# # Identification: # # * Title: "Pisces" # * Page: f70v2 = JE (Rene) = p133 (Stolfi) = 135 (Reeds) # * Folio: f70 # * Panels: f70v3, f70v2 # * Bifolio: bJ1 = f69+f70 # * Quire: J (Rene) = X (Beinecke) # # This page spans the two outer verso panels of a six-panel fold-out. # The outermost panel is narrower than normal panels. # # Newbold calls this 70r. # Levitov figure 26, page 172. # D'Imperio figure 10, page 88 (center). # # Roe, 8th September 1993 # Machine translated from a transcription in Bennett notation of 16/04/90 # # Attributes: # # * Language: ? (Currier) # * Hand: ? (Currier) # * Subsets: Z (Rene), zod (Stolfi) # * Subject: zodiac # * Colors: green,blue,red(sparingly,mouths),yellow(stars) (Reeds), green(hor_tubes),blue(some_nymphs_hair),blue(fish_fins,fish_lines) (Rene) # # Description: # # Three concentric rings of text (units 程R1}, 程R2}, and 程R3}, # inner to outer), each bounded by a pair of faint, mechanically # drawn circles. # # Just outside the innermost ring of text there is a narrow band of # abstract decoration (Greek-like meanders, notched strips, # hatching, etc., and "notched square" motifs), delimited by another # mechanical circle. # # One can see a small portion (the Northwest quarter, mostly) of # another mechanical circle, just inside the middle ring of text. # This arc of circle appears to bound, and even clip, the "nymph" # drawings inside it (see below). # # In the centre of the diagram there are two fish, the top one # facing West, the bootom one facing East. Each fish has a long, # smooth, pointed snout (vaguely like a tapir's) and horizontal # mouth (the top fish is smiling, the other is sad). The body is # slender like a sturgeon's, with four rows of coarse scales. # To the body are attached a triangular tail, pectoral and ventral fins # (presumably paired), and two short dorsal fins (one just behind # the head, one 2/3 of the way to the tailfin). The tailfin is lobed # and divided into "feathers", like a bird's tail. # # Rene reports [04 Apr 1999] that the fishes are drawn in the same # ink as the text; while the "month name" is in slightly darker ink. # # There is a seven-pointed star above the fish, with a Voynichese # label (unit 程C}); and another one below, unlabeled. Between the # two fish there is a word in non-Voynich script, whose strokes # seem thicker and more angular than the Voynichese label above. # # Two thin threads connect the fishes' mouths to the top star. The # threads merge just below the star, and connect to it between its # two lower rays. Both threads run clockwise; the lower one passing # below the fishes, thickens shortly after leaving the fish's mouth, # and at its lowest point it sends off a branch that connects to the # highest ray of the bottom star. # # Between the inner and middle rings of text there is a broad band # containing 10 human figures or "nymphs", each coming out of a # horizontal cylinder, painted green. These cylinders look like # sections of drainage pipe, with flanges at both ends (cf. f78r). # All cylinders, except the one at 11:00, open counterclockwise, and # the nymphs face in the same direction. The nymphs have most of # their legs inserted horizontally into the "pipes", but bend quite # unnaturaly, bacwards or sideways, so that their torso is upright # (i.e. radial, with the head outwards). # # Between the middle and the outer text rings are 19 (not 20) # nymphs. All are standing (radially, with the head outwards); all # are in frontal view, or slightly turned towards the clockwise # direction. Each of these nymphs is inside an upright barrel or # basket, reaching up to her waist (with only a couple of # exceptions). In proportion to the nymph, the barrel is about two # feet wide, and has a "lip" a couple of inches wide. All barrels # are decorated with various abstract patterns---stripes, hatchings, # circles, waves, etc.. The base of the barrel is hidden by the text # band. The four nymphs at the top, between 11:00 and 01:00 are # smaller and more cramped than the rest (and so are their barrels). # # All figures are naked, and seem to be female: all have (or may # have) full breasts, and many have visible nipples. (But the inner # nymph at 09:00 seems to have nipples below her breasts.) # # There is a star (or flower) next to each nymph, supported by a # wire-like tail---sometimes straight, sometimes S-shaped. All inner # nymphs except 10:00, 09:00, 08:00 are holding their stars by the # "tails". All other nymphs have their hands hidden inside the # barrels, and the star tails are coming out of the containers or # cylinders. # # Each of the 29 figures is labeled with a ``word'' or phrase of # Voynich text (text units 程S1} and 程S2}, inner and outer bands). # The spacing suggests the label is always placed at the right (i.e. # clockwise) of the corresponding nymph. # # The following table summarizes the nymph attributes. The "spos" # column says whether the star is placed clockwise ("cw") or # counterclockwise ("ccw") of the nymph; for inner nymphs that is # also the direction where the tube is open. The "hold" column says # whether the nymph is holding the star (by a ray, or by the tail if # present). The "brst" column tells whether the nymph has visible # female breasts. # # band label place brst spos tail hold notes # ----- ----- ----- ---- --- ---- ---- ---------------------- # inner S1.1 11:30 ? cw no yes # inner S1.2 00:15 ? ccw no yes right arm raised # inner S1.3 01:30 ? ccw yes yes? # inner S1.4 03:00 yes ccw yes yes # inner S1.5 04:15 yes ccw yes yes # inner S1.6 05:30 yes ccw no no # inner S1.7 06:15 yes ccw no yes # inner S1.8 07:30 ? ccw no ? on top of fold # inner S1.9 09:00 yes ccw yes no nipples under breasts? # inner S1.10 10:15 ? ccw yes no # # outer S2.1 11:30 no cw yes no smaller # outer S2.2 11:45 no cw yes no smaller # outer S2.3 00:15 yes cw yes no smaller # outer S2.4 00:30 yes cw yes no smaller # outer S2.5 01:00 yes cw yes no # outer S2.6 01:30 yes cw yes no # outer S2.7 02:00 yes cw yes no # outer S2.8 02:45 yes cw yes no # outer S2.9 03:30 yes cw yes no # outer S2.10 04:15 no cw yes no male? # outer S2.11 04:45 yes cw yes no # outer S2.12 05:30 yes cw yes no # outer S2.13 06:30 yes cw yes no # outer S2.14 07:00 no cw yes no # outer S2.15 07:45 yes cw yes no # outer S2.16 08:30 yes cw yes no # outer S2.17 09:30 yes cw yes no # outer S2.18 10:15 yes cw yes no # outer S2.19 10:45 yes cw yes no # # There is a smudge right next to the left edge of panel f70v3, # which could be a couple of erased characters. # # Comments: # # STYLE AND LAYOUT # # Although the nypmhs are a bit awkwards and deformed, it looks as # if this drawing was done with more care than the other "Zodiac" # diagrams. (However, this impression may be due simply to better # preervation or reproduction.) # # The fishes look quite realistic, except for the mouths. However # they may have been "invented" rather than copied from real models. # # The barrels in the outer group are not well drawn; the sides are # neither parallel nor radial (i.e.vertical), especially in the one # at 10:45. The perspective is not quite correct ---the top is # tilted too much towards the viewer, and in four cases (05:30, # 06:30, 10:15, 10:45) it is drawn as an eye, not an ellipse. The # decoration however curves around the barrel, as it should. # # It seems that the artist planned to add another band of decoration # just inside the middle text ring. He/she lightly sketched the # inner bounding circle of that band, and carefully avoided it while # drawing the inner nymphs from 08:00 to 01:00. (By the way, this # explains why the nymph at 07:30 has her face crammed against the # fold.) But the nymphs from 01:00 to 08:00 overflowed that circle # (perhaps because it was too faint in those parts), and the band # was left undecorated. # # From the kinks in the circles, and the appearance of figures and # text near the fold, its seems that the fold was already present # when the drawing was made. # # THE FISH EMBLEM # # The two fish are obviously the astrological symbol for Pisces, # which is February 20th to March 20th. # # Rene Zandbergen [23 Feb 96] reports seeing an illustration of the # Pisces symbol [2] very similar to the center picture of f70v2, in # anatomy and proportions. # # Rene [14 Mar 1997] notes that whenever there are two things in a # zodiac symbol (Cancer, Libra), or two copies of a diagram (Taurus, # Aries), one is light and the other is dark; but pisces is an # exception. (But "dark" and "light" may be just reproduction noise; # we should look at the original colors.) # # THE "MONTH NAME" # # The word between the fish could be "(m|n)((a|ci)(v|r)|w)(c|g)" in # Latin script, and is traditionally read "mars". Mars is French for # March. The first letter resembles the last letter of # (the "michiton" line). # # THE CENTRAL STARS # # Don Latham [25 Apr 1997] notes that the star must be al-rischa # (the rope-knot) from his constellation atlas. [The label is # "otolal" in the best transcription.] Rene [5 Jan 1998] reports # howeer that "alrischa" is a late assignment. # # Mark Sulla [26 Apr 1997] adds that # # Hipparchos and Ptolemy called it "sundesmos ton ikhthuon" or # "ton linon". Cicero et al called it "nodus", or "nodus # caelestis" and "nodus piscium" Pliny called it the "commissura # Piscium" The Almagest called it "nodus duorum filorum". The # asterism of the threads was variously called "vincla", # "alligamentum" "linteum" or "luteum". Hevelius subdivided it # into the "linum boream" and "austrinum". [1] # # Rene [28 Apr 1997] observes however that the label need not be the # name, it could be some indication of its position: X deg Y min. He # also notes that alrischa belongs with the *constellation* of # Pisces, not the *sign*. # # Rene [28 Apr 1997] suggests that Polaris would be a possible # candidate for the star, on account of its distinguished position # in the VMS. Don Latham [] objects, why should Polaris be in # Pisces? # # Denis Mardle [28 Apr 97] notes that "otolal" does not seem to # occur in his files, but "otalal" does occur on , # , , , , # . [??? Check the numbers] # # THE TEXT RINGS # # According to Denis Mardle [14 Mar 97], the nymphs in tubes suggest # that the diagram should be read from the inside out. # (Unfortunately most text unit have been numbered the other way...) # # Denis also observes [14 Mar 97] that a line through the two stars # in the center points 11:00, and goes through the only inner nymph # who is facing clockwise. Stolfi [here] thinks that the odd nymph # was reversed so as to face the 12:00 gap, and the 12:00 nymph # (with oustretched arm), because that is the "important" place in # that band. # # THE NYMPHS # # Stolfi [11 Aug 1998] observes that f70v2 seems to go against the # general trend of the Zodiac section: as one goes from Aries to # Sagittarius, the nymphs get progressivley less clothed and more # exposed. So perhaps f70v2 was drawn after Aries. # # Rene [14 Mar 1997] thinks that the nymphs coming out of tubes # strongly suggest birth (whether it be a person or the cosmos). On # the other hand, the disappearance of the barrels in subsequent # diagrams may be simply a result of the artist becoming more hasty. # # Rene [14 Mar 1997] suggests also that the nymphs in tubes could # be linked with the alchemical concept of creation of a homunculus. # # NYMPH/STAR COUNT # # This folio is exceptional in having only 29 nymphs and stars. Rene # [8 May 1996] suggests that the star in the center may be the # missing 30th star. (But then why not count the other central star, # too?) He also mentions Pietro d'Abano, a 14th century occultist, # in whose astrological system each sign was divided into 30 "faces" # or parts. # # Robert Firth [note 20] conjectures that the "29" was a mistake, # and the number should have been "30", like all other "months". # But that is the Pharaonic Egyptian calendar; why would anyone # revive it? # # Stolfi [here] thinks the artist had planned to draw 20 nymphs in the # outer band, by drawing 4 small ones at the top, then 4 more in each of # the four quadrants. This he did in the first three quadrants, going # clockwise; but then he got confused (perhaps by the fold), and drew only # 3 nymphs in the last quadrant, from 09:00 to 12:00. # # THE STAR LABELS # # Denis Mardle [27 Mar 1997] notes that 16 of the star labels start # with EVA "ok", 8 start with "ot", 2 start with "yt" --- and yet all # are different. # # Denis also notes that labels and (old # S1.13 and S1.14) both occur on Libra as and # . # # Robert Firth [note 07] observes similarities between # the nymph labels on f72v2 and those in the Biological page f82v. # # WHY PISCES? # # Guy Thibault [4 Mar 1996] finds it strange that the VMS zodiac # begins with Pisces, instead of Aries as is usual in astrology. # Robert Firth [note 20] observes that the Egyptian year began in # our July, with the heliacal rising of Sirius. # # Dan Moonhawk Alford [4 Mar 1996] and Adams Douglas [29 Apr 1997] # note that Pisces is actually astronomically correct (and has been # for many centuries). But Robert asks --- why, alone of all works # of Western astrology, is the Voynich Zodiac true to the stars? # # Rayman Maleki [08 Sep 1997] says that a 15th century rebirth of # astrology and medicine gave Pisces astrological control over the # body. Pictures from this time often have a person standing firmly # on the fish. He mentions a drawing of an apothecary shop in Prague # that had two fish as symbol on the sign. # # Rayman [08 Sep 1997] suggests that, alternatively, Pisces may be # the beginning of the planting year. Or the VMS may be a reading # for someone born in Pisces. Rene [17 Jul 1998] proposes as a # possible VMs author a certain George of Trebizond, who "had a firm # belief in astrology and wrote that his fated life was controlled # by his birth in the sign of Pisces." Moreover, he was once jailed # because of his `libido'. # # Glen Claston [25 Feb 1998] says that he saw EVA "&169" used as a # power seal symbol related to Pisces, in a book on Honorius in an # occult shop, but the book gave no reference to its origin. # (Honorius was 13th? century but all related symbols in the # paperback were 14th century.) # # Rene [21 Apr 1997] and Denis [24 Apr 97] mention a set of # conjuntions of Saturn and Jupiter in 1464, 1524 and 1583 in # Pisces; the 1524 was believed to announce a terrible deluge # because of the watery sign. # # ZODIAC, OR SOMETHING ELSE? # # Guy Thibault [4 Mar 1996] suggests that the signs could stand for # years in the life of an individual, and each nymph for a month; # and that the "kings' and "queens" could be real historical people. # The 9 nymphs in tubes of this picture could be the 9 months in the # womb. Robert Firth [note 07] proposes a similar idea - that the # "zodiac" is a list of "lucky" and "unlucky" days. # # Rene [8 Mar 1996] takes up Guy's suggestion and estimates that the # individual shoudl have been 25-30 years old at the time of # writing, or died at that age. But there are 10, not 9 nymphs in # horizontal tubes, so this period is more likely post-natal than # pre-natal. As for kings and queens, he mentions that Agrippa's # sister became queen of Navarre... # # References: # # [1] "Star Names, their Lore and Meaning", Dover, Richard Hinckley # Allen, p. 342 (re: Al Rischa). # # [2] "The history of private life", volume 2 of 5. The caption says # "`La Manekine' which is in the Cambrai Library" (that should be # Cambrai in France). # # # Last edited on 1999-04-21 08:42:52 by stolfi