If you read up on him, he was switching lanes many, many times in his life, sometimes voluntarily, sometimes forced, in politics, relationships, (pre)occupations and more.

Voynich, Voynich you mutter, where do I know that name from? Most likely in connection with the famous  medieval manuscript that to this day has never been deciphered – a vellum codex filled with an unknown language, drawings of scientific matters, and all kinds of other riddles now residing at Yale. The articles below provide you, in turn, with the newest insights about the manuscript and a short history of Voynich’s life.

Regarding the former, I simply adore the idea that it was after all a hoax perpetrated by some person in the 14oos (carbon dating proved that the codex was indeed generated at that time) trying to make a quick gold ducat from some gullible aristocrat. The smartest cryptographers of our century have not been able to break the code, and the drawings do not concur with any realistic botanicals of our world. It sure fooled many, seemingly continues to fool, for a long time.

Secret Knowledge—or a Hoax?

Regarding the latter, the life of this Polish Leftie, it was one hell of a ride and certainly he’d be on my list of people to take to a deserted island.  (As, for that matter, would be his wife Ethel Boole Voynich, an amazing character in her own right, allied with Karl Marx’ offspring, supporter of revolutionary causes, novelist – here is a video of her on her 95th birthday  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TYoxNOJ5fwk in 1959.) Check her out.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Traversing the Globe….

Just think of a life like this:

http://www.historyfiles.co.uk/FeaturesEurope/EasternPoland_Voynich01.htm

Short summary : Voynich was born in 1864 to a Polish family in Lithuania. While a student at the University of Moscow in 1884 graduating in chemistry, he joined the Polish nationalist movement. A year later, he was arrested and accused of engaging in revolutionary activity. He spent 18 months jailed in the Warsaw Citadel and was sentenced without trial to five years exile in Siberia. There he acquired a working knowledge of some 18 languages (!)  – and here I was proud that I have working knowledge of 4…..

He escaped into Mongolia in 1890, made his way through China and eventually reached Hamburg, Germany, boarding a ship to England.

He joined a circle of political exiles in London and worked for a period translating and publishing revolutionary propaganda for distribution in Russia; he abruptly stopped when his political mentor accidentally died; on recommendation of someone from the British museum who knew about his language skills, he opened a bookshop  in London and quickly gained a reputation as a resourceful and knowledgeable dealer. Unclear where his starting capital came from, although he has been rumored to be allied with wealthy female admirers. In any case, he discovered several astounding books, the Voynich manuscript included, and was convinced until his death that we would crack the code to figure out the black magic contained in it.

The flexibility, the stamina, the determination to survive, the smarts and the ability to adapt all truly impress me.

Please don’t touch. ART!