One possibility would be to go through the VMs text an make all vords as long as possible, and then go again and make all vords as short as possible. That would give values for x and y.
While this discussion is interesting, the shortness I was thinking about (poorly stated on my part) was not the length of the vord, per se, in number of its glyphs, but the place of a single vord in a segment of text - an otherwise unreadable segment of text. This seems to be a practice common to a number of proposed VMs solutions over recent years. However, it is not sufficient. Making sense of text segments is necessary, if an understanding of the text is possible. "Sense" may not be rational, it might be alchemical. It might be nonsense. One vord in a text segment is not enough to interpret the author's intent. A single vord in a text segment is too short.
So, perhaps, there could be some discussion about text segments. VMs plant pages as botanical monographs has so far turned up empty. Nick Pelling's 'block paradigm' might work if the range of potential candidates wasn't so vast. The investigation of text segments, turns to a question of which segments should be examined.
An alternative to the analysis based on a poetic-type of line-length structure would be a structural pattern within a given text created by the repeated use of particular vords. The outer ring of VMs White Aries is a marked text segment that has significant internal repetition.
The growing set of more subtle religious references is hard to evaluate, Clearly the botanical, astronomical/astrological, and pharmaceutical aspects of the VMs illustrations are more obvious. There are also certain mythological clues: Melusine, the Muses, and Philomela. Do all these other influences in some way moderate the religious influences?
Do the marked examples of circular text segments have a greater significance? Are vords in red ink important? If the VMs "wreath" is the 'Wreath of the Virgin', is the circular text around it the "Office of the Virgin', or some similar form of prayer?
While this discussion is interesting, the shortness I was thinking about (poorly stated on my part) was not the length of the vord, per se, in number of its glyphs, but the place of a single vord in a segment of text - an otherwise unreadable segment of text. This seems to be a practice common to a number of proposed VMs solutions over recent years. However, it is not sufficient. Making sense of text segments is necessary, if an understanding of the text is possible. "Sense" may not be rational, it might be alchemical. It might be nonsense. One vord in a text segment is not enough to interpret the author's intent. A single vord in a text segment is too short.
So, perhaps, there could be some discussion about text segments. VMs plant pages as botanical monographs has so far turned up empty. Nick Pelling's 'block paradigm' might work if the range of potential candidates wasn't so vast. The investigation of text segments, turns to a question of which segments should be examined.
An alternative to the analysis based on a poetic-type of line-length structure would be a structural pattern within a given text created by the repeated use of particular vords. The outer ring of VMs White Aries is a marked text segment that has significant internal repetition.
The growing set of more subtle religious references is hard to evaluate, Clearly the botanical, astronomical/astrological, and pharmaceutical aspects of the VMs illustrations are more obvious. There are also certain mythological clues: Melusine, the Muses, and Philomela. Do all these other influences in some way moderate the religious influences?
Do the marked examples of circular text segments have a greater significance? Are vords in red ink important? If the VMs "wreath" is the 'Wreath of the Virgin', is the circular text around it the "Office of the Virgin', or some similar form of prayer?