14-02-2026, 08:27 PM
Not impossible.
Considering the demographics of medieval Prague, I would guess that at least some of those artists were ethnic Germans like Kyeser who spoke German rather than Czech and would have no issues finding work in other German-speaking territories. Generally we shouldn't underestimate how much and far professionals traveled for work. Whether there's a continuity from the Prague scriptorium to Lauber remains to be seen but is something we should definitely explore. However we should also keep in mind that the Prague scriptorium didn't exist in a vacuum either and the artists likely studied in Germany or Italy before receiving a position at the court in Prague, like Kyeser did. So the root of the VM imagery does not necessarily have to lie in Prague. My bet is on the city states of Northern Italy.
My personal opinion at the moment: plausible yes, necessary no.
Considering the demographics of medieval Prague, I would guess that at least some of those artists were ethnic Germans like Kyeser who spoke German rather than Czech and would have no issues finding work in other German-speaking territories. Generally we shouldn't underestimate how much and far professionals traveled for work. Whether there's a continuity from the Prague scriptorium to Lauber remains to be seen but is something we should definitely explore. However we should also keep in mind that the Prague scriptorium didn't exist in a vacuum either and the artists likely studied in Germany or Italy before receiving a position at the court in Prague, like Kyeser did. So the root of the VM imagery does not necessarily have to lie in Prague. My bet is on the city states of Northern Italy.
My personal opinion at the moment: plausible yes, necessary no.
![[+]](https://www.voynich.ninja/images/collapse_collapsed.png)