Problem 1500. Kryptos - CIA Cypher Sculpture: Vignere Decryption

The Kryptos Sculpture contains four encypted messages.

This Challenge is to Decrypt two of the original messages from the sculpture.

The method employed is Vigenere Decryption. One clarification is that "?" are removed from the coding sequence and then re-inserted in the final encoded message.

Original phrase: Between subtle shading and the absence of light lies the nuance of iqlusion.

For coding purposes spaces and punctuation are removed, except "?".

Decode Phrase: EMUFPHZLRFAXYUSDJKZLDKRNSHGNFIVJYQTQUXQBQVYUVLLTREVJYQTMKYRDMFD

Input: Decode Phrase, Vigenere alphabet word, Vigenere shift word

Vigenere alphabet word ='KRYPTOS';

Vigenere shift word ='PALIMPSEST';

Output: BETWEENSUBTLESHADINGANDTHEABSENCEOFLIGHTLIESTHENUANCEOFIQLUSION

The decryption matrix for this case:

KRYPTOSABCDEFGHIJLMNQUVWXZ

PTOSABCDEFGHIJLMNQUVWXZKRY
ABCDEFGHIJLMNQUVWXZKRYPTOS
LMNQUVWXZKRYPTOSABCDEFGHIJ
IJLMNQUVWXZKRYPTOSABCDEFGH
MNQUVWXZKRYPTOSABCDEFGHIJL
PTOSABCDEFGHIJLMNQUVWXZKRY
SABCDEFGHIJLMNQUVWXZKRYPTO
EFGHIJLMNQUVWXZKRYPTOSABCD
SABCDEFGHIJLMNQUVWXZKRYPTO
TOSABCDEFGHIJLMNQUVWXZKRYP

Follow Up Challenges:

1) Vigenere Encryption

2) Dictionary search

3) KRYPTOS Part IV

KRYPTOS Solutions