At 165 pounds, and allegedly made from the skins of 160 donkeys, the Codex Gigas is the world's largest and most mysterious medieval manuscript. Filled with satanic images and demonic spells, according to legend, the cursed text sprang from a doomed monk's pact with the Devil. Now, Nat Geo follows a team of scientists as they embark on an unprecedented quest to unravel the secrets behind the book's darkened pages. Using ultra-violet fluorescence imaging, handwriting analysis and a re-creation of the text, forensic document experts attempt to uncover the cryptic truth behind this ancient Devil's Bible.For the first time ever, a team of scholars and scientists embark on a quest to unravel the secrets of the Codex Gigas, or DEVIL'S BIBLE. Enshrouded in mystery and steeped in dark history, superstition and fear has clouded this medieval manuscript for centuries. Evidence of Lucifer's hand seems to pervade the tome, including darkened pages, magic spells, and a full-page portrait of the Devil. Forensic document experts team up to investigate the ancient Codex safely locked away in Sweden's National Library. With ultra-violet fluorescence imaging, hand writing analysis and a recreation of the text itself, they'll attempt to uncover the truth of the DEVIL'S BIBLE.
It's a mysterious book that in its day was believed to contain all human knowledge. But why did medieval people believe that the author sold his soul to the devil to be able to write it?
The "Devil's Bible," a behemoth volume weighing in at 165 pounds, believed to have been produced by a single monk over the course of decades in the 13th Century, is the focus of a documentary that was featured on the National Geographic Channel.
A complete Old Testament and New Testament, and a collection of a number of secular works besides, the Devil's Bible is an encyclopedia of medieval knowledge. But it has also been haunted by dark speculation, including that its writing was guided by the devil's hand.
It got its name "Devil's Bible" from the illustration of the devil on page 290 (in the photo above). It is believed to be the only bible of its era that depicts Satan. There the devil is, looking more like a cartoon character in an ermine diaper, rather than evil incarnate.
