Places of Interest

The following map sets out the world of the Voynich manuscript, along with places of interest - according to my reading.

The centrepiece of my reading concerns the ALPENGLOW and has its locus in the Rosengarten mountains.

There are certain places of interest around this locus. 

Brixen

My earliest surmise was that the work might have been written in Brixen. This is the seat of the relevant bishopric. It still seems a likely place for the origins of the work. 

The acute point of interest near Brixen is the Saben Abbey. 

I remain of the view the manuscript may have been written at Saben. 

Bolzano - Castle Runkelstein

I continue to have suspicions that the author or illustrator was familiar with Castle Runkelstein, just outside of Bolzano. 

Brescia

In my estimation, a certainty has settled that the author was familiar with and inspired by the Canones of Ptolemy in the possession of the Bishopric of Brescia. 

Udine

Udine is of interest because a candidate for authorship, Giovanni Fontana, was muncipal physician in Udine in the relevant period. 

Lienz

Finally, I mention Lienz as a place of interest, marking the political anomoly of the Gorizia-Tyrol state, a Friulian intrusion into the region. I see this as another possible place for the creation of the work. 

The Gorizia enclave was collapsed into the Hapsburg territories just prior to the first notice of the Voynich ms. in the court of Rudolf II. 

The languages of this world are Italian, German, Latin, Friulian (Ladin) and an assortment of minor local languages. 

Essentially, it is a borderland between the Germanic (Bavarian) world of the north, and the Italo-Latinate world of the south. 

Slovene is the language immediately to the east and intrudes westwards in a few places. 

* * *

The scenario that emerges here is set out in the map below.

The scenario is: somebody from within the radius of the Rosengarten area has become acquainted with the Canones of Ptolemy in Brescia. 

They have then applied the Helios mythology and astronomy - a solar doctrine of light - from the Canones, to the ALPENGLOW of their home region.

The most likely connection would be between Brixen and Brescia - the two bishoprics. 

That is: someone from the Bishopric of Brixen has travelled to the Bishopric of Brescia and become ascquainted with, and inspired by, the Canones of Ptolemy. 

They have interpreted and reached an understanding of the solar symbolism of the Helios minature in the Canones and how it is to be applied. 

They have then returned to the Bishopric of Brixen and applied the solar symbolism of the Canones to the local tradition of the mountain ALPENGLOW, matching the two solar symbolisms. 

The Voynich ms. is the result of this application of the solar symbolism of the Canones to the symbolism of the alpenglow (and local herbal traditions) in the Brixen region of northern Italy. 

Although the connection is between ecclesiastical centres, the motivation of the work is natural-scientific and not religious. The author's perspective is distinctly humanist/classical. 

Most likely, the author's first language was German.

I propose that the author was himself steeped in an alpine cosmology and a local tradition and has applied the classical solar cosmology of Ptolemy's Canones to it. 

The natural interests of the author are herbalism (botany) and pharmacology, but he is equally adept at astronomy and cosmology, and has a deep acquaintance with the Latin manuscript tradition. 

It seems the work was made to be used. It is not a treatise. 

The manuscript is best considered a work of Christian vitalism based on a system of solar (zodiacal) symbolism. 

R.B.