Though it’s probably no surprise to any of you cleverly inferential bunch, I’ve just got back from holiday – hence Cipher Mysteries’ pin-drop quiet for the last few days.
Anyway, one of the [inevitably many] cipher-mystery-related things I read/re-read while away was a rough-and-ready English translation of the Copiale Cipher, which appears to have been composed by a German ‘Oculist’ secret society in the 1740s.
Pages 100-101 say (I’ve reformatted it into a list, but kept the clunky translation intact):
The so called key *tri* has in its turn something very special, it seams to be thought of beginning from agitation, is commendable by means, and it perished to a great part, as follows:
* On the green cloth there is first of all an olive branch, this is the sign of piece and tranquility.
* Secondly, the drum is there, so that its acoustic noise bum bum bum gives the sign for a general revolt.
* Thirdly, the fama, which signals the alarm with the trumpet, calls the *bigx* together again to regain their natural freedom and therefore to build a corps.
* Fourthly, the three-headed monster means the rule and governance, which, by means of power and perfidy, deprive man of his natural freedom and enjoyment of the timely things and of what we, human beings, need.
* Fifth, the sublime heap means tyranny, with which scaver we are printed.
* Sixth, the three snakes, which are placed in a hieroglyphic and mystical way, stand for nature, justice and bravery.
* Seventh, the lance, pistols and flag are weapons of the *bigx*, to regain their lost freedom and to rejoice themselves in piece and calmness of all timely goods.
Although I’m intrigued by all of the above, the three snakes in particular struck a distant chord for me – might this somehow explain the snakes on the second La Buse cryptogram?
Left:
Right:
Bottom:
I know, I know – the bottom snake is actually a pair of snakes. But… I’m going to run with this for a bit regardless, see where it all leads. 🙂
One web page I found in this snakey vein mused about the seven snakes used as page dividers in the Rohonc Codex (along with various other interesting stuff). Also: Serpens was the constellation where the 1604 supernova famously occurred, but that doesn’t obviously seem connected to this present case. And here’s a more obviously symbolic drawing incorporating three snakes, though from where the image came I don’t know.
As far as people researching the Copiale Cipher go, the whole ‘Key Lodge’ section from p.100 to p.104 that this snake mention is embedded in seems to have no obvious external parallel. Specifically, Andreas Önnerfors writes:
My assessment is that the rituals, symbols and ideology of the “so-called Key lodge” (“die so genannte Schlüssel loge”) described on pages 100-104 are absolutely unique.
And so my question to you all is: has anyone seen any mention elsewhere of a decorative Freemason pattern involving three snakes? Or did the Oculists dream it up all by themselves?
Have a look at “Le Serpent Vert” of Goethe and his cover. Three snakes or one snake with three heads are associated to Hercule [Cerberus Ramus].
It looks as if La Buse thought that snakes were rather like people, and while one might go alone, it was rather more fun with two. 🙂
I call your attention to this article from the Scottish Rite Journal, March-April, 2012. It concludes that the translation was faulty because the original translators were not familiar with Masonic terminology, and that the Copiale manuscript is an eighteenth century Masonic ritual. In particular, the symbol the code breakers interpreted as “oculist” or “eye doctor” actually stood for “Mason” in English.
http://scottishrite.org/about/media-publications/journal/article/the-copiale-cipher-an-early-german-masonic-ritual-unveiled/
Clay: thanks for the link, the “mopsen” translation suggested in the article seems perfectly sensible – I wish the same guy had gone on to translate all of it, there seems to be a wide gulf between the poor English translation released so far and what the document actually says. 🙁
Nick, I have met Arturo de Hoyos, and he is a very friendly, knowledgeable guy, willing to answer serious questions. If you contact him, either through his Facebook page or at the Scottish Rite Southern Jurisdiction, I believe he would be happy to assist you.
Well, medical students/practitioners might look at a similar picture which has (two) entwined snakes — Mercurius? Mercury – Winged Messenger of the Gods?
Kinda vague, I know; but I go wa-a-a-a-y back in my pre-med medical/nursing studies (1970’s).
Also one or two Native American medics danced with snakes.
OK, maybe it should be “masons”, but come on — the idea of a secret society of optometrists is *hilarious*…
GWM: “Better like this?”
1DO: “…or like this?”
I thought that “occultist” might be more fitting as an erraneous translation but then simply the compass logogram was misinterpreted as an eye.. duh.
I’ve got a thing with snakes, especially watersnakes.. beautiful creatures.. and snake symbolism, e.g. snake & eagle (I happen to find one of these on the stucco ceiling of my apartment). Soo the snakes crossed my mind several times near slumber time, the last few evenings.. and I think they are not significant, in terms of masonic tradition. All other relevant “three snakes” happen in different configurations.
As you mention, a pair of intertwined snakes means something completely different than a single snake on it’s own. But, the pictured pair of snakes meets head-to-tails. So it is not an ouruboros, not an aesculap rod, not a hermes rod. So it’s .. nothing at all, I guess.
As mentioned in a different post on this excellent website I think that the snakes are reference points for geometric construction mentioned in the “clearasmudtext”. The “mouth of the current curling above the gold” should be the head of the snake pictured above the sun, “..back of the woman” the one meeting “Virginie” from below and so on.
You probably have no clue what I’m rambling about, here. But I have an excuse, the thermometer shows temperatures above the 39° centergrade mark.. where the scale stops. Perfect Pirate Climate.
Btw., if you ggl for “VLMDCLXIII” you will get one result only, which leads to a french forum musing about the roman numerals being chronograms. My knowledge of french is limited, and so is my time atm. Just to let you know..
Nick andGert (and other still interested parties):
What figure do we get if we add the two Roman Numerals?
In other words — we have one snake which is ‘ yea’ years old; and then two intertwined ‘head-to-tail’ snakes which may represent the passing of years/centuries of rituals and ‘secret’ passwords?
Senkanes ? Senaknes ?
Nick & Friends: Have any of you visited Kevin Knight’s latest (?) blog discussion in re freemasonry (as excerpted and noted by Clay?)
Am I correct in remembering that Kevin Knight also publishes a Catholic newsletter?
“New Advent” (?)