The Voynich Ninja

(16-06-2026, 11:03 AM)Koen G Wrote: You are not allowed to view links. Register or Login to view.Focusing on the color annotations themselves again, there are some examples in the Italian manuscript Pierre shared in the You are not allowed to view links. Register or Login to view., namely near the end on f83v. [...] I find them somewhat similar in feel to those in the VM

Indeed they are remarkably similar.  I would think that the Scribe copied that part of that plant from some herbal manuscript that was unpainted but had color annotations, like that manuscript that Pierre shared.  Given his inferred skill level, it would not be surprising if he did not know what those letters were.

Quote:Marco has managed to figure out the expected colors for these coats of arms.  [...]He is not sure exactly how "z" stands for blue, but there are several options.

Gemini says that in 14th century Old Venetian, Veronese, or Lombard the word for "blue" was often written "zurro" or "zuro", without the "a".  Moreover, in that context the letter "a" would have meant "argento" = "silver" (or "white" in blazonry). 

Gemini also says that "azzurro" (and Spanish "azul") derive from Arabic "lāzaward" = "lapis-lazuli", the mineral source of the "ultramarine" pigment.  The "l-" was part of the root but was dropped when the word became naturalized in Italian and Spanish.  Then the "a-" was dropped in some places. Perhaps because it was mistaken for the Arabic definite article...

All the best, --stolfi

The critical edition says the following about the drawing (which used to be on the last written page): 

Quote:Il copista od il correttore del manoscritto, in ogni modo l'autore dei disegni che ornano il racconto azariano e che vengono riprodotti nelle tavole II e III, si dilettò di disegnare nell'ultima pagina del manoscritto una scena mitologica di gusto umanistico: un leone che sbrana un cervo, mentre un fiero centauro lancia una treccia contro la fiera. Al disopra del disegno stanno tre stemmi, cioè quelli dei Valperga e dei San Martino sormontati dallo stemma sabaudo, poiché i Savoia erano già supremi signori dei feudatari canavesani. Era destinato il codice ad un qualche omaggio ?

The cross was not annotated becuase it was meant to remain white!

Right, that's what Marco also told me but I was puzzled about it for a moment. The Savoy cross is not supposed to have subdivisions, nor a ring in the centre. However, I now believe these lines must have been sketches, to be erased in the painting stage. It's definitely Savoy.