Buzz
The human instinct to hide secrets is equally matched by our curiosity to uncover them. Enigmatic writings emerge whenever a creative writer hides the key to understanding a novel form of communication, but these texts gain widespread attention when the code implies that the solution is within reach. Perhaps the creator is still alive and intentionally withholding clues, or the key might be lost to history.
Mytour readers are already familiar with many unsolved historical puzzles, such as the Voynich manuscript and the Phaestos disk, as well as modern treasure-hunt ciphers like the Kryptos sculpture, which recently added the “Berlin clock” clue. Now, you can challenge your problem-solving abilities with a new list of ten intriguing unsolved codes and ciphers, each with fascinating supernatural or global narratives. The potential rewards, as detailed below, range from hidden treasures to historical revelations and even profound cosmic insights.
10. Faust’s Enigmatic Disc
Dmitri Borgmann, a trailblazer in linguistics, solved numerous codes but left two perplexing puzzles in his seminal work “Beyond Language.” Alongside the cryptic French government formula for funeral pricing, Borgmann sought assistance in deciphering the mysterious text Rembrandt engraved in “Faust in His Study, Watching a Magic Disc” (circa 1652, with prints housed at the Metropolitan Museum of Art and Pierpont Morgan Library). Rembrandt’s radiant disc features “INRI” at its center, surrounded by (reading clockwise from the southeast and outward) “ADAM + TE + DAGERAM / AMRTET + ALGAR + ALGASTNA.” The text remains an “unsolvable anagram,” though “INRI” is commonly interpreted as the inscription on Jesus’ cross.
Borgmann points out the “likely insignificant” appearance of AMSTERDAM, Rembrandt’s hometown, within the outer letters, along with some “entirely unrelated” Latin anagrams: “ADAM is a cyclic rearrangement of DAMA (‘fallow-deer’)”. Twentieth-century mystic Samael Aun Weor utilized the same text, transforming it into “adam te dageram amrtet algar algas tinah”, as an inscription for a mystical mirror. However, it seems he was merely reusing the text, which Borgmann believes originated from Rembrandt’s neighbor, Samuel Menasseh ben Israel, a figure deeply immersed in occult studies and connected to the rabbinic Abarbanel family through marriage. Is ADAM straightforward text, or is INRI part of the anagram? Should we trust partial anagrams like Meradag (Mordechai), Graal, or Satan to hold any significance? Borgmann whimsically concludes, “the anagram … remains a mystical puzzle. Does it motivate you to attempt solving it yourself?”
9. Cicada 3301’s Liber Primus
Cicada 3301, the enigmatic publisher of cryptographic challenges, is so controversial that it warrants its own dedicated discussion. “The Washington Post” listed the group among the top five “most unsettling” internet mysteries. Over three years, Cicada 3301 asserted that it used intricate data encryption puzzles to identify top-tier codebreakers, particularly those passionate about data privacy. Predictably, very few successful solvers revealed what they discovered about the organization, though it seems the chosen “recruits” were tasked with developing innovative web privacy solutions.
A Cicada ebook, titled “Liber Primus” (Latin for “First Book”), was uncovered in 2014, entirely composed in runes and featuring cover art of a hand holding a compass in a classic triangular stance. Roughly half of the text has been deciphered, starting with the phrase, “A warning: Believe nothing from this book”; however, solvers have struggled to decode the remainder or uncover deeper meaning. In 2016, a single tweet emerged, verified by the same digital signature confirming its Cicada 3301 origin, stating, “Liber Primus is the way”. To this day, the rewards for solving Cicada’s most challenging puzzles remain unclaimed by the public.
8. Swift’s Cryptic Languages
Similar to composer Edward Elgar, writer Jonathan Swift often dabbled in spontaneous coding within his works, particularly in “Gulliver’s Travels” and the posthumously published “Journal to Stella.” Lemuel Gulliver is often interpreted as a play on the word “gullible” (despite Lemuel being an unexpected nickname for Solomon); the places he explores, Lilliput and Brobdingnag, evoke notions of “small” and “large.” Delving deeper, Isaac Asimov analyzed many of Swift’s word origins, suggesting that “Lindalino,” a place burdened by government oppression, was a “double Lin” and thus symbolized Dublin, a city Swift viewed as similarly besieged. Notably, the term “Yahoo,” initially an insult but now a leading search engine, likely stems from a distortion of the divine name “Yahweh.”
Significant effort has also been dedicated to deciphering a series of Swift’s letters to his close friend Esther Johnson, compiled in “A Journal to Stella.” Much like the name Stella (a reference to Esther), the letters are filled with invented language featuring a unique mix of phonetic and linguistic alterations that Swift assumed Johnson would comprehend. Often resembling childish babble, this “little language” remains only partially decoded. Swift’s playful wordplay in these and other writings is so diverse that ample opportunities for discovery persist, despite previous academic efforts.
7. Serafini’s Codex Seraphinianus
Inspired by the medieval Voynich Manuscript, architect Luigi Serafini meticulously handwritten and illustrated a vast encyclopedic work, released in two volumes in 1981. Many encountered this book through Douglas Hofstadter’s review in his monthly column (and later book), “Metamagical Themas.” The illustrations, which Hofstadter described as “grotesque and unsettling … yet beautiful and visionary,” begin with the iconic cover art depicting a couple mid-transformation into an alligator.
Years later, Serafini dismissed his creation as akin to automatic writing, despite the discovery of consistent patterns in the Codex’s script, such as its page numbering. Is the work purely an absurdist fantasy devoid of linguistic meaning, or does the so-called “automatic” text hold inherent significance? The debate among readers continues!
6. The Sacred Rohonc Codex
By 1838, Count Gusztav Batthyany had amassed a vast collection of books from across the globe at his residence, Rohonc Castle (now Rechnitz, Austria). Many of these were later donated to the Hungarian Academy of Sciences, where it was soon discovered that one codex, of nearly untraceable origin, was filled with indecipherable script. Some contemporaries dismissed it as a meaningless hoax. Unlike most other unsolved codes, the “illustrations appear almost rudimentary … and the symbols lack decorative flair.” Adding to the mystery, the cipher alphabet consists of at least 100 to 200 characters, often intricately connected, and the original language remains unknown.
A potential clue lies in the 1743 catalogue of the Batthyany library, which lists an entry translated as “Hungarian prayers in one volume, size duodecimo.” Research by Gabor Tokai and Levente Zoltan Kiraly between 2010 and 2011 suggests that some characters may correspond to New Testament books and chapters, while certain illustrations depict the Passion of Christ. Although this research is promising, it may offer no more clarity than the page numbering in Serafini’s far more intricate codex. Does the Rohonc Codex exhibit greater “genuine piety” than Serafini’s work? Only time will reveal the answer.
5. Hal Gashtan’s Microcosm
“In July 1984, an envelope was placed in the room depicted above …” begins the intriguing introduction to “Microcosm,” a psychedelically illustrated treasure book by “Hal Gashtan,” offering a reward of one thousand pounds to whoever deciphers the name inside the envelope. Two magazines, “Creative Computing” (USA) and “Your Computer” (UK), sponsored this seemingly straightforward BASIC-language programming contest, anticipating it would briefly engage 1980s PC enthusiasts. By combining the correct phrases from the book’s poetry with one of the provided 20-letter keys using the included columnar decryption program, solvers could uncover a phone number and a secret name.
Unfortunately, the publisher, Lazy Summer Books (now YouCaxton Publications), underestimated the immense complexity of the challenge, which far exceeded the capabilities of a typical BASIC PC. Each of the thirteen keys demands thirteen correct selections from sixteen possibilities each (resulting in quadrillions of combinations), followed by an unspecified final combination of the thirteen solutions. Two clues were later released by “Your Computer”: George Washington and computer names. While the correct thirteen computers were identified, they only led to the cryptic message “FIND THIRTEEN NOT ME,” leaving it uncertain if this was part of the final solution. The author has vanished, and the illustrator (possibly Nigel Mynheer) has remained silent. To date, no online team has successfully solved the puzzle, and neither brute force nor intuitive methods have cracked the enigmatic code.
4. Pink Floyd’s Publius Enigma
In a widely recognized but ultimately unsuccessful puzzle marketing campaign, Pink Floyd’s 1984 album “Division Bell” was released to promote a world tour. The album’s title was suggested by author Douglas Adams, the striking head sculptures on the cover were photographed at Ely Cathedral, and additional edgy artwork was created by graphic designer Storm Thorgerson. During the tour, an anonymous internet figure named Publius claimed on Usenet that the album contained a hidden mystery, stating, “there is a central purpose and a designed solution … a unique prize has been secreted.” On July 16, 1994, Publius predicted that Pink Floyd would confirm the enigma’s existence, which occurred two days later when programmable stage lights briefly displayed “PUBLIUS ENIGMA” during the band’s final U.S. concert.
Despite further confirmations and online hints, no definitive solution emerged, no prize was awarded, and the puzzle continues to intrigue fans today. Lighting designer Marc Brickman revealed in 1995 that he programmed the recurring “ENIGMA” lights under the direction of band manager Steve O’Rourke, who had shared Brickman’s idea with “some guy from Washington DC … in the encryption field.” Drummer Nick Mason later explained that an EMI Records employee with encryption expertise, who had also worked for President Reagan, designed the enigma, and the prize was more symbolic, “something like a crop of trees planted in a deforested area.” Proposed solutions include references to single or double 11s, as well as claims from the writer of PubliusEnigma.blog, who asserts she is the intended solution and that the album frequently alludes to her.
3. Cole’s Decryption of Beale’s Cipher
Readers are aware that in 1885, “The Beale Papers” was published as a profit-driven pamphlet, likely authored by James B. Ward, who became a Master Mason in 1863 (during the Conservator era). The pamphlet recounted the tale, possibly fictional, of Thomas J. Beale, who allegedly hid vast amounts of gold and silver in Bedford County, Virginia, during the 1820s. Intriguingly, it included three ciphertexts, one of which was claimed to be easily decipherable—a straightforward book cipher based on the Declaration of Independence, detailing the treasure’s contents. The other two, which remain unsolved, describe the treasure’s location and its heirs. Kryptos expert Jim Gillogly noted that the first cipher (locating the treasure) contains an unlikely alphabetic sequence; he leans toward the hoax theory but acknowledges the possibility that “another layer of encryption (e.g., removal of nulls) must be uncovered.”
The Tripod website BealeSolved claimed in 2001 that the vault had been discovered, providing photos and presenting complete solutions to ciphers one and three, though it stated the original treasure was gone. However, the solutions deviated from expected book ciphers, as identical numbers repeatedly produced different alleged plaintext, and no decryption method was provided. Solver Daniel Cole passed away during the hunt in 2001. A Masonic connection, including “very high degree,” was a “common link” between Cole and fellow treasure hunter Gary Hutchinson. The BealeSolved site was created in 2001 by SWN, likely Steven Ninichuck, the third team member. Ninichuck and Hutchinson told Michael Stadther they had solved everything correctly but were simply beaten to the discovery. Yet, why did Ninichuck post an unverifiable solution alongside Vigenère systems with keys like “blue” and “point-to-point”? Why did Hutchinson mention a former treasure hunter improbably named “G. W. Hunt”? Why did Stadther claim the solution was “deciphered … from a Masonic ritual”? How did Cole create his manuscript without written mnemonics? As Stadther asked, “When will we see how the Location cipher was cracked?”
2. The Enigma of Michael Stadther
Inspired by Kit Williams’s “Masquerade,” author Michael Stadther released a successful puzzle book, “A Treasure’s Trove,” in 2004, aimed at “children of all ages.” Clues led solvers to fourteen state parks where tokens were hidden; in 2005, Stadther redeemed these tokens by awarding hunters with fourteen jewels worth one million dollars on the “Today” show. Solvers eagerly anticipated his second book, 2006’s “Secrets of the Alchemist Dar,” which was even more intricately illustrated and cryptically encoded. It featured one hundred tokens redeemable for two million dollars in diamonds.
While it’s clear that “The Alchemist Dar” is an anagram of “Michael Stadther,” the method to find the hundred locations remains a mystery. Stadther’s company faced bankruptcy in 2007 before the hunt concluded, leaving no official redemptions for Dar tokens. In 2012, Stadther promised to release hints until a full solution was reached, “even though there is no possibility for someone to win a ring.” For example, he stated that “Hest is English,” but these clues have proven unhelpful. Stadther passed away in 2018 in Coronado, California, taking many secrets to his grave. Notably, why did his 2004 book, “100 Puzzles, Clues, Maps, Tantalizing Tales, and Stories of Real Treasure,” feature two Freemason-related texts—the Oak Island 90-foot-deep stone and the Beale cipher—as numbers 2 and 3, if the book was meant “to get you thinking about treasures” and to help decipher his own hunt clues?
1. Abundant Masonic Memory Aids
If that wasn’t intriguing enough, our top three codes all have connections to Freemasonry. In 1981, the team at the newly launched puzzle magazine “Games” (in their first spinoff, “The Four-Star Puzzler”) requested assistance in deciphering an encoded book from 1860. Beyond its lengthy title, “Written Mnemonics: Illustrated by Copious Examples From Moral Philosophy, Science, and Religion,” the book primarily features left-hand letter grids paired with right-hand number grids. The “Puzzler” also included a back-cover chart listing number triads for the book’s divisions I-III (with plaintext labels like “DIVISION I. — MORAL PHILOSOPHY”), where the first number is even (resembling a left-hand page number) and the other two are often “1 1” (suggesting a mnemonic starting point). The “Puzzler” theorized it contained Civil War codes but never published the full follow-up report planned for a future issue.
Several other copies of the book are mentioned online, typically bearing owners’ names and 1860s dates inside the front cover, along with the same enigmatic charts. The book’s primary purpose has been largely identified: it serves as “an example of a Masonic ritual cipher … which can be decoded with the correct key.” In 1931, a Freemason named Ray Denslow detailed the method in “The Masonic Conservators,” now a public-domain work. The three divisions corresponded to the first three Masonic degrees (“Moral Philosophy” referred to “Entered Apprentice”), the letters and numbers functioned as a book code (“T 9” stood for “the”), and the contents chart indicated the rituals involved (“Cong.” meant “to congregate”). The author, Rob Morris, a Mason who founded the Conservator movement to standardize Masonic lecture texts, initially gained widespread approval. However, his method fell out of favor in the 1860s due to perceived omissions, errors, and its near-revelation of sworn secrets. Yet, if the book’s key (referred to as the “spelling book”) could be found or recreated, would it unveil an early, authentic source of Masonic rituals to the public?
