ORF has just announced that its 45-minute Voynich documentary “DAS VOYNICH-RÄTSEL” (the Voynich riddle) will be broadcast on ORF2 (on Astra) at 21:05 on Thursday 10th December.
Well-known Voynich researcher René Zandbergen (who has been involved in the documentary’s production) has kindly passed me an English translation of ORF’s brief online description:-
The Most Mysterious Manuscript In The World.It is the most mysterious manuscript in the world: a book written by an unknown author, illustrated with drawings that are as bizarre as they are enigmatic – and in a language that could not be deciphered by the best cryptographers in the world. No wonder that this manuscript even plays a role in Dan Brown’s new mystery bestseller “The Lost Symbol”. Since its discovery 100 years ago, the Voynich Manuscript has equally captivated both scientists and occultists. The breakers of the Japanese “Purple” code, physicists with modern computers or expert historians – they all tried their luck, but so far nobody could decipher the contents of this book. This documentary follows a new trail that could lead to the author, using the first ever forensic investigation of the book itself to try to break the secrets of this mysterious manuscript.
A documentary by Klaus Steindl and Andreas Sulzer.
OK… though it’s true that the VMs only gets namechecked in “The Lost Symbol”, and that it has attracted far more interest from novelists than it ever has from occultists, I (along with most other Voynich researchers, I confidently predict) can barely wait to see what they’ve come up with.
I really hope that Klaus and Andreas have managed to do a good job of (a) the history, (b) the forensic science, and (c) putting the two halves together in a coherent and persuasive way. Fingers crossed for them!
Just to point out that, though the programme will be on Astra, it will also
be encrypted, to my current best knowledge.
So it’s finally here.
I can barely wait to see what they’ve come up with.
But what can we, the poor souls who don’t live in Austria, do to watch this documentary?
If the Cipher Mysteries coverage isn’t enough for you 🙂 , then all I can suggest is waiting until it gets broadcast elsewhere, which surely can’t be that far behind…
I’d better get on with my publication-quality PDFs, since I want them to use my PDFs for a follow-on book!
I will pass on all hard facts once I have them.
For now, I know that it will also be aired on ARTE, which is freely available
all over Europe. The language there will again be German (and French???).
This should take place roughly one month after the initial show on ORF.
At some point it should also be possible to buy the DVD with at least English
and German.
For the time being rather unprecise information, I am afraid.
New trail, can’t wait to see this!!!
Ps. Renè are you still up to organizing the Villa Mondragone thingy? 2012 is just around the corner….
It’s not like it’s the end of the world, Michelle. 😉
Hmmm, some sort of event at the Mondragone at the 100th anniversary of
Voynich’s discovery still seems like a good idea in general, but I have to
admit that I haven’t got any clear ideas what it should be like.
Organising a proper conference in one’s spare time is completely out scope
for me, I’m afraid. I’d play my part in a group effort, though.
I knew someone would say that!!!
9.15am. Opening session. Nick Pelling. “Evidence for the origins of the Voynich Manuscript.”
9.22am. Fistfights break out over what constitutes “evidence”.
1.00pm. Pizza (uneaten) and sandwiches.
1.15pm. Fistfights resume (Hall and now Conference Room B as well).
5.30pm. Closing speech. Steve Ekwall. “ThE VoYnIcH MaNuScRiPt RoCkS”.
Who couldn’t organize that? 🙂
5.45pm. Kiss and make up?
There is a link to a 55 second trailer for the documentary here:
http://tvsales.orf.at/db/db_single?caller=961&ka=docume
I could not get the top one (mpeg) to work, but the lower link, the .wmv file, worked. Rich.
Is there anywhere on-line that one may be able to watch the documentary — possibly a few days after its initial airing? I guess I’m thinking of something along the lines of “Hulu.com”.
Thanks for that link Rich!
This ‘recently discovered signature’ bit is from the original flyer of April 2008,
and I know that they know better. The images are new. The text could
be old… (at least I hope 🙂 )
Nick, your description of the conference assumes that people would
actually be listening attentively what the others are saying. I think it would be
a great step forward 😀
Better not bring in the pizza’s too early.
I certainly think they’d be listening… up to the word “evidence”. That’s when the rotten fruit would start flying! 🙂
Thanks for that, Rich – though as Rene notes, the text does seem rather outdated. If I didn’t know better, my guess is that this was a flyer originally edited together to present to overseas TV networks. 🙂
As a cryptology aside, the fragment of C code that appears about 15 seconds into the trailer comes from the FEALNX Linux module http://www.filewatcher.com/p/fealnx.tar.gz.2449/fealnx.c.html. The original FEAL (Fast data Encipherment ALgorithm) was intended as a high-speed replacement for the DES cipher, which then (when it was busted) evolved into FEAL-8, FEAL-N, and then finally FEAL-NX (hence the name). Just so you know! 😉
The plot thickens.
Possibly, the programme will *not* be encrypted. Looking at this page:
http://tv.orf.at/program/orf2/primetime/20091210/
it clearly says ‘ORF 2 Europe’ which would mean that it is visible through
Astra. The same term appears in the left margin of the original link already
given by Nick above. I don’t think that this was there before…
More info as soon as I have it…
First cluster:
077 AARDAPPEL
078 ASENICION / SENICION / GROUNDSEL
079 —– DOTTER / WATERLELIE / GELE PLOMP
080 BASILIKA
082 —– EIKEL ?
084 BLAUW FORTUIN / BLUE FORTUNE / ANIJS / DROPPLANT ?
085 BIJVOET / ALSEM
086 —– ASTER ?
087 BIESLOOK
093 BLAUWE VIOOL
094 BOL —
095 CRAIAM
097 GROTE BALSAMITE / GRANDE BALSAMITE / POSTERATA / POSTELATA / POSTELEIN
100 GROTE GENTIANA
102 GROTE BIESLELIE
109 LEEUWEN POOT / PEDO LEONIS
110 LAVENDEL (KUIF)
111 LUCIFERPLANTJE
116 VLAMBLOEM
119 PASSIEBLOEM ?
121 NETEL
123 DRAGON / DRAECANA
135 DUIZENDBLAD / ACHILEA
136 CREEPER (Klim plant )/ SKY FLOWER / INDIA (Edith Sherwood)
138 ALRUIN MANNETJE / CENTAURI / MANDRAGORA
138 VELDBIES
139 ZONNEBLOEM
Second cluster:
141 APPEL / GOUDAPPEL / POMA AMORIS
142 BEKER —–
146 BRAAM /FRAMBOOS
148 GERUBIJN / GODSBODE / HEMELING / Cherubijn / serafijn / Aartsengel
150 SLANGENWORTEL / WATER ARON
153 STOK RADIJS
156 ST PATRICS DAG PLANT / SHAMROCK / KLAVERTJE 3
158 MOEDERKRUID (of Muurfijnstraal)
159 SLANGENKRUID
170 WORM HOUT
177 WORTEL BASILICUM / ZOETE BASIL /BASILIS / BASILICUM ?
178 WORTEL NETEL / DOORN
179 WORTEL PRIJ
180 WORTEL PEE
181 ZWARTE — BES
182 ZWARTE STOKROOS
185 ZWARTE DUIVELBLOEM / BAT PLANT
(Left some out )
First cluster:
077 AARDAPPEL
078 ASENICION / SENICION / GROUNDSEL
079 —– DOTTER / WATERLELIE / GELE PLOMP
080 BASILIKA
082 —– EIKEL ?
084 BLAUW FORTUIN / BLUE FORTUNE / ANIJS / DROPPLANT ?
085 BIJVOET / ALSEM
086 —– ASTER ?
087 BIESLOOK
093 BLAUWE VIOOL
094 BOL —
095 CRAIAM
097 GROTE BALSAMITE / GRANDE BALSAMITE / POSTERATA / POSTELATA / POSTELEIN
100 GROTE GENTIANA
102 GROTE BIESLELIE
109 LEEUWEN POOT / PEDO LEONIS
110 LAVENDEL (KUIF)
111 LUCIFERPLANTJE
116 VLAMBLOEM
119 PASSIEBLOEM ?
121 NETEL
123 DRAGON / DRAECANA
135 DUIZENDBLAD / ACHILEA
136 CREEPER (Klim plant )/ SKY FLOWER / INDIA (Edith Sherwood)
138 ALRUIN MANNETJE / CENTAURI / MANDRAGORA
138 VELDBIES
139 ZONNEBLOEM
Second cluster:
141 APPEL / GOUDAPPEL / POMA AMORIS
142 BEKER —–
146 BRAAM /FRAMBOOS
148 GERUBIJN / GODSBODE / HEMELING / Cherubijn / serafijn / Aartsengel
150 SLANGENWORTEL / WATER ARON
153 STOK RADIJS
156 ST PATRICS DAG PLANT / SHAMROCK / KLAVERTJE 3
158 MOEDERKRUID (of Muurfijnstraal)
159 SLANGENKRUID
170 WORM HOUT
177 WORTEL BASILICUM / ZOETE BASIL /BASILIS / BASILICUM ?
178 WORTEL NETEL / DOORN
179 WORTEL PRIJ
180 WORTEL PEE
181 ZWARTE — BES
182 ZWARTE STOKROOS
185 ZWARTE DUIVELBLOEM / BAT PLANT