The Voynich Botanical Plants

Folio 4v, Rampion (Campanula rapunculus), is found in the woods and meadows of Europe and Asia. This biennial plant is grown in France, Germany, and Italy for its turnip-like roots and leaves which are eaten in salads. The stars may represent an empty calyx on the long stem with linear leaves and five-lobed, purple, bell-shaped flowers. There is an Italian tradition that the possession of a rampion excites quarrels among children and the story of Rapunzel is related to the theft of rampions from a magician’s garden.