Creator of Kryptos Artwork at CIA Headquarters Gives Final Clue to Puzzle

The artist behind the Kryptos statue near CIA headquarters has given one final clue to cracking the encryption of the text. The fourth passage of the text has not been cracked since the work was placed almost thirty years ago.

Since the unveiling of Kryptos, Greek for “hidden,” cryptoanalysts have been trying to unravel the texts behind the 869-character array on the artwork posted in November 1990. The series consists of four different passages and in 1999 was the public announcement of a hobbyist who had cracked the first three text parts. After that, the CIA and the NSA announced that employees of those services had already found the solution to these parts internally. The first and second parts are based on a Vigenère cipher, the encryption of the third passage is based on transposition.

Source: Wikimedia, CC BY-SA 3.0

The fourth part of the text is the shortest at 97 characters and it has withstood public decipherment to date. The creator of the artwork, Jim Sanborn, has given some hints in recent years. For example, he said that answers to the first three passages contain clues about the fourth. In 2010, he said that the characters NYPVTT stood for BERLIN and in 2014 he revealed that MZFPK stands for CLOCK. He then hinted at a certain clock and told Wired that he has a certain fascination with the Berlin Uhr or Mengenlehreuhr. This shows the time based on the illumination of a number of lamps in different colors.

Mengenlehreuhr showing the time 10:31. Source: Wikimedia, Muritatis (Public Domain)

This week, Sanborn disclosed a new lead to The New York Times; the characters in spots 26 through 34 stand for NORTHEAST. The artist is now 74 years old and does not want to spend the rest of his life judging submissions for solutions. He says the solution, if not found before his death, will eventually be auctioned off. The proceeds will go to climate research.