The Voynich Pipes

[Anton]

I just came across the striking resemblance of the Voynich Pipes diagram to the You are not allowed to view links. Register or Login to view. - the ancient wooden compass of the pomors - the North-Russian coast dwellers.

The idea is that you align the central rod with some reference - in the coastal zone that would be a You are not allowed to view links. Register or Login to view. which was always orientated along the meridian, in the open sea that would be the Sun or the Polar star. In the dull weather one would orientate the windcaster according to the direction of the wind known in advance (that is, usual for this time of the year and place) - hence the name of the device.

It is not unlikely that similar devices may have been employed by seafarers in other parts of the world.

The problem is that with a windcaster, and with a compass in general, the number of divisions would be of course 32, while here it is only 28, and the fact that each one is labeled and thus given an individual meaning does not support the idea of a simple omission.