Botanists trace Voynich Document to the New World (South America)

The American Botanical Journal have published an article where they compared plant drawings to the world's geographic plant distribution at the time of the manuscript's first recorded appearance (ca. 1576-1612). The similarities between a plant illustrated in the Voynich Manuscript and the soap plant depicted in the 1552 Codex Cruz-Badianus of Mexico — considered the first medical text written in the New World — propelled the authors down a path leading to the identification of 37 plants, 6 animals, and 1 mineral in the manuscript from the Americas — specifically, from post-Conquest Nueva España (New Spain) and the surrounding regions.

cms.herbalgram.org...

reply to post by stormcell


Thanks! I have been interested in the Voynich Manuscript since I stumbled on it years ago.
Some of them are pretty obvious, and I love that they have identified more of the plants. I can't wait to see what language they determine that it was written in, I would love to read a full translation as well.

Yep.. thats pretty awesome.

They have a general location so now they will be better able to find more clues to the script. It may be entirely possible this language was an ancient south American culture that died out. Normally for newly discovered languages there will always be a relationship someplace in the modern language structure that will give clues to deciphering the older text. So far, they haven't found any for this manuscript when compared to all modern languages. They are going to have to dig very deep for this one and in the process they must discover other cultures and languages that relate to the text. This will be the real treasure not the text of the script itself.

I have been fascinated by this manuscript for a very long time and it looks like new clues continue to be discovered. Who knows, maybe one day they'll have this thing deciphered. Hopefully while I'm still alive... I guess we'll see about that.

reply to post by JohnPhoenix


I had a similar thought, that a native Spanish speaker was attempting to phonetisize a new world language into a familiar text for future reference. It will be interesting to see what else is uncovered regarding this document. I had given up hope long ago of anything being discovered in my lifetime so this is pretty a amazing find and eagerly looking forward to seeing wht else turns up.

Hello everyone!! I've been interested in this subject for a long time now, I'm amazed that someone finally figured it out, what a find this is!!! I can't wait for a translation of the entire text, it could prove to be very interesting!!!

reply to post by stormcell


AWESOME! All I have to say, I remember the first time I read about the Voynich manuscript I literally looked at all the online scans for hours on end.

This might explain the use of code, to protect the secret of the discovery of the 'new world'. Maybe this also explains some of the crudity of the illustrations, it was a cursory initial guide for internal use by the discoverer's, and not so much intended to be shared among natural philosophers of the day (i.e. what was then the scientific community).

Hmm...not surprising. A couple of those plants looked very familiar (some of the cactus plants). Most looked more exotic than what I had seen before. Of course, I am nothing like a botanist, or even a gardener.

Bittersweet, though, having such a great mystery solved.

reply to post by stormcell


This is a bit off topic, but, a little bit relevant in consideration of the Voynich Manuscript.

Those interested in the Voynich may also find interest in a modern author's own slant on illustrating a coded field biologist's manuscript from a journey to a quite surrealistic reality.

What's this? It's the:
CODEX SERAPHINIANUS (link to FULL pdf of the Codex may take a minute to load)

This extremely strange piece of work is very similar to the Voynich Manuscript in that it's written in an entirely unknown language, and filled with colorful, detailed, and exquisitely boggling images.
In one of the sections depicting some geography, it would seem to imply the book illustrates an alternate Earth, complete with an Atlantean-esque landmass outside the Straights of Gibralter.

Give enough time over to piecing together the story in examining the drawings all throughout the Codex, and you'll likely have dreams about it, such is the hypnotic suggestive effect some of the work would seem to invoke.

Anyway, yeah, it's a really strange piece of work, put together by a modern, living author, and, there's even tell of a third edition reprint with additional material in the coded language and illustrations.

To date, the author is yet to spill any hints about the book, other than making a statement that the entire thing was dictated to him by a cat, or somesuch.

reply to post by stormcell


I have always wondered if the Voynich manuscript was either from / or translated from Atlantis / some place in the Antediluvian past.

To me it seems to fall into the same category as the map made by Turkish Admiral Piri Reis. His map was supposedly based on over 20 other source documents going way back in history. So far back that it accurately showed what Antarctica looked like prior to there being 2 miles of ice on top of it. That would mean documents dating back over 12k years.

Maybe this manuscript is based on what was once found on Atlantis?

If the book was carbon dated sometime between 1404–1438 then someone, an Italian perhaps was running around south America decades if not a century before Chris Columbus,if so then what a loss for that individual or individuals this is what happened when disclosure takes too long to be revealed.

The mystery is not solved at all. I´ve been studying this MS for many, many years and what these two gentlemen present is nice and all, but nothing new.

The link with native, now extinct languages, such as Nahuatl, has been made years ago by various independent researchers already. Claiming that the MS is post-Columbus / post-Spanish New World is ridiculous and goes against long-established evidence to the contrary in a variety of research fields.

It´s nice that some of the plants are now positively identified, but the conclusions these gentlemen draw are not very well considered.

Pre or post Columbus, it's still New World plants, and the botanical area is pretty narrowed down. These aspects are new to me, as well as many others.
At this point, the question that remains isn't so much a "when" for me, but a "who". Who were you, author? An unknown explorer who didn't make it back from the NW? If the book was passed on to later explorers, that could explain how it made it back. It could have ade it back to Europe the same way even if it was a lost ship or ocean nomad, someone who's boat was left at the mercy of the currents or simply followed them (quite the leap of faith, though, there's other things before reaching the shores of Central America)

I'm betting that if this is pre-Columbus, it might have been created by an explorer. Probably someone without backing of the powerful, probably a very small crew. Sifting through records to find someone who'd have been able to have the funds to do it on their own (food/medicine;supplies stockpiles) might be fruitful, or it might not be. Needle in a haystack without the promise of the needle at the end comes to mind. On the other hand, how many exploratory voyagers did the countries of the Old World fund before Columbus? Could this be something as simple as the survivor(s) of a voyage left marooned in the NW?

However, if the carbon dating was off (and we know this isn't perfect and has date range flaws) then I'm willing to accept something not so mysterious & romanticized. I.E, that it is a post-Columbus creation. It's still a linguistic accomplishment worthy of admiration either way.

AliceBleachWhite
CODEX SERAPHINIANUS (link to FULL pdf of the Codex may take a minute to load)

... To date, the author is yet to spill any hints about the book, other than making a statement that the entire thing was dictated to him by a cat, or somesuch.

Lending it somewhat more credibility than plenty of other things. Cats, at least, we have evidence for...

The Voynich Manuscript is fascinating. This and a few other things like the Dropa Stones (and their context) are the kind of cultural anomalies and mythos I find probably the most interesting stuff ever.

a reply to: stormcell

Very interesting! And here's an article that Marco Polo reached the new world first - thru the Pacific Ocean in the 1200s.


www.inquisitr.com...
STUNNING NEW MAP FOUND THAT INDICATES MARCO POLO DISCOVERED AMERICA IN THE 1200s
"The incredible discovery of 14 documents kept in the trunk of an Italian immigrant who settled in San Jose, California, may change history. In particular, the map found among the documents could be an incredibly stunning find.

"Crudely drawn on sheepskin, the map depicts what appears to be the Bering Straight, Alaska, the Aleutian Islands and the west coast of North America — specifically, Washington state. The map also indicates that it was Marco Polo, not Christopher Columbus, who made the voyage, and that it happened in the 1200s."

originally posted by: MKMoniker
a reply to: stormcell

Very interesting! And here's an article that Marco Polo reached the new world first - thru the Pacific Ocean in the 1200s.


www.inquisitr.com...
STUNNING NEW MAP FOUND THAT INDICATES MARCO POLO DISCOVERED AMERICA IN THE 1200s
"The incredible discovery of 14 documents kept in the trunk of an Italian immigrant who settled in San Jose, California, may change history. In particular, the map found among the documents could be an incredibly stunning find.

"Crudely drawn on sheepskin, the map depicts what appears to be the Bering Straight, Alaska, the Aleutian Islands and the west coast of North America — specifically, Washington state. The map also indicates that it was Marco Polo, not Christopher Columbus, who made the voyage, and that it happened in the 1200s."

Wow great find but I gotta ask how likely is it he got to South America,from so far north not saying it's impossible but a trip all the way from north to south mostly by footing it without the use of a ship or just maybe he was part of some Chinese imperial surveying mission meaning credit goes to the Chinese although he gets props for being a keen walk a bout.
About the Voynich Document if it goes back 1404–1438 at it's earliest then that's some 200yrs gap in time from Marco Polo's visit to the Americas,in any case I find that not only he but others were milling about in Kamchatka far away for their sunny clime of the Med simply amazing.

a reply to: AliceBleachWhite

I clicked the link and it gave me a warning pop up box listing that as an attack site !!!!

PLEASE remove the link

a reply to: ujustneverknow

This happened to me as well. If it was not for my protections, it probably would have infected me as well.
This link needs to go, post haste.

a reply to: charlyv
Try this link same story
Map shows Marco Polo may have discovered America in the the 13th century - 200 years before Christopher Columbus
www.georgianewsday.com... ore-christopher-columbus.html