Searching for the mysterious Lost Diary of Whatchamacallit
June 14, 2016 8:19 PM Subscribe
Sometime back, I believe on Metafilter, I saw a bit about a primitive diary. I believe it was from Central or South America, maybe Mexico. It was filled with odd ink sketches of people and things... very simply drawn.
They were not anything like the Mesoamerican Codices, or the Codex Seraphinianus. It was far simpler, and more of a diary. Almost like something created by someone that could not write. It was filled with many, many simple black and white drawings in bold lines without detail - almost like icons or symbols or a records of things that occurred. No one had been able to interpret it.
Not Mayan, not Aztec.
It may have been from the 17th, 18th or 19th century, I'm not sure, but it was not ancient.
As a sample, these symbols are similar in execution, but not their content - the figures in the diary were figurative for the most part and seemed to tell stories.
Anyone remember what this was?
They were not anything like the Mesoamerican Codices, or the Codex Seraphinianus. It was far simpler, and more of a diary. Almost like something created by someone that could not write. It was filled with many, many simple black and white drawings in bold lines without detail - almost like icons or symbols or a records of things that occurred. No one had been able to interpret it.
Not Mayan, not Aztec.
It may have been from the 17th, 18th or 19th century, I'm not sure, but it was not ancient.
As a sample, these symbols are similar in execution, but not their content - the figures in the diary were figurative for the most part and seemed to tell stories.
Anyone remember what this was?
Response by poster: Neat, but was not a ledger. The drawings were also bolder and more symbol/icon looking.
posted by ecorrocio at 9:24 PM on June 14, 2016
posted by ecorrocio at 9:24 PM on June 14, 2016
Maybe the Kiowa drawings? Also on a ledger, but have more of the symbol/icon/black and white stuff you were talking about.
posted by superlibby at 10:28 PM on June 14, 2016
posted by superlibby at 10:28 PM on June 14, 2016
Maybe the art of Onfim, a boy from medieval Novgorod? Previously.
posted by Rhaomi at 12:28 AM on June 15, 2016
posted by Rhaomi at 12:28 AM on June 15, 2016
Best answer: Domenech's Livre des Sauvages? Previously.
posted by verstegan at 2:48 AM on June 15, 2016 [1 favorite]
posted by verstegan at 2:48 AM on June 15, 2016 [1 favorite]
Response by poster: Livre des Sauvages! Bingo. Thanks!
posted by ecorrocio at 9:05 AM on June 15, 2016
posted by ecorrocio at 9:05 AM on June 15, 2016
Response by poster: OK... I'd forgotten about this: "many of them appearing to be urinating, copulating, whipping each other, and displaying enormously swollen genitals. "... heh.
posted by ecorrocio at 9:06 AM on June 15, 2016
posted by ecorrocio at 9:06 AM on June 15, 2016
This thread is closed to new comments.
posted by bq at 8:53 PM on June 14, 2016