Syllabical and Steganographical Table
Syllabical and Steganographical table (French Tableau syllabique et steganographique) is an eighteenth century work. This was the first cryptography chart made.[1]
Author
The work was written by P.R. Wouves. It is thought by Philadelphia book dealer W.D. De Witt that this author's name was a play on words and a pseudonym for Benjamin Franklin. He thought that the "P.R" stood for Poor Richard, a pseudonym Franklin used for "Richard Saunders" as the author of Poor Richard's Almanack. Franklin had a reputation for using ciphers and codes in secret communications. The printer for this work was Benjamin Franklin Bache, the grandson of Benjamin Franklin.[2]
Description
The work was of 2 pages and a chart. The 2 pages were title pages which were in English and French. Printed on the back of these pages were information and instructions for the chart that was within. This chart consisted of a large single sheet of paper of a table. It contained 62 alphabetical columns of 6,138 two-letter combinations, numbered from 1 to 99 so that words could be changed into numbers. The table chart sheet was normally kept folded for carrying around. The folded chart then was opened for using like one would do with a folded road map.[3]
The chart table was to be used to put into code a message or some communications that was to be kept secret from all others except the recipient. It was a cipher system. The idea behind this was that anything written in the English alphabet could be put into a numerical code of a set of numbers. It was initially set up for English and French but could also be done for Spanish, Portuguese, Dutch, or Italian. Wouves's chart for a secret correspondence method was only for certain of his closest friends. He was working on steganography. The initial preliminary table was printed in 1797 as a partial work. There never was an official edition of his total completed work printed.[4]
Characteristics
The sheet of the chart table when open was 27 inches wide by 19.25 inches deep.[1] It has a copyright from Pennsylvania District number 192 issued to author "P.R. Wouves" on November 9th, 1787.[3] According to US Army cryptographer William F. Friedman the table is of significant historical importance for what it represents.[2]
References
Citations
- ^ a b Kane 1950, p. 328.
- ^ a b
Sheldon, Rose Mary. "The Friedman Collection: An Analytical Guide, Item 265" (PDF). George C. Marshall Foundation. Retrieved August 7, 2015.
William F. Friedman library collection Item 265 - Wouves, P.R., A Syllabical and Steganographical Table, Philadelphia: Printed by Benjamin Franklin Bache, 1797. Photostat negative. According to William F. Friedman, an item of very great historical interest and importance. An explanatory note accompanies the item written by the book dealer in Philadelphia from whom Friedman purchased this copy. See Galland, p. 205 for explanatory details. In French and English, 1786-98: ―By means of which any sort of writings taken from either the French, English, Dutch, Spanish, Portuguese or Italian languages or any languages which use the same alphabet can be converted into numerical figures. According to the extract from a letter from W.D. Witt, Book Dealer on Carlisle Street, Philadelphia, the Library of Congress does NOT have a copy of this. The New York Public Library has a copy signed by Wouves and the Philadelphia Historical Society has an unsigned copy. De Witt thought Wouves was a pseudonym for Benjamin Franklin. The publisher, Benjamin Franklin Bach was his grandson. We know Franklin made use of ciphers. P.R. = Poor Richard?
{{cite web}}: line feed character in|quote=at position 344 (help); line feed character in|title=at position 25 (help) - ^ a b "Tableau syllabique et steganographique". Falvey Memorial Library. Villanova University. 2014. Retrieved August 7, 2015.
- ^ "Syllabical and steganographical table". Trove. National Library of Australia. 2015. Retrieved August 7, 2015.
Sources
- Kane, Joseph Nathan (1950). Famous First Facts: A Record of First Happenings, Discoveries and Inventions in the United States, Fifth Edition. H. W. Wilson.
The first cryptography chart was P.R. Wouves's A Syllabical and Steganographical Table, a chart 27 by 19.25 inches, with a list of syllables and words in English and French intended for secret correspondence.
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