Scientists from the University of Leicester discovered occult markings scribbled without ink in a medieval manuscript more than 1,200 years ago. Opening announced live science.
Hidden writings and drawings have been found on the pages of a rare manuscript written between 700 and 750 AD in the south of England. The “invisible” inscriptions were discovered by a graduate student at the Weston Library, part of the Bodleian Library at Oxford University. Such scribbled ink marks have been found in other medieval manuscripts, but they usually consist only of simple crosses. They were probably used to highlight parts of text.
The scientists used a photometric stereo recording technique that reveals marks as small as one-fifth the width of a human hair. One of the sketches depicts a man with outstretched arms, raising his hand to stop another person as he reaches out. In addition, the scientists found that the name of the person who left these marks was mentioned at least five times on the pages of the manuscript.
The authors believe that the traces were left by an aristocrat, because at that time only the elite could read. It bore the Old English name of Edbruch (Eadburg). The abbreviated version with the letters E, EAD and EADB appears 10 more times in the page margins. It’s impossible to know if Edbruch left the secret notes, but the authors of the discovery believe this to be the most likely scenario. This is supported by the handwritten prayer at the end of the manuscript, written from a woman’s point of view.
Scholars believe the inscriptions were most likely left by the abbot of a female religious community called Edbrukha, but there are at least eight other contenders.