Where did you get that hat?

Originally part of another tread, the introduction of the Virgo of Prague [Post #18] started a new line of investigation.

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The hat on the Virgo of Prague is detailed and seems fairly distinctive <what do I l know about hats?>, and the VMs representation is potentially similar but ambiguous as usual. Further investigation apparently stalled out for lack of additional evidence.

Imagine my surprise to find a similar hat represented twice, particularly given the source. 

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In both illustrations, a lady on the right wears a decorated, blue hat much like the hat on the Virgo of Prague.

The source is a 1460 French remake of Epitre d'Orthea. The dedicatory illustration shows Philip the Good and his three sons.

There is a person in folio 86v holding something that looks like a Globus cruciger (the orb and cross) in one hand.

In the other hand, said person holds something that looks like a flagellation birch rod (a bundle of leafless twigs bound together).

The person looks like a female with exposed breasts.

Since the Globus cruciger is a symbol of authority, perhaps it is worth investigating a possible link to 15th century royalty.

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Many researchers find VM parallels in analysis of old manuscripts. I believe the zodiacal maps in the VM have closely fashioned similar maps and charts in other readable books or manuscripts. It makes me think that if some researcher found a chart of which the VM is similar, could that be how we establish a key to break the VM code? 
Assuming No matter what the squiggle in Voinichese is, if the number of letter positions matches the numbe of letters  in Gemeni, Tauris, etc, then we have the start of a deciphering.

Part of my thinking is that the VM is a derivative document that copied work that has been produced before by others. The scribe took the easy route and copied over the chart and the language, but encrypted it. For me, the only value of the encryption would be to protect any alchemical recipes. Of course, making potions from non existant plants is tricky

Here we can speculate as to what the man in the top center might represent. My guess is the following:

1) The hooked nose is striking. In the Middle Ages, connections were made between a person's physiognomy and his characteristics. Polemon wrote:

Polemon: Textbook of Physiognomy
Chapter XXVI <Physiognomics of the nose>.
....
The nose of a vulture ... and blunt betrays fornication and a predilection for sensuality.
....
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2) The large ring also stands out, possibly indicating the man's high status.

3) The hand gesture with the accentuated fingertip of the index finger could represent the so-called “digitus virilis” (cf. Ger. eleventh/stiff finger 'the eleventh/stiff finger'). In the Rutland Psalter such a gesture is very probably depicted as marginalia.
   

We could therefore be dealing with a frivolous nobleman. Perhaps a metaphor for spring ? This is of course all highly speculative, but in my opinion quite possible.

Could the multi-point stars which presumably are used to signal a footnote and also are held by bathing nymphs be edelweiss depictions?

The edelweiss (noble-white, Leontopodium nivale) flowers have five to six small yellow clustered spikelet-florets (5 mm, 3⁄16 in) surrounded by fuzzy white "petals" (technically, bracts) in a double-star formation, see You are not allowed to view links. Register or Login to view..

Similarly, the stars in the cypher manuscript have a yellow center and multiple (five, six, seven, eight or nine) white rays.

Note that in other star depictions from the 15th century, the stars are shown entirely in yellow and do not have white rays.

Please kindly share your opinions.

The attached image hints at the possibility that the scribe inadvertently revealed in folio 70v (Pisces) that '8' is in fact 'd'.

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Abstract of work by Alexander Hartman

A percolation model inspired by crossword puzzle games is introduced. A game proceeds by solving words, which are segments of sites in a two-dimensional lattice. As a test case, the iid variant allows for independently occupying sites with letters, only the percolation criterion depends on the existence of solved words. For the game variant, inspired by real crossword puzzles, it becomes more likely to solve crossing words which share sites with the already solved words. In this way avalanches of solved words may occur. Both model variants exhibit a percolation transition as a function of the a priori site or word solving probability, respectively. The iid variant is in the universality class of standard two-dimensional percolation. The game variant exhibits a nonuniversal critical exponent ? of the correlation length. The actual value of ? depends on the function which controls how much solved words accelerate the solution of crossing words.
A percolation model inspired by crossword puzzle games is introduced. A game proceeds by solving words, which are segments of sites in a two-dimensional lattice. As a test case, the iid variant allows for independently occupying sites with letters, only the percolation criterion depends on the existence of solved words. For the game variant, inspired by real crossword puzzles, it becomes more likely to solve crossing words which share sites with the already solved words. In this way avalanches of solved words may occur. Both model variants exhibit a percolation transition as a function of the a priori site or word solving probability, respectively. The iid variant is in the universality class of standard two-dimensional percolation. The game variant exhibits a nonuniversal critical exponent [size=1][font=MJX-STX-ZERO, MJX-STX-N]? of the correlation length. The actual value of ? depends on the function which controls how much solved words accelerate the solution of crossing words.[/font][/size]

I was digging deep into the "Hausbuchs" and related traditions. Bull hunting, you know. This eventually led me to the Katalog der deutschsprachigen illustrierten Handschriften des Mittelalters (KdiH). 

This led me to the section: 87.3. Heinrich Laufenberg, ›Regimen‹  You are not allowed to view links. Register or Login to view.
And from there to You are not allowed to view links. Register or Login to view.

Images here: You are not allowed to view links. Register or Login to view.

Now comes the important part. In three consecutive folios (You are not allowed to view links. Register or Login to view., You are not allowed to view links. Register or Login to view., You are not allowed to view links. Register or Login to view.), we see:

• A lady with a flower (summer of life)
  
• An older woman with a stick and a chain (autumn of life)
  
• A doctor with a skull cap holding up a vial of yellow urine to the light to perform uroscopy
  

Quote:Medical illustrations found in all subgroups are the bloodletting man , the zodiac man , the urine examination and the bloodletting . The latter forms of treatment were carried out by the physician, surgeon or barber. It is not possible to distinguish between the university-trained doctor, the surgeon and the barber based on the illustrations, so the descriptions do not specify them more precisely and always refer to the doctor or physician. In the picture they can be identified by various attributes such as the red cap (the so-called cappa), a long coat and a glass of urine.
[...]
Uroscopy, which is frequently depicted , is performed by the doctor holding a glass of urine up to the light and thus analyzing the color and consistency. This activity is particularly significant for the representation of the profession of medicine

   


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The Hausbuch thickens.

After reading Rene's discussion of the asterisks on the Rosettes folio, I thought I would post a few images of other common illustrations that we see on the page.

On the top of the causeway connecting the bottom centre rosette to the bottom right rosette we see an illustration of circles with dots in the centre. We also see the same kind of illustration on the left side of the causeway between the bottom right rosette and the centre right rosette. I take these two to represent the same kind of thing. And given my map interpretation I view them as a representation of a certain kind of countryside. I have labelled them as rocky country,    although it is possible they could represent some else such as forest or another kind of countryside.

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