02-01-2026, 06:23 PM
It never even crossed my mind that the script was gibberish. I don't call it text, and that's why it's not gibberish to me. Yes, I do believe it was produced using a quasi-mechanical system, as slot-based analyses have shown, especially Zattera's slot system.
But that doesn't mean it's meaningless. It might not make sense to us, but it would have to its creators and to medieval people. What I actually believe is that it was done using a volvelle to fix celestial objects—the sun, the moon, and the fixed stars—and their positions on the ecliptic. It's like an iconic astronomical code.
But as I said, for me, as I believe for its authors, this is secondary, since the codex's true message lies in its images, in the way they express the power of celestial influences. It is an astrological herbal.
Contrary to Stolfi's assertion, it is uncertain that attention was initially focused on the illustrations. Since Kircher's time, the aim has always been to decipher the text, as it is assumed that the script conceals a secret. When the images have been studied, it has been individually—the plants, for example, or the zodiac figures, or something else entirely—but never as a whole. It gives the impression that the Voynich Manuscript has been treated as a compendium of various subjects, rather than as a monographic codex with a clear plan to convey a single subject in a complete and unique way.
But that doesn't mean it's meaningless. It might not make sense to us, but it would have to its creators and to medieval people. What I actually believe is that it was done using a volvelle to fix celestial objects—the sun, the moon, and the fixed stars—and their positions on the ecliptic. It's like an iconic astronomical code.
But as I said, for me, as I believe for its authors, this is secondary, since the codex's true message lies in its images, in the way they express the power of celestial influences. It is an astrological herbal.
Contrary to Stolfi's assertion, it is uncertain that attention was initially focused on the illustrations. Since Kircher's time, the aim has always been to decipher the text, as it is assumed that the script conceals a secret. When the images have been studied, it has been individually—the plants, for example, or the zodiac figures, or something else entirely—but never as a whole. It gives the impression that the Voynich Manuscript has been treated as a compendium of various subjects, rather than as a monographic codex with a clear plan to convey a single subject in a complete and unique way.