The Voynich Ninja

Unfortunately, the images of Aga do not have any reference (shelf mark), but they appear to be from several centuries before the Voynich MS, and to my inexpert impression Visigothic (Spanish).

Here are some additional seal icons (signature seals) from that time period. They were especially popular in Spain but I sometimes see them in other countries.

The basic shape that resembles the "thunder" icon (loops with points between the loops) was quite popular for seals.

Examples from the blogsite of Dr Ainoa Castro:

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Left: Notary seal of queen Urraca (1105 C.E.)

Additional examples from the site of David Thomas:

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So... not quite a thunder icon, but they do have similar elements and documents with these seals often also have gallows-style literrae elongatae.

I can see all the pics

In my paintings I also have Spain in mind. But it could also be Portugal.
Found another remark.
"Petro_Samos_Tuy"

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I wonder if the emblem of the XII Roman legion "fulminata" might be related with Hidegard's symbol. The emblem is discussed on the You are not allowed to view links. Register or Login to view. heraldry site, where de Bara’s You are not allowed to view links. Register or Login to view., 1581 is mentioned.

The same symbol was used as an emblem of Jupiter (e.g. the 167 AD You are not allowed to view links. Register or Login to view.).


Properly, the Roman emblem represents lightning or thunderbolt, but they are obviously closely related to thunder. It shares with Hildergard's emblem:

• the basic cross-like shape
  
• arrows pointing in four different directions
  
• wings
  

The main difference seems to me that Hildegard's emblem, like the other emblems in her complex diagram, is a "personification", in this case based on four animal heads.

I believe that the 1581 illustration is based on Renaissance archaeological findings, possibly on Roman coins. I am far for sure that the Roman emblem was known in the middle-ages, so the similarity with Hildegard's may be coincidental.

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Something only partially related: You are not allowed to view links. Register or Login to view. representing the invention of gunpowder uses the same word next to Hildegard's symbol (tonitrua / thunders) with reference to cannons:
"Manu quati tonitrua atque fulmina Datum videtur inferis ab invidis"
which I interpret as "Artificial thunder and lightning; this looks like a gift from hateful hell".

Thunder... Thor... but also Jupiter.


The symbol for Taranis is a wheel with four spokes. Also, the Celtic sun wheel is sometimes crafted in a similar way.


The Taranis wheel with bolts added would look similar to the Hildegard symbol (but without the personification).

(08-07-2020, 05:28 PM)MarcoP Wrote: You are not allowed to view links. Register or Login to view.(e.g. the 167 AD You are not allowed to view links. Register or Login to view.)

Ah, Stockstadt. That's really round the corner from where I live. The site has been given up and they built a huge factory. Rather ugly part of the banks of the river Main.

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Nice that some pieces have survived.

Its a little tangential to the topic but science is so cool :You are not allowed to view links. Register or Login to view.

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By reading scholarly work in the art history field, I've found consistent use of a very similar shape to the "Thunder Symbol" in a series of manuscripts produced by a Barcelona atelier (artist's workshop) led by an unknown artist called "The Master of St. Mark."  The shape is used within the border of most of the illustrated pages of this manuscript, Yates Thompson 31.  It does not appear to be used to represent thunder, but rather a consistent decorative portion of the borders of many of the illustrations.  This manuscript is catalogued as dated to the late 14th century, but I was unable to verify exactly where that date came from sources available online. 

Note that this particular manuscript is interesting in it is a Catalan prose version of Le Breviari d'Amor, written by Matfre Ermengaud an "encyclopedic" work in Occtain that had been originally written in octosyllabic rhyming couplets.  It also includes both Catalan and Hebrew text, linking an intriguing Jewish aspect to this particular manuscript.  There are lots of the typical Medieval symbols (zodiac-type imagery, etc) in this manuscript, and, as is typical, some parallel the Voynich, and some do not.    

But the main point is that, in the 1940s, an art historian used this star shape (in part, there was much other evidence provided) to attribute not only other manuscripts, but also altar pieces and other art work to this same "Master of St. Mark" workshop.  His paper is 
Italian Style in Catalonia and a Fourteenth Century Catalan Workshop
Millard Meiss
The Journal of the Walters Art Gallery
Vol. 4 (1941), pp. 45-87

which is available for free on the JSTOR website.

In this paper, Meiss stated that the dating of all the various works was difficult with what they had then and discussed mid-fourteenth century, and certainly one of the most famous artists attributed to the atelier, Ferrer Bassa, lived from 1285-1348.

Among the manuscripts that Meiss discussed that have this shape are Decretum Gratiani (Add MS 15274-5) located at the British Library (see figures 34 (architectural detail, slightly different) and 36 (border, very much the same)); Llibre Verd located at the Barcelona, Achivo Historico (see figure 30, very much the same); and Missal (Ms. 112) located at the Archive de la Corona (figure 37, slightly different).  I was unable to find online these additional manuscripts (note I am quite new to trying to track these things down so they could be there), but the black and white photos of the article do include the shapes. Thus, I think it is reasonable to say this particular shape is considered reflective of this particular Barcelona workshop.

Please note that this particular manuscript was found previously by Darren Worley (in 2016) and discussed with Marco in this thread on Stephen Bax's website for its unusual use of human figures holding stars.  The particular page discussed is what I linked at the opening of this post.

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You need to scroll way down in the comments to get to the part where Darren and Marco discuss this manuscript.  A definitely interesting detail.

Because of the earlier dating of the use of this symbol, it seems more likely that it was present in a manuscript that the Voynich author/draftsperson saw and used, rather than it being an indication that they were somehow directly related to the Master of St. Mark atelier but further research would be needed to determine if this atelier could be considered to have still been functioning at the carbon dating of the Voynich.  In my opinion, the Voynich would certainly be a much coarser, less polished work of art than any of the other manuscripts attributed to this workshop, a further argument that the symbol was taken from a source, rather than it being indicative of an association with this group of artists with the Voynich.

Well found, Michelle. 

There is little doubt that this figure is meant as a floral embellishment; in the fig. 30 of the article you linked, it is even on a stalk like a flower. To some extent, it seems like the logical consequence of the "building blocks" this artist likes to use for his embellishments. That is, a disk with four disks attached. A disk with four "spikes". And so on. Combine them all, and you get our symbol.

The major difference seems to be the lack of a "donut" in the middle, which is present in Hildegard and the VM. And the color.

Interestingly, in his figure 34, it is placed in the sky/ceiling, and there it does get the central "donut".