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http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap100131.html
I don't want to bother registering over there to make a comment on one item. But I will say here that I think know what the item in question is.
From a linguistic and code breaking stand point the text in the circle surrounding the drawing is essentially gibberish. Notice the top line left of the top of the drawing the combination da? (without the dot under the question mark) is repeated over and over again in most of the words going to the left. Sometimes it's the whole word. Sometimes it's the first or the last of the word. We don't see it much anywhere else in the text. Notice the frequent combination ott (with the two t's connected with loops and presumably representing one letter) in parts of the document. Many words in a row begin with this same combination.
I think it's safe to assume that the twelve bits of writing in the spokes of the wheel next to the drawing either represent months or signs of the zodiac. The text above the drawing may or may not have any decipherable meaning. But I doubt it's more than a memory device for whoever drew this.
This is probably the work of a professional astrologer and fortune teller. It's purpose was probably to dazzle and amaze those who could not read, and baffle and confuse those who could. The fortune teller may have 'read' some of the text to the client to demonstrate her/his knowledge of the arcane. "Ba, ba adba zaba ba neba." But whether the explanation/translation of what the lines said ever came out twice the same way is impossible to say. It's an Okie charmer. No doubt it was preserved after the demise of the creator as a sign of respect for the 'ancient wisdom' she/he imparted to the clients.
I don't want to bother registering over there to make a comment on one item. But I will say here that I think know what the item in question is.
From a linguistic and code breaking stand point the text in the circle surrounding the drawing is essentially gibberish. Notice the top line left of the top of the drawing the combination da? (without the dot under the question mark) is repeated over and over again in most of the words going to the left. Sometimes it's the whole word. Sometimes it's the first or the last of the word. We don't see it much anywhere else in the text. Notice the frequent combination ott (with the two t's connected with loops and presumably representing one letter) in parts of the document. Many words in a row begin with this same combination.
I think it's safe to assume that the twelve bits of writing in the spokes of the wheel next to the drawing either represent months or signs of the zodiac. The text above the drawing may or may not have any decipherable meaning. But I doubt it's more than a memory device for whoever drew this.
This is probably the work of a professional astrologer and fortune teller. It's purpose was probably to dazzle and amaze those who could not read, and baffle and confuse those who could. The fortune teller may have 'read' some of the text to the client to demonstrate her/his knowledge of the arcane. "Ba, ba adba zaba ba neba." But whether the explanation/translation of what the lines said ever came out twice the same way is impossible to say. It's an Okie charmer. No doubt it was preserved after the demise of the creator as a sign of respect for the 'ancient wisdom' she/he imparted to the clients.