--- title: "4 Middle ages Quotes By David Kahn" description: "4 Middle ages quotes by David Kahn. Plus more from David Kahn and more Middle ages sayings from other authors." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/630/david-kahn-13896_chaucer_the-most-famous-of-all-those-who-had-an_212155.jpg" --- > [“the most famous of all those who had an acquaintance with cryptology in the Middle Ages was an English customs official, amateur…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-kahn/the-most-famous-of-all-those-who-had-an-acquaintance-with-cryptology/) [David Kahn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-kahn/) [Image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/630/david-kahn-13896_chaucer_the-most-famous-of-all-those-who-had-an_212155.jpg) > [“The only writer of the Middle Ages to describe cryptography instead of just using it was Roger Bacon, the English monk of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-kahn/the-only-writer-of-the-middle-ages-to-describe-cryptography-instead/) [David Kahn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-kahn/) [Image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/79b/david-kahn-13896_art_the-only-writer-of-the-middle-ages-to-de_601352.jpg) > [“Cryptology served magical purposes frequently throughout the Middle Ages, and even in the Renaissance was still disguising important parts of alchemical formulas.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-kahn/cryptology-served-magical-purposes-frequently-throughout-the-middle/) [David Kahn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-kahn/) [Image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/9bb/david-kahn-13896_middle-ages_cryptology-served-magical-purposes-frequ_618960.jpg) > [“the use of atbash in the Bible sensitized the monks and scribes of the Middle Ages to the idea of letter substitution.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-kahn/the-use-of-atbash-in-the-bible-sensitized-the-monks-and-scribes-of/) [David Kahn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-kahn/) [Image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/6db/david-kahn-13896_bible_the-use-of-atbash-in-the-bible-sensitize_2654816.jpg) ## Other authors on Middle ages - [ ![](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/uploads/sms4s/authors/processed/b017/author-mason-cooley-65303.jpg) Mason Cooley 6 quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/middle-ages/mason-cooley/) - [ ![](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/uploads/sms4s/authors/processed/b015/author-laurence-j-peter-58961.jpg) Laurence J. Peter 6 quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/middle-ages/laurence-j-peter/) - [ ![](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/uploads/sms4s/authors/processed/b001/author-yuval-noah-harari-100.jpg) Yuval Noah Harari 5 quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/middle-ages/yuval-noah-harari/) - [ ![](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/uploads/sms4s/authors/processed/b005/author-bernie-taupin-17422.jpg) Goldwin Smith 5 quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/middle-ages/goldwin-smith/) - [ ![](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/uploads/sms4s/authors/processed/b001/author-g-k-chesterton-224.jpg) G.K. Chesterton 5 quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/middle-ages/g-k-chesterton/) ## More by David Kahn > [“Hildegard von Bingen, an 11th-century nun who saw apocalyptic visions and was later canonized, had a cipher alphabet which she claimed came to her…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-kahn/hildegard-von-bingen-an-11th-century-nun-who-saw-apocalyptic-visions/) [David Kahn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-kahn/) > [“the most famous of all those who had an acquaintance with cryptology in the Middle Ages was an English customs official, amateur astronomer, and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-kahn/the-most-famous-of-all-those-who-had-an-acquaintance-with-cryptology/) [David Kahn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-kahn/) > [“The task of the cryptanalysts consisted primarily of reconstructing the wiring and switches of the coding wheels—a task made more burdensome by the daily…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-kahn/the-task-of-the-cryptanalysts-consisted-primarily-of-reconstructing/) [David Kahn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-kahn/) > [“Analyzing the frequency and contacts of letters is the most universal, most basic of cryptanalytic procedures.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-kahn/analyzing-the-frequency-and-contacts-of-letters-is-the-most-universal/) [David Kahn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-kahn/) > [“General Joseph O. Mauborgne, who became Chief Signal Officer in October, 1937. Mauborgne had long been interested in cryptology. In 1914, as a young…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-kahn/general-joseph-o-mauborgne-who-became-chief-signal-officer-in-october/) [David Kahn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-kahn/) > [“The only writer of the Middle Ages to describe cryptography instead of just using it was Roger Bacon, the English monk of startlingly modern…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-kahn/the-only-writer-of-the-middle-ages-to-describe-cryptography-instead/) [David Kahn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-kahn/) > [“Cryptology served magical purposes frequently throughout the Middle Ages, and even in the Renaissance was still disguising important parts of alchemical formulas.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-kahn/cryptology-served-magical-purposes-frequently-throughout-the-middle/) [David Kahn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-kahn/) > [“Ibn ad-Duraihim, according to Qalqashandi, gave seven systems of cipher:”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-kahn/ibn-ad-duraihim-according-to-qalqashandi-gave-seven-systems-of-cipher/) [David Kahn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-kahn/) > [“The technique was at least moderately well known, for Ibn Khaldūn wrote in The Muqaddimah: “Occasionally, skillful secretaries, though not the first to invent…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-kahn/the-technique-was-at-least-moderately-well-known-for-ibn-khald-n/) [David Kahn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-kahn/) > [“Cryptology was born among the Arabs. They were the first to discover and write down the methods of cryptanalysis. The people that exploded out…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-kahn/cryptology-was-born-among-the-arabs-they-were-the-first-to-discover/) [David Kahn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-kahn/) > [“Another steganographic system was still in use in the 20th century: Aeneas suggested pricking holes in a book or other document above or below…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-kahn/another-steganographic-system-was-still-in-use-in-the-20th-century/) [David Kahn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-kahn/) > [“Also of great importance in the discovery of linguistic phenomena that led to cryptanalysis was the development of lexicography.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-kahn/also-of-great-importance-in-the-discovery-of-linguistic-phenomena/) [David Kahn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-kahn/) > [“The world owes its first instructional text on communications security to the Greeks. It appeared as an entire chapter in one of the earliest…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-kahn/the-world-owes-its-first-instructional-text-on-communications/) [David Kahn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-kahn/) > [“His method resembles George Bernard Shaw’s way of using the /f/ sound of GH in “tough,” the /i/ sound of o in “women,” and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-kahn/his-method-resembles-george-bernard-shaw-s-way-of-using-the-f-sound/) [David Kahn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-kahn/) > [“Much of the history of cryptology of this time is a patchwork, a crazy quilt of unrelated items, sprouting, flourishing, withering. Only toward the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-kahn/much-of-the-history-of-cryptology-of-this-time-is-a-patchwork-a-crazy/) [David Kahn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-kahn/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "ItemList", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/middle-ages/david-kahn/#itemlist", "name": "4 Middle ages Quotes By David Kahn", "numberOfItems": 4, "itemListElement": [ { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 1, "item": { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“the most famous of all those who had an acquaintance with cryptology in the Middle Ages was an English customs official, amateur astronomer, and literary genius named Geoffrey Chaucer.”", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "David Kahn" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-kahn/the-most-famous-of-all-those-who-had-an-acquaintance-with-cryptology/", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/630/david-kahn-13896_chaucer_the-most-famous-of-all-those-who-had-an_212155.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/630/david-kahn-13896_chaucer_the-most-famous-of-all-those-who-had-an_212155.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/630/david-kahn-13896_chaucer_the-most-famous-of-all-those-who-had-an_212155.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“the most famous of all those who had an acquaintance with cryptology in the Middle Ages was an English…” — David Kahn", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } } }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 2, "item": { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“The only writer of the Middle Ages to describe cryptography instead of just using it was Roger Bacon, the English monk of startlingly modern speculations. 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