bigscoop
Gold Member
- Jun 4, 2010
- 13,373
- 8,689
- Detector(s) used
- Older blue Excal with full mods, Equinox 800.
- Primary Interest:
- All Treasure Hunting
Do the Beale ciphers contain real messages? This has been the burning question since day one so let's take a look at ciphers themselves in an attempt to answer this question.
First, we have to recognize the vast differences that exist within the two remaining ciphers, C1 presenting a much wider range of codes then C3 and C3 also presenting more repeated code then C1. At first glance one might quickly assume that C3 would be the easier to attack given its smaller range of codes and more repeated codes, but, not so fast as despite its appearance C3 may actually be the most difficult of the two remaining ciphers and with good simple reason, this simple reason perhaps also being the strongest “suggestion” that it contains a legitimate clear text.
Names, they have their origins from all over the globe, English, French, Spanish, Dutch, etc., etc., etc. If we “reasonably assume” that C1 utilizes those 19 existing four digit codes to represent entire words instead of individual letters then we can also reasonably assume that this was done to offer that cipher an additional layer of protection from ever being broken without both the key and the additional keyword list. So, if this is the case then why present C3, the cipher alleged to hold the names and residences of those involved, in such simple and much easier appearance? Well, appearances aren't always what they seem.
Imagine trying to decode a cipher that contains a clear text written in multiple languages. In order to have any chance at all the hopeful decoder would have to be a student of all the relating languages, and remember, even street names and city and town names can have their origins from all over the globe as well. In this scenario, unlike C1, there would be no need for any extended coding or extra level of protection as the blind decoding task is already rendered pretty much impossible simply due to the nature of the cipher's complex and unique contents. And if any of this is accurate, which I believe it probably is, then C3 actually presents even a more difficult task then C1.
Below are some charts containing the frequency of letter use in just three common languages, Spanish, English, and French, note the differences.
Spanish
English
French
As for C1, the alleged location of the vault, if those 19 four digit codes do represent entire words, as is likely, then it also becomes likely that even with all of the other letters accurately decoded the hopeful decoder would still be at a complete loss without those 19 vital words which could be names, directions such as east, west, south, north, or they could be distances such as miles, feet, etc., etc., and the list of possibilities goes on and on as already explained in other post. BUT, the good news, if there can actually be any good news, is that due to the obvious differences in the two remaining ciphers then these differences do “suggest” that they “could contain” real clear text. However, arriving at their true contents is highly unlikely which is why we not seen it accomplished yet and likely never will. Or, they could just be simple story telling bait? We'll likely never know.
First, we have to recognize the vast differences that exist within the two remaining ciphers, C1 presenting a much wider range of codes then C3 and C3 also presenting more repeated code then C1. At first glance one might quickly assume that C3 would be the easier to attack given its smaller range of codes and more repeated codes, but, not so fast as despite its appearance C3 may actually be the most difficult of the two remaining ciphers and with good simple reason, this simple reason perhaps also being the strongest “suggestion” that it contains a legitimate clear text.
Names, they have their origins from all over the globe, English, French, Spanish, Dutch, etc., etc., etc. If we “reasonably assume” that C1 utilizes those 19 existing four digit codes to represent entire words instead of individual letters then we can also reasonably assume that this was done to offer that cipher an additional layer of protection from ever being broken without both the key and the additional keyword list. So, if this is the case then why present C3, the cipher alleged to hold the names and residences of those involved, in such simple and much easier appearance? Well, appearances aren't always what they seem.
Imagine trying to decode a cipher that contains a clear text written in multiple languages. In order to have any chance at all the hopeful decoder would have to be a student of all the relating languages, and remember, even street names and city and town names can have their origins from all over the globe as well. In this scenario, unlike C1, there would be no need for any extended coding or extra level of protection as the blind decoding task is already rendered pretty much impossible simply due to the nature of the cipher's complex and unique contents. And if any of this is accurate, which I believe it probably is, then C3 actually presents even a more difficult task then C1.
Below are some charts containing the frequency of letter use in just three common languages, Spanish, English, and French, note the differences.
Spanish
| Character | Frequency |
| E | 13,72% |
| A | 11,72% |
| O | 8,44% |
| S | 7,20% |
| N | 6,83% |
| R | 6,41% |
| I | 5,28% |
| L | 5,24% |
| D | 4,67% |
| T | 4,60% |
| U | 4,55% |
| C | 3,87% |
| M | 3,08% |
| P | 2,89% |
| B | 1,49% |
| H | 1,18% |
| Q | 1,11% |
| Y | 1,09% |
| V | 1,05% |
| G | 1,00% |
| Ó | 0,76% |
| Í | 0,70% |
| F | 0,69% |
| J | 0,52% |
| Z | 0,47% |
| Á | 0,44% |
| É | 0,36% |
| Ñ | 0,17% |
| X | 0,14% |
| Ú | 0,12% |
| K | 0,11% |
| W | 0,04% |
| Ü | 0,02% |
English
| E | 11.1607% | 56.88 | M | 3.0129% | 15.36 |
| A | 8.4966% | 43.31 | H | 3.0034% | 15.31 |
| R | 7.5809% | 38.64 | G | 2.4705% | 12.59 |
| I | 7.5448% | 38.45 | B | 2.0720% | 10.56 |
| O | 7.1635% | 36.51 | F | 1.8121% | 9.24 |
| T | 6.9509% | 35.43 | Y | 1.7779% | 9.06 |
| N | 6.6544% | 33.92 | W | 1.2899% | 6.57 |
| S | 5.7351% | 29.23 | K | 1.1016% | 5.61 |
| L | 5.4893% | 27.98 | V | 1.0074% | 5.13 |
| C | 4.5388% | 23.13 | X | 0.2902% | 1.48 |
| U | 3.6308% | 18.51 | Z | 0.2722% | 1.39 |
| D | 3.3844% | 17.25 | J | 0.1965% | 1.00 |
| P | 3.1671% | 16.14 | Q | 0.1962% | (1) |
French
| Character | Frequency |
| E | 15,10% |
| A | 8,13% |
| S | 7,91% |
| T | 7,11% |
| I | 6,94% |
| R | 6,43% |
| N | 6,42% |
| U | 6,05% |
| L | 5,68% |
| O | 5,27% |
| D | 3,55% |
| M | 3,23% |
| C | 3,15% |
| P | 3,03% |
| É | 2,13% |
| V | 1,83% |
| H | 1,08% |
| G | 0,97% |
| F | 0,96% |
| B | 0,93% |
| Q | 0,89% |
| J | 0,71% |
| À | 0,54% |
| X | 0,42% |
| È | 0,35% |
| Ê | 0,24% |
| Z | 0,21% |
| Y | 0,19% |
| K | 0,16% |
| Ô | 0,07% |
| Û | 0,05% |
| W | 0,04% |
| Î | 0,03% |
| Â | 0,03% |
| Ü | 0,02% |
| Ù | 0,02% |
| Π| 0,01% |
| Ë | 0,01% |
| Ç | 0,00% |
| Ï | 0,00% |
As for C1, the alleged location of the vault, if those 19 four digit codes do represent entire words, as is likely, then it also becomes likely that even with all of the other letters accurately decoded the hopeful decoder would still be at a complete loss without those 19 vital words which could be names, directions such as east, west, south, north, or they could be distances such as miles, feet, etc., etc., and the list of possibilities goes on and on as already explained in other post. BUT, the good news, if there can actually be any good news, is that due to the obvious differences in the two remaining ciphers then these differences do “suggest” that they “could contain” real clear text. However, arriving at their true contents is highly unlikely which is why we not seen it accomplished yet and likely never will. Or, they could just be simple story telling bait? We'll likely never know.
