15/01/2024

Specimens of Caselle Cipher

The caselle cipher (cifra delle caselle) is a Venetian cipher with superencryption, adopted in 1578 and used for almost two decades by the ambassadors to Germany, France, Spain, and Constantinople (Paolo Bonavoglia (2021), "The ciphers of the Republic of Venice an overview", Cryptologia).
Related materials are in the DECODE database.

The four grids used for superencryption are in R1788 (State Archives of Venice [ASVe], "IT ASVe 0045 010 (Serie) Busta 4 Reg. 8"). This is quoted as "ASVe, CX Cifre, chiavi e scontri di cifra, busta 4, reg.8" in Figure 6 of Bonavoglia (2021).
I noted three specimens in this cipher in DECODE.
R1844 ("Busta 11 f.114-115") enciphered with the key Franza (or Francia). Hieronimo Sippomano[?], Paris, 13 October 1578.
R1848 ("Busta 13 f.142-143") enciphered with the key Germania. Prague, 11 October 1578. This is the same as the specimen in Figure 6 of Bonavoglia (2021) cited as "ASVe, CCX, Dispacci degli ambasciatori, busta 13, c.142." [CX=the Council of Ten, CCX=Chiefs of the Council of Ten]
R1863 ("Busta 28 f.83-85") enciphered with the key Francia. 22[?] January 1580.

Figure 2 of Paolo Bonavoglia (2022), "The Enigma of Franceschi's Falso Scontro", HistoCrypt2022, presents another specimen with the Germania key, dated Prague, 23 January 1581, by Venetian ambassador A. Badoer, cited as "ASVe CCX Lettere degli Ambasciatori in Germania, b.12 c.155."

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