I don't think I've seen any "a" in the manuscript that look like that. Note the long s-curve tail. There are some pretty strange "a" shapes in the VMS, but they tend to look like "o" or like EVA-ch (which is maddening because there's almost no dividing line between them, it's almost like a gray scale).
But it was a VERY common style of 9 (with the loop not quite connected and the double-curve tail). In fact, that style of nine is at the bottom of the column text on You are not allowed to view links. Register or Login to view. , because the Latin "9" abbreviation was sometimes included at the end of the alphabet in pen tests.
One thing I noticed while creating my VMS transcripts was that the scribe was very reluctant in many cases to turn the sheet until it was absolutely necessary. I particularly noticed this when text was written within narrow bands in a complete loop. The text would start to slant at hand-turning angles until it was too far around to do it that way any more and then the folio would get turned and it would straighten out for a while until it came around a corner and it happened again. It occurred to me that this might give a clue as to how the scribe created the ms. On a table, it's not hard to turn a sheet. On a podium-style surface, it's a nuisance (you have to hold it or prop it).
The tiny loop (the one we associate with a degree symbol) is in the right orientation for reading it as a nine. The little "o" was usually slightly to the right of the letter (unless it was "q" abbrev., then the loop was sometimes directly over, but "q" wasn't shaped this way).
I'm not going to insist it's a 9, but it's drawn exactly right for a medieval "9" symbol (which was a common abbreviation symbol and also a numeral). Here are some examples so you can compare for yourself:
![[Image: SCurve9.png]](https://voynichportal.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/06/SCurve9.png)
But it was a VERY common style of 9 (with the loop not quite connected and the double-curve tail). In fact, that style of nine is at the bottom of the column text on You are not allowed to view links. Register or Login to view. , because the Latin "9" abbreviation was sometimes included at the end of the alphabet in pen tests.
One thing I noticed while creating my VMS transcripts was that the scribe was very reluctant in many cases to turn the sheet until it was absolutely necessary. I particularly noticed this when text was written within narrow bands in a complete loop. The text would start to slant at hand-turning angles until it was too far around to do it that way any more and then the folio would get turned and it would straighten out for a while until it came around a corner and it happened again. It occurred to me that this might give a clue as to how the scribe created the ms. On a table, it's not hard to turn a sheet. On a podium-style surface, it's a nuisance (you have to hold it or prop it).
The tiny loop (the one we associate with a degree symbol) is in the right orientation for reading it as a nine. The little "o" was usually slightly to the right of the letter (unless it was "q" abbrev., then the loop was sometimes directly over, but "q" wasn't shaped this way).
I'm not going to insist it's a 9, but it's drawn exactly right for a medieval "9" symbol (which was a common abbreviation symbol and also a numeral). Here are some examples so you can compare for yourself: