SEARCHING FOR A Z13 SOLUTION

10/29/2024

Edgar Allan Poe

On October 22nd 1969, the San Francisco Examiner newspaper published an article by Will Stevens, which laid down a challenge from Professor D.C.B. Marsh of the American Cryptogram Association (ACA) to the Zodiac Killer, attempting to coax him into revealing his name. The newspaper stated "Dr Marsh told the Examiner today: "The killer wouldn't dare, as he claimed in letters to the newspapers, to reveal his name in the cipher to established cryptogram experts. He knows, to quote Edgar Allan Poe, that any cipher created by man can be solved by man. Zodiac has not told the truth in his cipher messages to the Examiner, the Chronicle and the Vallejo Times-Herald. Zodiac has not done this, because to tell the complete truth in relation to his name -in cipher code - would lead to his capture. I invite Zodiac to send The American Cryptogram Association a cipher code - however complicated - which will truly and honestly include his name".

It was probably hoped that by invoking the name of Edgar Allan Poe, the Zodiac Killer would use a technique employed by Poe in the design of his next code. The Zodiac Killer, having created two lengthy ciphers, must have known that code breakers would find it difficult to confirm a solution to such a short code of thirteen characters on April 20th 1970, so may have hinted towards an answer using material created by Edgar Allan Poe. After all, it wouldn't have been the first time.

Edgar Allan Poe's essay A Few Words on Secret Writing began with an examination of the scytale method of encryption and decoding, which can be used to reveal Zodiac's message in the 340 cipher. The essay followed up with a second encryption technique by splitting the alphabet into two sections of thirteen characters, A through M, and N through Z. It didn't go unnoticed that Zodiac used thirteen characters in his code on April 20th 1970, beginning with the ciphertext character A, and ending with the ciphertext character M. In the next section of the essay, an individual who withheld his name, provided us with the following:

Being the only date referenced in Poe's essay, it is noticeable that the Zodiac Killer by mailing his April 20th 1970 letter on this date, probably hoped it would be received by the newspaper on April 21st 1970, with "My name is ____", imitating the introduction above. I previously discovered that the only complete novel ever published by Edgar Allan Poe was entitled "The Narrative of Arthur Gordon Pym of Nantucket". The very first line of this book read "My name is Arthur Gordon Pym". Oddly, the name "Arthur Gordon Pym" begins with the letter "A" and ends with the letter "M", just like the 13-Symbol cipher. But this wasn't all. Here is the opening chapter of the novel mentioning "money", as did Zodiac on April 20th 1970 when he wrote "I am mildly cerous as to how much money you have on my head now". The opening paragraph also mentions the locations of Nantucket and New Bedford.

But how does "My name is" from the novel "The Narrative of Arthur Gordon Pym of Nantucket" tie into Edgar Allan Poe's essay A Few Words on Secret Writing? The unnamed author in the above challenge to Poe on April 21st was from Stonington, Connecticut (revealed by the postmark). Is it possible that the Zodiac Killer, having mailed the thirteen character code within one day of this postmark, was choosing the introduction of "My name is" from a Poe novel to point us towards Stonington, Connecticut? The Zodiac had given us the near-postmark from the essay, so why not give us a clue to Stonington as well. The opening paragraph of the novel "The Narrative of Arthur Gordon Pym of Nantucket", beginning with "My name is", gave us the two locations of Nantucket and New Bedford. These locations are only 88 miles and 54 miles east of Stonington, Connecticut. The locations of Norwalk, Connecticut and Albany, New York are also relevant to two Zodiac communications on March 2nd 1981 and August 1st 1973.

I HOPE YOU ARE HAVING LOTS OF FUN IN TRYING TO CATCH ME - THAT WASN’T ME ON THE TV SHOW - WHICH BRINGS UP A POINT ABOUT ME - I AM NOT AFRAID OF THE GAS CHAMBER BECAUSE IT WILL SEND ME TO PARADICE ALL THE SOONER BECAUSE I NOW HAVE ENOUGH SLAVES TO WORK FOR ME WHERE EVERYONE ELSE HAS NOTHING WHEN THEY REACH PARADICE - SO THEY ARE AFRAID OF DEATH - I AM NOT AFRAID BECAUSE I KNOW THAT MY NEW LIFE IS LIFE WILL BE AN EASY ONE IN PARADICE DEATH.

"To One in Paradise" was written by Edgar Allan Poe. This poem was first published as part of the short story titled "The Visionary" (later retitled as "The Assignation"). The poem was also published under the names "To lanthe in Heaven" and "To One Beloved". The title "To One in Paradise" was used in the February 25, 1843 Saturday Musuem. This poem was written after the death of Poe's wife. He writes that she was his life and he lived for her and now he looks forward to the future where they will be together again in death. link.

The Zodiac Killer must have known that any solution to the thirteen character code on April 20th 1970 was practically unverifiable, unless the answer resided within the works of Edgar Allan Poe - and this link could be reasonably demonstrated. If the Zodiac Killer was capable of placing "One in Paradice" from a poem title by Poe into the 340 cipher, then he is capable of giving us a solution to the thirteen character code from material within the novel of "The Narrative of Arthur Gordon Pym of Nantucket". "My name is" begins the novel - and is the prelude (with dash) to the thirteen character code - so why shouldn't the answer to the Zodiac's code follow both and be the same. The solution to the thirteen character code may lie within "The Narrative of Arthur Gordon Pym of Nantucket" by Edgar Allan Poe. Or can the method used to decode the "Stonington" cipher be used to provide a solution for the April 20th 1970 Zodiac cipher.

Johnny

10/30/2024 03:12:03 am

If zodiac liked Poe he read more then just cartoons thats for sure. Still Poe wrote many short stories. The most dangerous game is also a short one. He also refers to plays and movies but i haven't seen many novels mentioned.

Sorry, i can't comment this article further because my brain brain betrays me on this one, Rick.

Richard

10/30/2024 03:36:11 am

It's a difficult one to comment on Johnny. The novel link is either right or wrong. All I do know, is the Zodiac Killer incorporated the newspaper headlines and accompanying text into his Z340 and Z148, so I am fairly confident that any answer to the Z13 will be somehow connected to Poe. I've tried to understand exactly how S.D.L. in the Stonington cipher puzzle encrypted his message. The Zodiac may have used something similar. Unfortunately, I have difficulty understanding the encryption technique. Dave Oranchak would be the man to answer this question, but I suspect he's fed up with people contacting him, so I won't.

Johnny

10/30/2024 11:55:24 am

Just thought this about Zodiac somewhat interesting: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=abd5hguWKz0

from 2.54:03 ....he says mostly platitudes though, much like
a politician, but i think that's good, because we know really not much more then he is saying ( besides Ricks work with letters that says he was probably alive later on and the possibe connection to Vallejo etc. )

Just one strange thing from me that i have noticed, that i know that many of you don't like very much ( when i talk about my pseudo-"i"logical angles ), that i come to think of when this individual in the link began to talk about the monster of florence.

1. Zodiac may have had red hair
2. The suspect in the Colonial parkway killings had red hair
3.There's a theory that the monster of Florence had red hair, and i "think" that one or both of the sketches is based on this man, right? The one sketched in profile i don't know about.

Johnny

10/30/2024 03:12:19 pm

Voigt has uploaded a new photo at his forum, that he says is of Chester Klingel jr, but it's low quality and the age he is suggesting seems supsicious. What do you people say about it?

I will not get fooled for nothing, that much im saying. It's low quality ( and low quality is suspicious from the beginning ) and the individual in the photo might be ~37 year old ( but i wouldn't trust it as of yet ).

Richard

10/31/2024 01:36:32 am

If it's him he didn't age well. He was born in 1926, so would have been 44 by the end of the 60s. He appears closer to 60 in the photograph. But I have no reason to consider the image not him.

Johnny

10/31/2024 04:45:02 am

It could be Klingel, but -64 might not be because Voigt was uncertain about this aswell. Why not show the full photo and blacken out other people if needed?

This is from a wedding or something?

If he knows it is Chester maybe he knows also when the photo was taken? He looks 40+, i don't think ~60, Rick but defintely 40-50 but sure, he could be 37-38 aswell, who knows.

But yes, i questioned the photo.

1.It's cutout just for him
2. Voigt is ambivalent where the photo is from
3.The man in the photo looks down and this very convenient for
a forgery
4. Its not the best quality ( but i guess it could be zoomed from a
regular small photo ) If its -64 though would it be in colour, yes?

All in all i think its Chester and i believe Voigt "might" have taken the -64 date wrong, but it also could be from -64. These kind of pictures feeds speculation though.

It's lower the odds of Chester being the Zodiac a bit, but still, if we take Mageau out of the equation maybe not so much.

It's very speculative to say, but this individual in the picture looks somewhat pedantic. Maybe he had a neat car aswell.

Ben

10/31/2024 07:03:26 am

Hi all

Very new to all of this I’d like to introduce a theory about the Zodiac Killer’s Z13 cipher: the possibility that the solution might be "Arthur Leigh Ale" rather than the commonly suspected "Arthur Leigh Allen."
The Z13 cipher, introduced by Zodiac with the phrase "My name is ...", has been widely analyzed, with most theories focusing on directly spelling out Arthur Leigh Allen or other top suspects. However, given Zodiac’s known use of cryptic variations, phonetic spellings, and intentional misspellings, it’s plausible that he may have chosen a shortened form like "Ale" to hint at Allen’s name indirectly.
Why “Arthur Leigh Ale”?
1. Phonetic and Visual Similarity:
* “Ale” sounds similar to “Allen,” and using this abbreviation might have been a deliberate choice to create a recognizable yet obscured version of the name.
* Zodiac often used small spelling deviations to mislead, so “Ale” could subtly hint at "Allen" without directly revealing it.
2. Intentional Misdirection:
* Zodiac’s style frequently included red herrings and misleading symbols. The use of “Ale” might have been a way to direct readers toward a common word while embedding the real name phonetically, aligning with his typical misdirection tactics.
3. Evidence from Substitution Mapping in Z13:
* After testing targeted substitutions, the Z13 sequence closely approximates "Arthur Leigh Ale" with only minor deviations. Here’s the breakdown:
4. Updated Substitution Mapping We refined each symbol in Z13 based on the structure of "Arthur Leigh Ale":
* A = A (same)
* E = R (to fit with the "R" in "Arthur")
* N = T (aligning with the "T" in "Arthur")
* ⊕ = L (consistent with the repeated Ls in "Allen")
* K = H (from "Arthur")
* O = I (as a vowel in "Leigh")
* M = E (to help complete "Leigh" and "Allen")
* △ = G (to fit the "G" in "Leigh")
5. Applying the New Substitutions Decoding the sequence:    A E N ⊕ K O ⊕ M ⊕ △ N A M
6.    with these mappings yields:    A R T L H I L E L G T A E
7.    Reading the Sequence: This translates to "A R T H U R L E I G H A L E," closely resembling "Arthur Leigh Allen" with only minor deviations in the last few letters.
Next Steps
I’m sharing this theory to invite feedback and collaboration:
* Does this approach align with Zodiac’s known cryptic tendencies?
* Could similar phonetic patterns appear in other unsolved Zodiac ciphers?
* What alternative decryption methods might provide further insights?
If anyone has experience with cryptographic analysis, phonetic decryption, or other ideas for exploring this approach in Z13, I’d be grateful for your insights.

Might very much be clutching at straws but couldn’t see anywhere online that this had been posted as a solution so just thought I would take the hit if I’m talking nonsense!

Johnny

10/31/2024 07:53:10 am

If you didn't know about the name Arthur Leigh Allen, would you then anyway come up with Arthur Leigh Ale? If that's the case i would be suspicious of Cheney, the police or whoever wanted Leigh Allen harassed ot caught. Maybe even Allen himself could have written it if you theory is correct.

Richard

10/31/2024 08:52:06 am

What I'll say Ben is what Dave Oranchak will tell you, is that after "with these mappings yields: A R T L H I L E L G T A E", the rest is down to interpretation, knowing that Arthur Leigh Allen is a top suspect. If one of the main suspects was "ART HILLELGATE", this would have been chosen first. We can also make "GARETH LILLEAT". By using a little manipulation it is possible to create multiple alternatives. That is the problem Ben, that the solution you give has to be proved to the exclusion of all others. You also have to consider that you wouldn't have arrived at Arthur Leigh Allen from  A R T L H I L E L G T A E, without prior knowledge of him. If we have a knowledge of where we want to go before we get there, we will invariably get to that desired place. However, I congratulate you on giving it a go. We are all searching for that elusive answer. God knows, I've tried many times.

We also have to consider that the 13 characters may not be a name. The dash after "My name is" might be referring to his name, with the 13 characters just a statement. Something like "My name is Bob. I wont be caught". But obviously marrying up with the ciphertext. I tend to think it will be a message rather than a name, using maybe his initials in the solution.

Ben

10/31/2024 11:38:59 am

Hi Richard, thanks for this. I completely take your point but I wonder if we have to take it from the perspective of the Zodiac. Would he have ever wanted it to be worked out outside of his control? No. At the time of z13 was Allen under that much pressure in connection with the Zodiac, I believe minimal.
I think realistically we have to look at the 70’s and see that it changed drastically in the way the Zodiac was acting, my opinion is that means the Zodiac is under pressure with being identified, so we have to look at the people who were accused in that time and reverse engineer them and see who works.

Hey just a theory, just interesting to see it works for Allen and none of the others I tried!

Ben

10/31/2024 11:31:36 am

Thanks Jonny. No definitely wouldn’t come up with his name at all but isn’t that the point, creating enough anonymity? Perhaps a nod to himself in retrospect but not meant for his life time to be solved. Perhaps if the police hadn’t got interested in him in 1970 onwards he would have kept going with more and more clues and then left plans for his death bed finally confirming himself. And then this clue would have been a reverse of his whole proof for doing the murders (how he use to prove his involvement in the murders by giving details only the police would know but in this case he would have been able to prove that Z13 referred to him but it being loose enough that it shouldn’t happen in his life time).

Richard link

10/31/2024 09:12:47 am

There has been much talk lately of "Connie Henley" or "Connie Henly" from the Albany cipher on August 1st 1973. This may have been a nurse threatened by Zodiac, who worked at the Albany Medical Center. I have found a woman, who in 2002 was a nurse living in Bloomingdale, Michigan, 600 miles west of Albany. Her name was "Connie Henley". She would have been 19 years old at the time of the Zodiac mailing, but cannot find where she lived in 1973. It's a long shot I know. If anybody can find this information and rule her in or out, I would be extremely grateful. Click my name for link.

Richard link

10/31/2024 09:44:12 am

Can't access full address history from outside America.
https://www.whitepages.com/name/Connie-M-Henley/Climax-MI/Pd96RJNxKD9

Ben

10/31/2024 12:01:32 pm

You don’t believe the Connie Hensley comments?

Richard

10/31/2024 01:34:59 pm

Despite not having watched the Netflix documentary, I have been informed of the Connie Seawater maiden name of her mother being Hensley. It's an intriguing thing to highlight, however, the person Zodiac threatened in the Albany Medical Center was likely real, and therefore, would not be connected to the Seawater's. Therefore, it's likely one of those unusual coincidences. I have delved heavily into all the major suspects, yet am unconvinced of any Ben. The one good thing going for Allen is 32 Fresno Street. I suspect the Zodiac Killer lives in the area around the payphone.

Johnny

10/31/2024 10:57:34 am

A few days thereafter Corll and Henley in Texas died and got arrested respectively, but im sure the names is just a coincidence.

Johnny

10/31/2024 01:58:07 pm

Don't rememnber when Allens mother passed and he got the house for himself? But he could possibly be one of 2 or more Zodiacs ( teamwork ).

Ben

10/31/2024 02:02:38 pm

Thanks Richard, so would you be most likely to believe then that it is actually none of the major suspects? Or just not enough evidence to point at one?

Richard

10/31/2024 03:33:43 pm

I think that many of the suspects have a couple of good things about them, but yes, just not enough "evidence" to go beyond a reasonable doubt. If you took everyone's best case for their suspect and presented it to 12 jurors in a court of law, I would expect a 12-0 acquittal. Some people's strong evidece is considered weak by a different observer. It depends how you qualify what is considered good reasoning and what is considered bad. Like I've always said, we have probably 300 "suspects" of different ages, weights, heights, accents, intelligence, hobbies, handwriting and professions, living in different areas - yet all have been moulded into one person. This should demonstrate how poor the techniques are in identifying the Zodiac Killer. That wildly different people can be twisted into the Bay Area murderer. The scepticism applied to other peoples suspects is almost never applied to their own. That is the rabbit hole syndrome in a nutshell.

Rubislaw32 link

10/31/2024 03:44:47 pm

Wasn't it Arthur Leigh Ale that was drunk from a Paul Steiner, Richard ?

Or, do I have that mixed up with something that happened only 20 years ago ?

Rubislaw32 link

10/31/2024 05:03:16 pm

I believe the Edgar Allan Poe misquote ''Sleep my little dead, how we loathe them.'' - is from the real (SF) Zodiac.

This is attributed to the New York letter August 1st 1994, and includes the Flag cipher and some documenting of the New York Zodiac's crimes. This letter is more usually seen as the work of the New York Zodiac - but I believe it to be the real (SF) Zodiac, who had started following what NY Zodiac Heriberto Seda was up to, through newspaper reports.

In Heriberto Seda's last interview, he owned up to leaving symbols written on paper napkins beside his victims. But that is all he claimed, and no mention of anything that was pure cryptology.

Richard

10/31/2024 05:33:43 pm

When I get a chance Rubi, I'll take a look at that letter again. It wouldn't be unusual for the real Zodiac to infiltrate a murder case done in his name. It would be an intriguing thing to look at.

Rubislaw32 link

10/31/2024 05:45:25 pm

Again, I believe the two New York Zodiac June 1990 letters are actually the work of the real (SF) Zodiac, The same/similar spidery handwriting that the SF Zodiac used in his 1986 and 1987 letters.

Seda was of sketchy or poor education; has not owned up to any conventional codes work, and has always claimed that his main inspiration was Graysmith's 1986 book Zodiac.

Richard

11/1/2024 05:33:47 am

I've looked up the ''Sleep my little dead, how we loathe them'' letter Rubi, and it says it was written in prison by Heriberto Seda, and included a lock of his and "Synthia's" hair, his transvestite lover from behind bars.

Rubislaw32 link

11/1/2024 09:12:23 am

There have been various claims over the years, Richard - more usually from members of the press, wanting to make a name for themselves.

I never thought the powers that be would allow Seda to talk more particularly about his crimes specifically - until his most recent interview, generally available to listen to.

He comes across as much more intelligent and articulate than one might expect. And two points I do remember were the extent of his messaging as a yet arrested NY Zodiac: The paper napkins left with his victims. And these have never been revealed before by official LE.

Seda had fashioned a make-shift gun that only fired one bullet - but it was enough to kill, in certain cases. But one of his victims was viciously attacked, in what seems to be a frenzied knife attack. Seda believes investigating cops knifed this victim on finding her dead - to make it look like Seda had more pent-up madness than the collection of other victims might convey as a collective perception of Seda.

I have to admit, I tend to believe Seda on this point. When a high-profile killer is brought to justice, there are often revelations that are still disputed. So, for the extent of Seda's messaging techniques - there are still question marks. But, at least we heard something of Seda's side of things, in the most recent interview.

Chris

12/8/2024 01:22:00 am

So I know this is a hard comment to hear but Dave unfortunately did not have the correct solve to the 340. If he had the correct solve , he would have unlocked the key to the z13 and z32 and the z340 of course , but each one of these letters with the ciphers are so much more than just simple ciphers. Once the key was made available , I decryped all 3. But that's the easy part, thanks to the key.

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