Page f2r

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Identification

  Title: "Petersen's cornflower"
  Page: f2r = AC (Rene) = p003 (Stolfi)
  Folio: f2
  Panels: f2r
  Bifolio: bA2 = f2+f7
  Quire: A (Rene) = I (Beinecke)

Attributes

  Language: A (Currier)
  Hand: 1 (Currier)
  Subsets: H (Rene), hea (Stolfi)
  Subject: herbal
  Colors: green,red (Reeds), red_dots (Rene)
  Plant: 2 (Petersen)

Description

  One plant centered on page.

    Root: left-right symmetrical, planar, looking sort of like 
      headless stick man with outstretched arms and gripping hands.
      Overpainted with dark color.
    Stem: short and thin.
    Branches: two main ones, almost upright, slightly bent.
      Irregular thickness, awkward shape (cf. top right leaf).
      Light-clored with a dark vein grossly painted along the middle.
    Leaves: Dark overpaint, shaped like a triangular fan with five
      lanceolated fingers. Stalk: medium length, looks like a branch.
    Flowers: three, on tip of main branch.
      Stalk: longish, looks like a branch.  Chalyx: an oblong oval
      sweelling at end of stalk, partial dark overpaint.  Petals: many,
      narrow and long; the flower looks like a shaving brush.  Core:
      hidden by petals.

  The page contains two paragraphs (unit P), with 6.4 and 5.4
  lines, both of them left- and right-justified: one at the top,
  slightly narrower, interrupted by three flowers; and one near the
  bottom, interrupted by two branches.

  There is a label in the right margin (unit L), at mid-height,
  squeezed between the leaf and the vellum edge. The letters are
  about half-size, but otherwise look like normal Voynichese.

Comments

  The root looks rather strange, the stems and leaves are 
  somewhat awkward, but the flowers look normal.

  Petersen tentative identification is "cyanus segetum, cornflower
  (caeruleus) (cf 153)". That must be Centaurea cyanus
  (cornflower, fiodaliso, bluet, kornblume). The flower shape and
  branching pattern seem to match fairly well; however, those
  features are not very specific. The color seems to be wrong,
  though (f2r is red, cornflowers are intense blue). Also, the
  leaves of Centaurea cyanus are long and thin, with smooth edges
  or a few very shallow teeth, attached directly to the stem; quite
  unlike those of f2r.

  Infusions of Centaurea cyanus were once used as a febrifugue 
  (whole plant) and eye wash (flowers only).

References

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