[Book] Coffee with a Codex: The Voynich Manuscript (Facsimile)

[bi3mw]

On August 14, Curator Dot Porter will bring out a facsimile of Beinecke Library MS 408, aka The Voynich Manuscript. This is a realistic facsimile that looks exactly like the real thing. Lisa Fagin Davis will also be there.

August 14, 2025, 12:00pm - 1:00pm ( 5pm GMT )

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There is a series called “Coffee with a Codex” on YouTube. Perhaps this event will also be published there ?

[bi3mw]

I emailed Dot Porter, the curator, to ask if there would be a YouTube video after the event. Here is her reply:

Yes, the event will be recorded and the video will be posted to the CWAC YouTube Playlist ( You are not allowed to view links. Register or Login to view. ).

[LisaFaginDavis]

We had so much fun walking through the manuscript yesterday! Here's the recording:

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[Antonio García Jiménez]

Great video. I like how Lisa defends the Voynich as an authentic book with scientific content, which I fully support.

On the other hand, it's a shame she keeps arguing that there's a section dealing with female biology, which I don't support at all. Perhaps she's influenced by a gender bias, but I'm sure that, being the good medievalist she is, she'll eventually change her mind.

[oaken]

That was great and very informative, thank you Dot and Lisa. And You are not allowed to view links. Register or Login to view. for posting it

[R. Sale]

Great program.

Here are some examples of circular text bands.

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[LisaFaginDavis]

Yes, it's quite common in Latin around the perimeter of an image. I was referring to the spiral text in the Rose, which I've never seen in Latin.

[Aga Tentakulus]

I watched the video too. Even though my English isn't great, I'd like to say thank you too.
However, I do have a few questions.
When you turn the pages, it crackles like potato chips. Is it really parchment that's so dry it crackles? And is it like that in the original too? Do old books always crackle like that?
You say that page 12 is missing. Are there any traces of writing or drawings on that section? It could be that it was folded that way to make it easier to bind. The page opposite seems to me to be rather close to the edge. Is there any information about this?

[LisaFaginDavis]

The facsimile is printed on a special kind of paper - almost like some kind of plastic - that has a texture similar to parchment. The actual manuscript's parchment is very soft, supple, and worn, and does not make much of a sound when you turn the pages. Some parchment can be noisy, if it's particularly thick or not well-prepared. 

As for f. 12, it was cut away sometime after the foliation was added in the 1600s. There is no text or pigment on the stub.

[Lissu]

Thank you for the video, Lisa!

Has anyone ever accidentally damaged the original manuscript?