The Voynich Ninja

This is just a brief note to alert readers of the forum to the very interesting new ideas about folio page You are not allowed to view links. Register or Login to view. that Koen has recently posted on his blog at the following link: You are not allowed to view links. Register or Login to view.

Koen's post mainly concerns the imagery of You are not allowed to view links. Register or Login to view. , but his interesting new insights inspired me to take a fresh look at the text of You are not allowed to view links. Register or Login to view. as well. My comments on this topic can be found at the following links on the same site and page:

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I encouraged interested readers to check out all of these new ideas and see what you think.

Geoffrey

That's some pretty solid and convincing teamwork from Koen et al there!

Today I came across some white aspodel (Asphodelus albus) which looks a lot like the plant on You are not allowed to view links. Register or Login to view. (bad photo coz I was being shouted at to hurry up)
[attachment=5460]

It's a beautiful plant, though what exactly are the similarities? Probably the fact that there appears to be like a 'designated section' for the berries?

I see mostly differences:

- different leaf shape
- different leaf arrangement
- single berries vs. clusters like grapes
- flowers vs. no flowers (they could have fallen off in the VM, but why? It usually draws flowers)
- different apparent habit (though I'm sure the vine-like qualities of the VM plant can be debated)

Yeah, you're right, it's a crap ID.
Still, I like the way it is self-segmented, llike the one under discussion.
The plant is a long self-supporting tendril which droops, like the f17v, and each segment is clearly self-contained - root, leaves, berries and end.
The berries do cluster out on branches (see further down) and further up the stalk they are starting to push out on branches.
You can't see it in that photo of mine, but the leaves do come out on stalks and then open up into a leaf.
The flower looks nothing like the top of the VM flower.
I would suggest that the split root of the VM indicates that the plant can grow several tendrils at once from a single root, but that for whatever reason (space, artistic intention) the artist only drew one tendril / stem.
What I liked about it was the reference that asphodal (also known as King's Spear) was associated with death and mourning - the Greek believed that ordinary but well behaved souls were escorted to their afterlife by the asphodal, which stood proud as if the spear of the soldiers escorting the King. Another Greek story says that asphodal was the favourite food of the dead, and that it blanketed the plains of Hades (source: my plant app).
A perfect fit with "tendrail face".
BTW, I think I actually saw asphodelus cerasiferus, or Royal Staff, but I'm not sure.

Note this You are not allowed to view links. Register or Login to view. - anything familiar about the roots?


The roots are long and bulbous (albeit one bulb per root)