1998/07/01 by Thomas Kelly · 1 citation
Arts and Humanities · Social Sciences · Mathematics · #Historical, Religious, and Philosophical Studies #Classical Antiquity Studies #Linguistics and language evolution #Mythology #Word (group theory) #History #Plaintext #Literature #Classics #Arithmetic #Computer science #Philosophy #Art #Linguistics #Mathematics #Computer security #Encryption
paper · doi:10.1080/0161-119891886902
openalex publication_date 1998/07/01 · openalex created_date 2025/10/10 · openalex updated_date 2026/06/14
An examination of the word skytale by Greek and Latin authors from the 7th century B.C. to the 12th century A.D. leads to the conclusion that the notion that it was a cryptograph employed by the Spartans rests on no reliable ancient evidence. That idea came into existence only in the 3rd century B.C. There is not the slightest indication in the works of nine Greek authors who used the word prior to that time that the skytale was a cryptograph. In these early authors the skytale was either a plaintext message or a device for keeping records.