Re: VMs: Voynich Manuscript [about to be] Scanned

[Nick Pelling <incoming@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>]

Hi everyone,

At 13:05 14/04/2004 -0600, Dana Scott wrote:
> I just received a note from Beinecke Library stating that "...the 
> manuscript is being scanned in 24-bit color over the next couple of weeks 
> and will be available for study, free over the web within the next 4-5 weeks."

This is truly wonderful news! :-)

Perhaps we should take this opportunity to (very quickly) build up (and 
forward) a detailed list of things they should do in order to really do it 
properly? We surely have a very different (and hopefully complentary) set 
of insights into the VMs...

For 24-bit colour scans, there is a technical issue to do with limited 
dynamic range (only 8 bits per gun), far less than the eye can perceive: 
many pages with a wide dynamic range would better be supported by scans of 
multiple smaller areas within the page.

I would therefore suggest:-
(1) Scanning each of the nine rosettes (and eight causeways!) individually
(2) Scanning the central details of each of the zodiac folios
(3) Scanning the central "four direction demons" area of f57v
(4) Scanning all the non-Voynichese marginalia in high detail:-
        - f1r details
        - f1v top-left group of leaves
        - f4r roots
        - f17r top line
        - f28v centre of flower
        - f49v vertical column
        - f66r "musdel" woman in bottom left
        - f66v scrawl in bottom left
        - f68v3 "Andromeda" smudged stars inside wolkenband
        - f70r1 outermost ring "...oooo..." text
        - f86v central overwritten text & T-O shape
        - f116v "michiton oladabas" page (of course)
(5) Scanning anomalous details
        - f46v hole in parchment
        - f112r / f112v indented text - is there a vellum flaw here or was 
it in the original?
(6) Scanning the quire signatures in detail (to use to try to date the 
handwriting)
(7) Scanning any of the zodiac costumes in detail
        - f71r clothes
        - f71v clothes
        - f72v1 crowned nymph
        - f72v3 crowned nymph
(8) Scanning unclear areas, especially in the balneology section
        - f79r nymph in lower pool
        - f79v "golden fleece" lamb & "mermaid" in pond
        - f80r individual nymphs - details are so hard to make out on this 
page
        - f80v the "brain" shape in the left column + all individual nymphs
        - f82r nymphs in pool, etc
        - f84r smudged text in lower pool
(9) Scanning all the pharma jars (ie bussolotti/pixidae) in the two pharma 
sections (especially the first pharma section) individually

Have I missed anything?

Cheers, .....Nick Pelling..... 


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