#
# Identification:
#
# * Title: "Aries dark"
# * Page: f70v1 = JF (Rene) = p134 (Stolfi)
# * Folio: f70
# * Panels: f70v1
# * Bifolio: bJ1 = f69+f70
# * Quire: J (Rene) = X (Beinecke)
#
# This page is the innermost verso panel of a six-panel fold-out.
#
# Plate 1 of Tiltman's article.
# Levitov figure 24, page 164.
# D'Imperio figure 10, page 88 (center).
#
# Attributes:
#
# * Language: ? (Currier)
# * Hand: ? (Currier)
# * Subsets: Z (Rene), zod (Stolfi)
# * Subject: zodiac
# * Colors: green(touches),yellow(touches) (Reeds), green(bush),blue(floor),brownish_greeen(goat),blue,green_stripes(floor_of_tub_ring_2_05:00) (Rene)
#
# Description:
#
# A circular diagram defined by three narrow concentric bands, each
# delimited by two faint, mechanically drawn circles.
#
# The innermost band is quite narrow, and empty. The middle and
# outer bands contain each a ring of text, reading clockwise. The
# text in the middle band (unit 程R1}) has a slightly wider word gap
# at 06:00, and is interrupted at 08:30 by a black irregular spot.
# (The same spot appears on the facing page f71r, quod videt.) The
# text in the outer band (unit 程R2}) has a noticeably wider word gap
# at 03:45. Both rings are penetrated at 10:30 by "stars"---see
# below).
#
# Inside the innermost band is a four-legged, hoofed animal
# resembling a beardless goat. The animal has short fur (paintd
# brownish-green), sharp horns that curve backwards, and a short and
# chubby tail. It also seems to have a crest of short hairs running
# along the spine, from head to tip of tail.
#
# The animal is nibbling at a bush, standing on a scalloped (rocky?)
# ground. Below the animal's belly is a non-Voynichese word. The
# word could be transcribed as "ab^ril" in the Roman alphabet, where
# the "^" stands for a small mark, resembling a superscript "h"
# (confirmed by Rene [04 Apr 1999]).
#
# In the broad space between the outer and middle bands there are 10
# human figures, or "nymphs"; and 5 more in the space between the
# middle and inner bands---or 15 nymphs in total. Each nymph is
# standing (radially, with the head outwards) in frontal view, or
# slightly turned towards the corresponding "star" (see below). All
# nymphs look female; most have prominent breasts, and the two
# exceptions (in frontal view) are rather poorly drawn, so the lack
# of breasts is not conclusive.
#
# Some of the nymphs are dressed, but the nipples and body outline
# often show threough the dress. Most nymphs, even naked ones, wear
# some kind of headgear (hat, veil, diadem, etc.)
#
# Every nymph is standing inside an upright cylindrical container or
# "barrel". In proportion to the nymph, the barrel is about two feet
# wide, and has a "lip" a couple of inches wide. It usually reaches
# up to the nymph's pelvis---sometimes bit lower, sometimes up to
# her chest. Most of the barrels are decorated with distinctive
# patterns of bars, dots, hatchings, circles, scales, etc.; but two
# barrels have only a ring of dots, near the top edge, and three are
# undecorated. The base of the barrel is hidden by the text band.
# Rene reports [04 Apr 1999] that the tub in the outer ring at 05:00 has
# green stripes and a blue floor.
#
# Each nymph has a star or flower by her head; usually on the
# clockwise side, with four exceptions (inner 00:00, 02:30, 05:00,
# and outer 03:30). Some stars have wire-like tails or stems. The
# star at 10:30 in the inner band has a thicker, distinctive tail,
# like a banded snake. Moreover, the two stars at 10:30 (inner and
# outer) intrude slightly into the surrounding text ring.
#
# Some nymphs are holding their stars (by a ray or by the tail);
# others are pointing at them; and some have both hands on the hips,
# usually hidden by the barrel.
#
# Between every two nymphs there is a one- or two-word label (units
# "S1" and "S2"), reading clockwise. From the spacing, it would seem
# that every label refers to the preceding nymph, going clockwise.
#
# The following table summarizes the nymph and star attributes. The
# "spos" column gives the position of the star relative to the
# nymph: "cw" if clockwise, "ccw" if counterclockwise. The "deco"
# column tells whether the barrel has "full" decoration, or just a
# ring of "dots", or "no" decoration at all. The "dres" and "brst"
# columns say whether the nymph is dressed and has visible female
# breasts, respectively. The "hold" column says whether the nymph is
# holding the star (by a ray, or by the tail if present).
#
# band label place deco dres brst spos tail hold notes
# ------ ----- ----- ---- ---- ---- ---- ---- ---- ------------------
# inner S1.1 10:30 full no ? cw yes no? striped star tail
# inner S1.2 00:00 full no yes ccw yes no
# inner S1.3 02:30 dot yes ? ccw yes no
# inner S1.4 04:00 no yes no ccw yes no
# inner S1.5 08:00 dot yes yes cw yes no
#
# outer S2.1 10:30 no no ? cw yes yes thicker star tail
# outer S2.2 00:00 no no yes cw no yes
# outer S2.3 01:30 full yes no cw yes no
# outer S2.4 02:45 full yes no cw no yes
# outer S2.5 03:45 full yes ? ccw yes no
# outer S2.6 04:45 full yes yes cw yes no
# outer S2.7 05:45 dot yes yes cw yes no
# outer S2.8 07:00 full no yes cw yes no
# outer S2.9 08:00 full yes yes cw no yes
# outer S2.10 09:00 full no yes cw no yes
#
# There is a mark "10^{mg}" at the lower right corner of the page.
# It is certainly a gathering mark (quire number), "10th" in
# abbreviated Latin.
#
# Comments:
#
# STYLE AND LAYOUT
#
# The ram/goat is drawn very skillfully and looks quite realistic,
# except that the way its front legs bend looks wrong. (But I am
# a city boy, what do I know...)
#
# The barrels are drawn rather poorly: better than those of f71r
# (Aries light) but worse than those of f70v2 (Pisces). The width
# and height are quite variable. The perspective is minimally
# correct, but the top of the barrel is tilted at varying angles
# relative to the observer, from near edge-on (outer 08:00) to
# almost face-on (inner 02:30). In three cases (outer 02:45 and
# 03:45, inner 08:00) the top is rendered as an eye, not an ellipse.
#
# The pattern on the inner barrel at 00:00 is rather peculiar.
# Unlike the other patterns it is neither symmetric nor repeating;
# it looks rather like a cubist painting. It looks as if the barrel
# is made of glass, so that the nymph's legs and hands are showing
# through. (Perhaps the pattern was drawn to hide a mistake, or
# an artistic failure?)
#
# THE CENTRAL EMBLEM
#
# The central figure is widely believed to be a symbol of the sign
# Aries. The word is traditionally read as some variant of the month
# name "April". Aries goes from ??? to ???.
#
# THE TEXT RINGS
#
# There is no obvious starting place for the text rings. The wider
# breaks at 04:00 (outer) and 06:00 (inner) are not aligned, and do
# not seem to be natural choices for starting the text. The binding
# gutter at 03:00 is not it either, as the text was visibly squeezed
# to fit in that part of the ring.
#
# The most likely starting places, IMHO, are the places at 10:45
# where the stars intrude into the text bands. Note that the inner
# star has the special striped "tail", and the outer star is being
# held high up by the nymph. (However, the first star enters just
# before a "daiin", and the second one under a word; so there is
# reason to doubt.)
#
# THE NYMPHS
#
# Either the dresses are meant to be transparent, or they were added
# later, in an attempt to mask the naked bodies.
#
# THE LABELS
#
# The outer label at 08:30 (<f70v1.S1.9;U>) reads "otshshdy" in standard EVA.
# The two "sh" have quite different plumes---the first one is a closed
# drop-like loop, the second is a open hook.
#
# References:
#
#
# Last edited on 1999-04-20 02:26:20 by stolfi