Voynich Authorship

[Mark Knowles]

while it may seem a logical step to consider that the author of the Voynich MS could be someone in the forefront of cipher develpment, this is actually speculation,

I didn't start from the notion that the author was in the forefront of cipher development. I arrived at my candidate for authorship on the basis of my cartographic analysis of the Rosettes folio quite independent of the subject of cryptography. I, then, have gradually come to learn over time that his brothers were at the centre of cryptographic developments in the city state, Milan, which appears to have been innovating by developing the most advanced ciphers in the world at the time from which the Voynich dates. In fact ciphers which were not improved on in Milan for the rest of the century. These actually constitute two independent lines of reasoning which arrive at very similar conclusions.

1) My Rosettes analysis was independent of any cryptographic consideration as it predates any cipher research on my part.

2) My cryptographic analysis is independent of my Rosettes analysis as I have collected all the ciphers that I can from the time of the Voynich and for all sources. So my analysis has been as complete and general as I can be.

My Rosettes analysis -> Abbot Antonio Barbavara of isolated minor rural Abbey

My cryptographic analysis -> Milanese chancellery producing the most advanced ciphers in Europe at that time(The Ducal Secretary and Head of the chancellery was Francesco Barbavara from 1425 to 1434 and his brother Marcolino also played a significant role. There is concrete evidence that they both wrote the most advanced Milanese ciphers of the time. As head of the chancellery Francesco Barbavara would have been responsible for the cryptographic techniques used)

It could be argued that the fact that two independent lines of enquiry point in such similar directions is more than coincidence.

My Rosettes folio analysis illustrates a circular journey to and from the Council of Basel. A Papal council was called in Basel in 1430, so by analysis the Rosettes folio could not have been drawn before 1430.