> [Nick Pelling:] (1) The large numbers of "+" characters
> throughout give the superficial impression of a spell or
> incantation - however, I'm not 100% convinced that this is
> actually the case.
It is curious, however, that there is an extra cross above the last
word of the second line, whose reading in Rene's alphabet (which is
overall a very good match for the letter forms of f116v) seems to be
"maria". That's of course Mary in Latin, Spanish, Italian, or
Portuguese.
Appending a Christian dedication/invocation to a book which may be
construed as pagan/heretical appears to be a standard safety practice
in those times; witness Dee's "angelical" diaries. I would think that
a dedication to Mary (instead of Jesus or God) would hint to a woman
author. (But this is defintely not a hard rule!)