At a glanceCiphertext-only break · partial (68% of the cipher)
- The letter
- One page, 19 lines, to Christian IV of Denmark (“Gnädigster König”), dated “den 20 Iulii anno currentis” with no year and signed “Quem novit” (“whom you know”) in place of a name. About 100 cipher words stand among clear German.
- Where
- Copenhagen, Rigsarkivet, TKUA, Speciel del, Nederlandene B.41, Arkivalieronline unit 261377, image 443 (right page). It lies in the folder of Johann Schultetus’s reports from The Hague, 1628–29 (catalogue entry no. 2541, which stays in the catalogue), but is not in his hand. Not on DECODE.
- The cipher
- A simple substitution, word by word: 23 letter-like signs for 21 letters (s and k each have two signs; i stands for i, u and v); one sign, seen once, has no value. Three code numbers (117 twice, 118) stand for names or places.
- How it was deciphered
- By Malcolm McBratney with AI agents, from the ciphertext of the letter itself, with the crib “Gnädigster König” and word patterns. Three separate transcriptions, two of them blind; a unit counts as read when each sign takes the value that at least two of the three readers give.
- What it says
- H. has waited into a third week for a galley; the Signoria has assigned a large one and he leaves today. He has borrowed another 3,000 thalers and asks the King to pay them.
- Still open
- The g/q signs, which the readers dispute and which need a person at full size; two smaller sign classes; the codes 117 and 118; the writer and the year (1627 or 1628), not proved.
- Credit
- Malcolm McBratney, working with AI agents (issue #450, pull request #483): the key, the three transcriptions and the reading. The leaf was found on 12 November 2026 in a sweep of the Rigsarkivet folder by the AI sessions he directed.
01 The letter
The leaf is the right-hand page of image 443. It has 19 lines in one hand: clear German with the cipher words written in among it, then the date and the signature. The writer calls the addressee “Gnädigster König”; the leaf lies in Rigsarkivet’s volume of papers from the Netherlands, in the folder of Johann Schultetus’s reports from The Hague (catalogue 2541), between papers of September 1628 and Schultetus’s letter written after 24 July 1628. Three code numbers appear: 117 twice and 118 once, and the number 3000 and the date 20 are written in figures.
PcpqtPlmkf SdctP = Gnädigster König; the clear text continues “H. lasset E. unverhalten sein”. The number 117 stands in line 6. Image: Rigsarkivet (Copenhagen), TKUA Nederlandene B.41, unit 261377, image 443 (right page), via Arkivalieronline.Who wrote it is proposed, not proved. One article (Bohemiae Occidentalis Historica 2/2019, read here only through a summariser) puts Christian Wilhelm of Brandenburg, Administrator of Magdeburg, at Venice in early July 1627 on his way to lead Danish forces in Silesia; a three-week wait for a galley on 20 July would fit, and the letter would then be of 1627 (old style). That was not tested against any dated source, and the filing order points to 1628 instead. The year stays open, and so does the writer. “Venice” for the code 118 rests on the same guess (the Signoria and the galleys point there).
The same folder holds a second cipher that this page does not treat. Image 447 (right page) is a chancery decipherment sheet headed “Scultetus 17 Novemb:” for the number code of Schultetus’s letter of 17 November 1628 on the left page, so that code has a chancery decipherment; it is a different cipher, not the one of this letter (catalogue 2541 was corrected on both counts).
02 The cipher and its key
Each cipher word is a run of signs for the letters of one German word, and the signs look like letters of the Latin alphabet or Greek-like shapes (a pi, a theta, an omega-like sign, a long s). In the contributor’s labelling, which this page follows, 24 sign labels occur in 557 sign tokens; 23 have a value and stand for 21 plain letters. The key is only partly alphabetical: the plain letters l m n o are the signs a b c d, and the rest shows no order. The full table with shapes and counts is key.tsv; some of it:
| Sign (label) | P | c | p | q | t | k | H | f | m | L, l | S, h | i |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Plain letter | g | n | a | d | i | e | h | r | t | s | k | u, v |
The key was found by hand, from the ciphertext of this letter and a crib. The clear German continues “… lasset E. unverhalten sein”, so the first two cipher words, which stand at the head of a letter to a king, were taken to be Gnädigster König; the rest followed from word patterns. No solver was used. The contributor discloses that the letter values took shape while his first reader transcribed, so “frozen before decoding” means before any scripted decode, not before any guess.
The German fit confirms the key; it is not a blind test of it. The key was fitted to this letter by hand, so the lines 11–19 “held-out” figure the contributor first gave (63 of 68 units) is not held out, and he says so. What the fit does show is that three independent transcriptions of the signs, made by separate sessions, all decode to German under the fixed key.
03 The reading
A reader decoded the letter into German sentences and translated them; the full German and English are in the Full texts below. H. tells the King that he has now waited into a third week, to his vexation and at considerable cost, because he could get no galley; small galleys were there, but nobody, “wie insonderheit [117]”, would advise him to risk them. The Signoria has therefore assigned a large one, which arrived yesterday, and he will set out on it today “im Nahmen Gottes”. Because of the delay and other necessary outlays he has borrowed another 3,000 thalers, hopes that E. (Your Majesty) will be content and have them paid, and will gladly let them be deducted later. [117] has so far resolved nothing on H.’s proposal, but he hopes W. will declare themselves better. Dated [118], 20 July of the current year; signed “Quem novit”. The letters H., E. and W. are written in clear as abbreviations; who they stand for is not established here.
The reading has holes in many sentences: 33 of the 103 cipher units are marked in place. The text reads as connected German whose sense can be followed, but it is not a clean reading, and the repository’s sentence check scores it marginal (20 of 43 sentences clean).
04 How it was counted
The unit is the cipher word, in reader 1’s division (103 units). A unit counts as read only if the decode, with every sign taking the value that at least two of the three readers give, is a German word as written. Letters supplied from the sense, a reader’s emendation, a sign on which the readers do not agree, and the code numbers all count as not read.
| Count | Units | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Read (S), majority of three readers | 70 of 103 | 67.96% |
| Not read: a code number, or a decode that is not a form any reader judged a word (E; 3 codes among the 21) | 21 | |
| Not read: a sign without agreement or without a value (N) | 12 | |
| Read (S) if all three readers must agree on every sign | 47 of 103 | 45.63% |
The 33 units not read are: 13 that involve the g/q class of signs (the contributor’s g sign, plain c, which the readers split between g and q; a unit with another doubtful sign as well is counted here), 7 emendations by the first reader, 4 on the pi/Z/n class, 3 on c/e, the 3 code numbers, and 3 single other signs (heute, um[b], ann[o]).
Three readers made three transcriptions. By the contributor’s own labels they score, under the fixed key: reader 1, who built the key while transcribing, 93 of 103 (90.29%); reader 2, blind, 62 of 104 (59.62%); reader 3, blind, 49 of 110 (44.55%). That first figure was the one filed on the issue; the contributor has withdrawn it as the headline because it was one reader’s count and the two blind readers did not reproduce it. The rule of the majority count was written down and frozen before it was decoded, and was decoded once. The order of events (the two blind transcriptions frozen at 09:49:43 and 11:22:40 UTC, the adjudicated text frozen at 13:17:09 and decoded at 13:17:19 UTC, all on 12 November 2026) is by the contributor’s record: only reader 1’s folder carries an external time stamp (RFC 3161, 02:25:10 GMT), and that was checked at integration for what it covers (the certificate chain was not verified).
Sign agreement between the readers: reader 2 with reader 1 on 511 of 565 signs (90.44%), reader 3 with reader 1 on 497 of 564 (88.12%), reader 3 with reader 2 on 484 of 564 (85.82%); in reader 1’s frame, at least two of three agree on 544 of 557 signs (97.67%).
Checks: the contributor’s German 4-gram control finds none of 5,000 shuffled keys (two seeds) as good for any of the four readings. At integration an own control with a word list built from the repository’s German corpora found 60 of the 100 cipher words in the list for the true key against 6 for the best of 3,000 shuffled keys, and an independent decoder from the key file and the first transcription gave the same German. With only 557 sign tokens and 23 values there is little room to overfit. The repository’s own validation (docs/_validate.py) was not run on this letter.
At integration the right page of image 443 was fetched from the archive (4473 × 3436 px) and looked at in the project’s integration check: it is the letter signed “Quem novit”, with 117, 118, 3000 and 20 as transcribed, and lines 9–17 were compared at crop level only (layout and sign repertoire agree). No person has compared the transcriptions sign by sign with the image.
05 What remains open
- The g and q signs. At the resolution available, the tail of the contributor’s g (plain c) and q (plain d) cannot be told apart by eye: g before theta (in sich, noch, nichts) and q (in das, den, damit) look alike. The distribution supports two signs (g stands before theta 14 times and q never; the two word-initial c, commendiret and currentis, are g), but this needs a person looking at the image at full size. 13 units depend on it (two of them with another doubtful sign as well).
- The pi/Z/n and c/e sign classes (4 and 3 units), and the one n-form sign with no value.
- The codes 117 (twice) and 118: no value, three tokens, no other leaf in this code known. 118 is the place of writing.
- The writer and the year (1627 or 1628); who H., E. (the King) and W. are.
- The clear German was transcribed by one reader only.
- Prior art is thin: no reading was found in the printed sources and catalogues the contributor checked (Danske Magazin, Kong Christian IV’s egenhændige Breve, Danske Samlinger, Historisk Tidsskrift, the Swedish Handlingar, DECODE, Cryptiana, archive.org full text), but an anonymous letter cannot be searched by name, so “not printed” cannot be proved. Christian Wilhelm’s 1627 correspondence and Venetian state papers were not checked.
Full texts
The transcription and the decryption of every document on this page, so that the reading can be used and checked. Short files are shown here; all are in the repository.
'Quem novit' to Christian IV, [118], 20 July [1627 or 1628] read in part
The writer (H.) tells the King he has waited at [118] into a third week for a galley, at cost and to his vexation; small galleys were there but nobody, [117] least of all, would advise risking them; the Signoria has now assigned a large one, which came yesterday, and he leaves today. He has borrowed another 3,000 thalers and asks the King to have them paid, to be deducted later. [117] has resolved nothing on his proposal, but he hopes W. will declare themselves better. Context: the Signoria and the galleys point to Venice (not proved), in the Thirty Years' War (1627 or 1628); the writer is not identified.
Builds coherent sentences, but under the read bar of 95% of words read as sense (68% here); the holes are marked in the reading.
Transcription
# Rigsarkivet TKUA Nederlandene B.41, unit 261377, image 443 right page: cipher letter signed "Quem novit", dated 118, 20 [Julii] anno currentis # Symbols by shape: P=pi-like sign, H=theta, Z=omega/w-like sign, s=long-s sign, S=tall S/K-like sign, L=tall l, l=small l, q=closed bowl with tail, g=g with curled tail. <...>=clear German in the original. One line per manuscript line. 01 PcpqtPlmkf SdctP <H. lasset E. unverhalten sein welcherge-> 02 <stalt sich H. mit> PfdLLkc ikfqfil <undt> etkqkfetaakc <auch ziem-> 03 <lichen> ikcSdlmkc <nunmehr in die> qfkt edgHkc <will H.> hktck 04 Ppaakfp skSdbbkc <können> pirHpamkc <müssen undt obwohl> 05 kmatgHk haktck Ppaakfkc <vorhanden gewesen hatt H. doch> 06 <Niemandt wie insonderheit> 117 <darauf> Zi epPkc <nit> fpmkc 07 edaakc <Dahero nunmehr ein> LktPckftp kck PfdLLk gdb- 08 bkcqtfkm <welche gestern alhier angelangt auf welcher H.> 09 cdgH Hkimk tb cpHbkc Pdmmkl LtgH pif qkc ekPh bpgHkc 10 eta 11 LdcLmkc Hpm <H.> ekPkc qkLLkc qpl kf LdapcP pirHpamkc 12 edfqkc pigH ibs pcqkfkf cdmHekcqtPkc pilPpskc Hpaskf 13 paHtkf cdgH ktc 3000 mHpakf pirckHbkc biLLkc ikfHdrrkm 14 <E.> ekfqk qpbtm Zi rftqkc Lktc icqm kl pilZpHakc apLLkc eta 15 LtgH LdagHkl tcl hichmtPk Ppf Pkfck pshifZkc apLLkc 16 LdcLmkc Hpm LtgH stl qpmd 117 cdgH ctgHml ir <H.> pc- 17 sftcPkc fkLdaitfkm Hps pskf Pimk Lokfpcnm qpl LtgH <W.> 18 edHa kmepl skLLkf kfhakfkc bdgHmkc qpmib 118 qkc 20 19 tiatt pccd giffkcmil <Quem novit>
Transcription
# b129 blind transcription, f443 right page (Rigsarkivet image id 48900927). Cipher words only, in order; plaintext German and numerals omitted. # Labels: P=capital Pi; N=small pi/n-form (incl. 'n' in Knatg, ni); 0=theta; z=yogh/3-form; s=long-s; b=6-form; o=small round o (single occurrence, doubtful); # others look like the Latin minuscule named (c p g t l m k f d e y i a h r x u). l includes capital-L forms. #H #E #W = code/nomenclator tokens (not letters). # Doubts marked [..] in DOUBTS below, not inline. L01 PcpgtNlmkf zdcletN #H #E L02 #H Nfdllkc ikfyfil etkykfetaakc L03 ikczdlmkc lyfkt cdy0kc #H hktck L04 Ppaakfp skzdlbbkc pir0pamkc L05 kNatg0k haktck Ppaakfkc #H L06 Ni eNkc fpmkc L07 cdaakc lktNckftp kck Nfdllk gdb L08 bkcgtfkm #H L09 cdy0 0kiNk tb cp0bkc Pdmmkl ltg0 pif gkc ekNz bpy0kc L10 cta L11 ldclmkc 0pm #H ekNkc gkllkc gpl kf ldapcN pir0pamkc L12 cclfgkc pig0ibf pcgkfkf cd0m0ekcgtNkc pilNpskc 0paskf L13 pa0tkf cdy0 ktc m0pakf pirck0bkc billkc ikf0drrkm L14 #E ekfyk ypbtm Ni rftgkc lktc icym kl pilNp0akc apllkc cta L15 ltg0 lclag0xl tcl hichmtNk Npf Nkfck pshifakc apllkc L16 ldclmkc 0pm ltg0 stl gpmd cdy0 ctg0ml ir #H pc L17 sftcNkc fkldaitfkm 0ps pskf Pimk lokfpcNm gpl ltg0 #W L18 cd0a kmepl skllkf kfhaxfkc bdy0mkc ypmib gkc L19 tiatt pccu gifftkmul # DOUBTS # D1 L02 Nfdllkc / L07 Nfdllk: d followed by two L-forms (could be d+3 L in L02). # D2 L11 ldclmkc: 'dc' read by analogy with clear L16; could be c,l,c. # D3 L12 cd0m0ekcgtNkc: '0m0' has a long stroke through it (strike-out or flourish from line above). # D4 y vs g: g = closed q-like bowl, y = open curved tail; L13 cdy0 and L09 bpy0kc least sure. # D5 L15 lclag0xl: 'cl' may be d. # D6 L17 0ps: last sign s or f (crossed by flourish). # D7 L17 lokfpcNm: 'o' unique round sign; may be a or d without stem. # D8 L18 ypmib: 'i' crossed by descender. # D9 L19 tiatt: final t crossed; gifftkmul: k blotted; u unique. # D10 P vs N may be capital/minuscule of one sign; kept apart blind.
Transcription
# b137 reader-3 blind transcription, Quem novit f443 right. One line per MS line; cipher word units separated by space; plaintext in [brackets]; '?' after uncertain sign. # labels: see SIGNCHART.md L01: PcpqtPLmkf Z?dctP H [lassen E. ...plain] L02: [sollen sich] H [mit] Pfd?LLkc ikfq?fiL [kundt] etkykf?etaakc [vnns ...] L03: [leisen] ikcZdLmkc [nunmehr is dir] lyfkt cdgOkc [will] H hktck L04: Ppaakfp? SkZd?bbkc [konnen] pirOpamkc [mussen und obhohlt] L05: knatq OR haktck Ppaakfkc [...gewesen] [solte] H [doch] L06: [dennoch kommendt mir nunmehr 117. darauf] H ni? epPkc [mit] fpmkc L07: cd?aakc [daher nunmehr ein] LktPckftp kck PfdLtH? qdb L08: bkcqtfkm [welches gestern alhier angelangt, auf welches] H. L09: cdy?O OkinL? tb cpObkc Pd?mmkL LtqO pif gkc ekPZ bpq?Okc L10: eta L11: LdcLmkc Opm H. ekPkc qkLLkc qplkf LdapcP pirOpamkc L12: ccl?fqkc piqOibf pcqkfkf cd?lOmOekcytPkc piln?pSkc OpaSkf L13: paOtkf e?dgO ktc [3000.] mOpakf pirckObkc bi?LLkc ikfOdrrkm L14: E? ekfqk ypbtm ni rftgkc Lktc icym kL pilnpOakc apL?Lkc eta L15: LtqO Lcl?aqOkL tcL? hichmtnk rip?f nkfck pShifakc apLLkc L16: LdcLmkc Opm LtqO StL? qpmd [117.] cdqO ctqOmL ir H pc L17: Sftç?n?kc fRLd?aitfkm OpS pSkf Pimk Zokfpcnm qpl LtqO [W.] L18: edOa kmepl SkLLkf kfhaxfkc bdyOmkc q?pmib [118.] g?kc [20.] L19: tiatt pccu giff?kcmuL
Transcription
# line reader1 unit majority (>=2 of 3 readers) unanimous (all 3) KEY_B labels, L->l and h->S merged; ? = no agreement 01 PcpqtPlmkf PcpqtPlmkf PcpqtPlmkf 01 SdctP SdctP ?dctP 02 PfdLLkc Pfdllkc Pfdllkc 02 ikfqfil ikfqfil ikfqfil 02 etkqkfetaakc etkqkfetaakc etk?kfetaakc 03 ikcSdlmkc ikcSdlmkc ikc?dlmkc 03 qfkt qfkt ?fkt 03 edgHkc cdgHkc ?d?Hkc 03 hktck Sktck Sktck 04 Ppaakfp Ppaakfp Ppaakfp 04 skSdbbkc skSdbbkc sk?dbbkc 04 pirHpamkc pirHpamkc pirHpamkc 05 kmatgHk k?atqHk k?at?H? 05 haktck Saktck Saktck 05 Ppaakfkc Ppaakfkc Ppaakfkc 06 117 117 117 06 Zi ?i ?i 06 epPkc epPkc e?Pkc 06 fpmkc fpmkc fpmkc 07 edaakc cdaakc ?daakc 07 LktPckftp lktPckftp lktPckftp 07 kck kck kck 07 PfdLLk Pfdllk Pfdl?? 07 gdb-bkcqtfkm qdbbkcqtfkm ?dbbkcqtfkm 09 cdgH cd?H cd?H 09 Hkimk Hki?k Hki?? 09 tb tb tb 09 cpHbkc cpHbkc cpHbkc 09 Pdmmkl Pdmmkl Pdmmkl 09 LtgH ltqH lt?H 09 pif pif pif 09 qkc qkc ?kc 09 ekPh ekPS ekP? 09 bpgHkc bpqHkc bp?Hkc 10 eta eta ?ta 11 LdcLmkc ldclmkc ldclmkc 11 Hpm Hpm Hpm 11 ekPkc ekPkc ekPkc 11 qkLLkc qkllkc qkllkc 11 qpl qpl qpl 11 kf kf kf 11 LdapcP ldapcP ldapcP 11 pirHpamkc pirHpamkc pirHpamkc 12 edfqkc ??fqkc ??fqkc 12 pigH piqH pi?H 12 ibs ibf ib? 12 pcqkfkf pcqkfkf pcqkfkf 12 cdmHekcqtPkc cdmHekcqtPkc cdmHekc?tPkc 12 pilPpskc pilPpskc pil?pskc 12 Hpaskf Hpaskf Hpaskf 13 paHtkf paHtkf paHtkf 13 cdgH cdgH ?d?H 13 ktc ktc ktc 13 mHpakf mHpakf mHpakf 13 pirckHbkc pirckHbkc pirckHbkc 13 biLLkc billkc billkc 13 ikfHdrrkm ikfHdrrkm ikfHdrrkm 14 ekfqk ekfqk ekfqk 14 qpbtm qpbtm ?pbtm 14 Zi ?i ?i 14 rftqkc rftqkc rft?kc 14 Lktc lktc lktc 14 icqm icqm ic?m 14 kl kl kl 14 pilZpHakc pil?pHakc pil?pHakc 14 apLLkc apllkc apllkc 14 eta eta ?ta 15 LtgH ltqH lt?H 15 LdagHkl l?aqHkl l?a?Hkl 15 tcl tcl tcl 15 hichmtPk SicSmtPk SicSmt?k 15 Ppf Ppf ?pf 15 Pkfck Pkfck ?kfck 15 pshifZkc psSifakc psSif?kc 15 apLLkc apllkc apllkc 16 LdcLmkc ldclmkc ldclmkc 16 Hpm Hpm Hpm 16 LtgH ltqH lt?H 16 stl stl stl 16 qpmd qpmd qpmd 16 117 117 117 16 cdgH cdqH cd?H 16 ctgHml ctqHml ct?Hml 16 ir ir ir 16 pc-sftcPkc pcsftcPkc pcsft??kc 17 fkLdaitfkm fkldaitfkm f?ldaitfkm 17 Hps Hps Hps 17 pskf pskf pskf 17 Pimk Pimk Pimk 17 Lokfpcnm lokfpc?m ?okfpc?m 17 qpl qpl qpl 17 LtgH ltqH lt?H 18 edHa edHa ?dHa 18 kmepl kmepl kmepl 18 skLLkf skllkf skllkf 18 kfhakfkc kfSakfkc kfSa?fkc 18 bdgHmkc bd?Hmkc bd?Hmkc 18 qpmib qpmib qpmib 18 118 118 118 18 qkc qkc ?kc 19 tiatt tiatt tiatt 19 pccd pcc? pcc? 19 giffkcmil giffkcm?l ?iffk?m?l
Decryption
# Decode of transcriptions/adjudicated.tsv with key_B.txt, run once; labels by transcriptions/adjudication_rule.md # line reader1 unit majority decode label unanimous decode label 01 PcpqtPlmkf PcpqtPlmkf gnadigster S PcpqtPlmkf gnadigster S 01 SdctP SdctP konig S ?dctP ?onig N 02 PfdLLkc Pfdllkc grossen S Pfdllkc grossen S 02 ikfqfil ikfqfil uerdrus S ikfqfil uerdrus S 02 etkqkfetaakc etkqkfetaakc wiederwillen S etk?kfetaakc wie?erwillen N 03 ikcSdlmkc ikcSdlmkc uenkosten E ikc?dlmkc uen?osten N 03 qfkt qfkt drei S ?fkt ?rei N 03 edgHkc cdgHkc nochen E ?d?Hkc ?o?hen N 03 hktck Sktck keine S Sktck keine S 04 Ppaakfp Ppaakfp gallera S Ppaakfp gallera S 04 skSdbbkc skSdbbkc bekommen S sk?dbbkc be?ommen N 04 pirHpamkc pirHpamkc aufhalten S pirHpamkc aufhalten S 05 kmatgHk k?atqHk e?lidhe N k?at?H? e?li?h? N 05 haktck Saktck kleine S Saktck kleine S 05 Ppaakfkc Ppaakfkc galleren S Ppaakfkc galleren S 06 117 117 117 E 117 117 E 06 Zi ?i ?u N ?i ?u N 06 epPkc epPkc wagen S e?Pkc w?gen N 06 fpmkc fpmkc raten S fpmkc raten S 07 edaakc cdaakc nollen E ?daakc ?ollen N 07 LktPckftp lktPckftp seigneria E lktPckftp seigneria E 07 kck kck ene E kck ene E 07 PfdLLk Pfdllk grosse S Pfdl?? gros?? N 07 gdb-bkcqtfkm qdbbkcqtfkm dommendiret E ?dbbkcqtfkm ?ommendiret N 09 cdgH cd?H no?h N cd?H no?h N 09 Hkimk Hki?k heu?e N Hki?? heu?? N 09 tb tb im S tb im S 09 cpHbkc cpHbkc nahmen S cpHbkc nahmen S 09 Pdmmkl Pdmmkl gottes S Pdmmkl gottes S 09 LtgH ltqH sidh E lt?H si?h N 09 pif pif aur E pif aur E 09 qkc qkc den S ?kc ?en N 09 ekPh ekPS wegk S ekP? weg? N 09 bpgHkc bpqHkc madhen E bp?Hkc ma?hen N 10 eta eta wil S ?ta ?il N 11 LdcLmkc ldclmkc sonsten S ldclmkc sonsten S 11 Hpm Hpm hat S Hpm hat S 11 ekPkc ekPkc wegen S ekPkc wegen S 11 qkLLkc qkllkc dessen S qkllkc dessen S 11 qpl qpl das S qpl das S 11 kf kf er S kf er S 11 LdapcP ldapcP solang S ldapcP solang S 11 pirHpamkc pirHpamkc aufhalten S pirHpamkc aufhalten S 12 edfqkc ??fqkc ??rden N ??fqkc ??rden N 12 pigH piqH audh E pi?H au?h N 12 ibs ibf umr E ib? um? N 12 pcqkfkf pcqkfkf anderer S pcqkfkf anderer S 12 cdmHekcqtPkc cdmHekcqtPkc nothwendigen S cdmHekc?tPkc nothwen?igen N 12 pilPpskc pilPpskc ausgaben S pil?pskc aus?aben N 12 Hpaskf Hpaskf halber S Hpaskf halber S 13 paHtkf paHtkf alhier S paHtkf alhier S 13 cdgH cdgH noch S ?d?H ?o?h N 13 ktc ktc ein S ktc ein S 13 mHpakf mHpakf thaler S mHpakf thaler S 13 pirckHbkc pirckHbkc aufnehmen S pirckHbkc aufnehmen S 13 biLLkc billkc mussen S billkc mussen S 13 ikfHdrrkm ikfHdrrkm uerhoffet S ikfHdrrkm uerhoffet S 14 ekfqk ekfqk werde S ekfqk werde S 14 qpbtm qpbtm damit S ?pbtm ?amit N 14 Zi ?i ?u N ?i ?u N 14 rftqkc rftqkc friden S rft?kc fri?en N 14 Lktc lktc sein S lktc sein S 14 icqm icqm undt S ic?m un?t N 14 kl kl es S kl es S 14 pilZpHakc pil?pHakc aus?ahlen N pil?pHakc aus?ahlen N 14 apLLkc apllkc lassen S apllkc lassen S 14 eta eta wil S ?ta ?il N 15 LtgH ltqH sidh E lt?H si?h N 15 LdagHkl l?aqHkl s?ldhes N l?a?Hkl s?l?hes N 15 tcl tcl ins S tcl ins S 15 hichmtPk SicSmtPk kunktige E SicSmt?k kunkti?e N 15 Ppf Ppf gar S ?pf ?ar N 15 Pkfck Pkfck gerne S ?kfck ?erne N 15 pshifZkc psSifakc abkurlen E psSif?kc abkur?en N 15 apLLkc apllkc lassen S apllkc lassen S 16 LdcLmkc ldclmkc sonsten S ldclmkc sonsten S 16 Hpm Hpm hat S Hpm hat S 16 LtgH ltqH sidh E lt?H si?h N 16 stl stl bis S stl bis S 16 qpmd qpmd dato S qpmd dato S 16 117 117 117 E 117 117 E 16 cdgH cdqH nodh E cd?H no?h N 16 ctgHml ctqHml nidhts E ct?Hml ni?hts N 16 ir ir uf S ir uf S 16 pc-sftcPkc pcsftcPkc anbringen S pcsft??kc anbri??en N 17 fkLdaitfkm fkldaitfkm resoluiret S f?ldaitfkm r?soluiret N 17 Hps Hps hab S Hps hab S 17 pskf pskf aber S pskf aber S 17 Pimk Pimk gute S Pimk gute S 17 Lokfpcnm lokfpc?m speran?t N ?okfpc?m ?peran?t N 17 qpl qpl das S qpl das S 17 LtgH ltqH sidh E lt?H si?h N 18 edHa edHa wohl S ?dHa ?ohl N 18 kmepl kmepl etwas S kmepl etwas S 18 skLLkf skllkf besser S skllkf besser S 18 kfhakfkc kfSakfkc erkleren S kfSa?fkc erkl?ren N 18 bdgHmkc bd?Hmkc mo?hten N bd?Hmkc mo?hten N 18 qpmib qpmib datum S qpmib datum S 18 118 118 118 E 118 118 E 18 qkc qkc den S ?kc ?en N 19 tiatt tiatt iulii S tiatt iulii S 19 pccd pcc? ann? N pcc? ann? N 19 giffkcmil giffkcm?l current?s N ?iffk?m?l ?urre?t?s N
Reading
# "Quem novit" to Christian IV, 20 July [1627 or 1628], Rigsarkivet TKUA Nederlandene B.41, unit 261377, image 443 (right page): reading Conventions: text between asterisks is from cipher, the rest is in clear (clear text read by reader 1 only). [117] = a code number with no value. A letter in brackets inside a word = a sign on which fewer than two of the three readers agree, or whose agreed value does not make the word; the letter is supplied from the sense and the unit is counted NOT read. [?word] = reader 1's emendation of a one-sign slip (counted not read). Every hole is listed in `holes.md`. Basis: `decryptions/adjudicated.txt` (majority of three readers per sign, decoded once with `key_B.txt`), 70 of 103 cipher units read as written. Word division, capitals, umlauts and punctuation are editorial. ## Reading *Gnädigster König*, H. lasset E. unverhalten sein, welchergestalt sich H. mit *grossen Verdrus* undt *Wiederwillen*, auch ziemlichen *[?Unkosten]*, nunmehr in die *drei [w]ochen*, will H. *keine Gallera bekommen* können, *aufhalten* müssen, undt obwohl *e[t]li[c]he kleine Galleren* vorhanden gewesen, hatt H. doch Niemandt, wie insonderheit [117], darauf *[z]u wagen* nit *raten [w]ollen*. Dahero nunmehr ein *[?Signoria] [?eine] grosse [c]ommendiret*, welche gestern alhier angelangt, auf welcher H. *no[c]h heu[t]e im Nahmen Gottes si[c]h [?auf] den Wegk ma[c]hen wil.* *Sonsten hat* H. *wegen dessen, das er solang aufhalten [wo]rden, au[c]h um[b] anderer nothwendigen Ausgaben halber alhier noch ein* 3000 *Thaler aufnehmen müssen, verhoffet* E. *werde damit [z]u friden sein undt es aus[z]ahlen lassen, wil si[c]h s[o]l[c]hes ins [?künftige] gar gerne abkur[z]en lassen.* *Sonsten hat si[c]h bis dato* [117] *no[c]h ni[c]hts uf* H. *anbringen resoluiret, hab aber gute [?Speranz], das si[c]h* W. *wohl etwas besser erkleren mö[c]hten. Datum* [118] *den* 20 *Iulii ann[o] [?currentis].* Quem novit [flourish] ## Holes in this reading (33 of 103 cipher units; full table in holes.md) - 13 units turn only on the g/q sign class (reader 1's g = c, the readers split it between g and q): e[t]li[c]he, [c]ommendiret, no[c]h (twice), si[c]h (four times), ma[c]hen, au[c]h, s[o]l[c]hes, ni[c]hts, mö[c]hten. Two of them carry a second disputed sign (e[t]li[c]he, s[o]l[c]hes). - 7 are reader 1's own one-sign emendations: [?Unkosten], [?Signoria], [?eine], [?auf], [?künftige], [?Speranz], [?currentis]. - 4 turn on the pi/Z/n class: [z]u (twice), aus[z]ahlen, abkur[z]en. - 3 on c/e: [w]ochen, [w]ollen, [wo]rden. - 3 code numbers: [117] (twice), [118]. - 3 single other signs: heu[t]e, um[b], ann[o].
Translation
# "Quem novit" to Christian IV, 20 July [1627 or 1628]: English Same holes as the reading, in the same places. Text between asterisks is from cipher. A bracketed word or letter is supplied from the sense, not read; [117], [118] are code numbers with no value. Spelling normalised. ## Translation *Most gracious King*, H. lets Y(our Majesty) know how H., to his *great vexation* and *displeasure*, and at considerable *[?cost]*, has now had to *wait* into the *third [week]*, because H. could get *no galley*; and although *[some] small galleys* were on hand, nobody, [117] in particular, would *advise* H. *[to] risk* himself on them. So the *[?Signoria]* has now assigned *[?a] large one*, which arrived here yesterday, and on it H. *will [make] his way [this very day] in God's name.* *Further, because he was held up so long, [and] [for] other necessary outlays, H. has had to borrow another* 3,000 *thalers here; he hopes* Y(our Majesty) *will be [content] with that and have it paid, and will gladly let [it] be [deducted] in [?future].* *For the rest, [117] has so far resolved [nothing] on* H.'s *proposal, but I have good [?hope] that* W. *[may] yet declare themselves somewhat better. Dated at* [118], *20 July of the current [year].* "Whom you know." [in place of a signature] ## Notes - "H.", "E." and "W." are written in clear as abbreviations. E. is the addressee, addressed as king (Christian IV). H. is the traveller; 118 is the place of writing; "Signoria" and the galleys point to Venice. None of this is proved. - Writer: PROPOSED, NOT PROVED. One article (Bohemiae Occidentalis Historica 2/2019, read through a summariser only) has Christian Wilhelm of Brandenburg, Administrator of Magdeburg, reaching Venice in early July 1627 on his way to lead Danish forces in Silesia. A three-week wait for a galley on 20 July fits that journey, so the letter may be of 20 July 1627 (Old Style) and "H." may be the Administrator. Not tested against any dated source. - Year: the leaf lies between papers of September 1628 (image 442) and Schultetus's letter after 24 July 1628 (image 444); the filing order suggests 1628, the identity lead 1627. Not settled.
Key: key.tsv
06 Sources
- Image: Rigsarkivet, TKUA, Nederlandene B.41, unit 261377, image 443 (
api.rigsarkivet.dk/ao/v1/images/48900927, 4473 × 3436), Arkivalieronline epid 19852699; image 447 (48900931) for the chancery sheet of Schultetus’s code. - Contributor’s issue #450 and pull request #483 (Malcolm McBratney, working with AI agents).
- Writer lead: Bohemiae Occidentalis Historica 2/2019, as reported by a summariser; the article itself was not opened here.
Files: targets/quemnovit1627/.
Cite this page
Malcolm McBratney and Daniel Bourdeau, ““Quem novit” to Christian IV, 20 July [1627 or 1628]”, Cyphersolver, posted 12 November 2026, https://cyphersolver.com/quemnovit1627.html.