Codes

From the secrets of Venice’s codebreakers to China’s intricately carved puzzle balls, these historical ciphers will inspire your curiosity.

Rail riders past and present leave messages for each other, but not the ones you’ve probably heard about.

Written in a puzzling Latin cipher, it contains his formula for eternal life.

The rust-encrusted device was likely abandoned at the end of World War II.

The Jacobites slyly drank to a deposed king.

Cagey about his methods, John Wallis was a bit of a cipher himself.

A cabal of early cryptographers helped the government keep secrets and spy on enemies.

We hope you like reading in all caps.

Staff at "Station X" threw their teacups into lakes and stuffed them into hedges.

Attention, tinkerers: It's still solvable.