Venice's Secret Service by Ioanna Iordanou

Author:Ioanna Iordanou
Language: eng
Format: epub
ISBN: 9780192508836
Publisher: OUP Oxford
Published: 2019-10-13T16:00:00+00:00

4

Venice’s Department of Cryptology

The art and science of writing in cipher but also that which is uniquely estimable and important of breaking enemy [ciphers] without a key.1

In 1583, a Venetian citizen named Agostino Amadi produced a magnificently hand-lettered cryptology manual entitled Delle ziffre.2 In the tome’s preface Amadi highlighted the widespread use of secret writing not only by princes and emperors (see Fig. 4.1 for an example of a musical cryptogram similar to the one, allegedly, sent by Charles V to Doge Andrea Gritti, warning Venice about an imminent rebellion against her, which will be discussed below) but by priests, intellectuals, and even lovers who sought clandestine ways of hiding the written communication of their ‘fiery ardours’.3Delle ziffre is not to be mistaken for a low-quality pamphlet or an encryption manual of questionable quality, such as those that routinely circulated within and beyond the city of Saint Mark.4 On the contrary, Agostino’s manuscript, which still survives in the Venetian State Archives, is emblematic of the superlative intellectual capacities of Venetian cryptologists. In it, Amadi detailed myriad ways for the production of ciphers in several languages, including Greek, Arabic, Latin, and even the language of the Devil, for which he provided practical examples (see Fig. 4.2).5 He also detailed several deciphering techniques and recipes for the production of invisible ink.6 The delicate and critical nature of the book’s content is most probably the reason why it never found its way into print.

Fig. 4.1. Charles V Cryptogram, Agostino Amadi © Archivio di Stato di Venezia.

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