Since we were on the topic of scientific logbooks and journals last week, another one I adore is the Voynich Manuscript–a 15th century text written in code, filled with mysterious botanical illustrations and otherworldly diagrams. To this day, no one has deciphered it! But you can find all of its glorious pages online, thanks to the digital collections of Yale University.

*Voynich Manuscript.* General Collection, Beinecke Rare Book and Manuscript Library, Yale University.

Revisiting those beautiful, mysterious old pages got me in the mood to paint my own fantastical botanicals. As for all the dots? I’ve been a bit obsessed with orbicular jasper lately:

Detail image of orbicular jasper from Madagascar.

It’s a form of cryptocrystalline quartz, formed when silica-rich water percolates through cracks and fissures in other rocks. Over time, the water mineralizes and deposits tiny quartz crystals, which fill in the spaces and eventually replace the original rock.

The distinct patterns are created by various mineral impurities or inclusions within the silica solution–minerals such as hematite, goethite, chlorite, or other oxides and hydroxides, crystallize in concentric layers around a nucleus, which forms the orb-like structures.