Glyphs were data entry points scattered around the virtual representation of Renaissance Italy rendered by the Animus.
Desmond Miles was able to locate several of them while reliving the memories of his ancestor, Ezio Auditore da Firenze. Each Glyph revealed historical details about the conflict between the Assassins and the Templars, humanity, and Pieces of Eden.
The Glyphs were created by Clay Kaczmarek, Desmond's predecessor in the Animus Project. Clay had discovered 'The Truth' during the prolonged Animus sessions, but he could not share this information during his captivity. Instead, he hacked the Animus and hid a video file in a number of encrypted data fragments, in form of Glyphs on certain structures.
In an effort to inform the next Animus subject of the hack, Clay left a number of cryptic images drawn in his own blood scattered across the Animus Project laboratory, as a clue to look for such symbols in the environments rendered by the Animus.[1]
Before Desmond Miles was placed in the Animus, Abstergo had cleaned away Clay's blood messages.[2]
These messages were impossible to see with the naked eye. However, through the Bleeding Effect, Desmond eventually gained the ability of Eagle Vision, which allowed him to perceive Clay's blood writing. Although he was able to see it, Desmond could not comprehend its meaning at the time of his captivity.[3]
During the escape from Abstergo facility, Lucy Stillman took the Animus memory core, unaware that it contained the data which Clay tampered with. When the core was transferred to the Animus 2.0, the Glyph data was transferred along with it.[1]
While reliving the memories of Ezio Auditore da Firenze, Desmond and his fellow Assassins discovered the existence of the Glyphs and guessed how they appeared in the Animus 2.0, eventually concluding the data was tampered with by Clay, and came with the Abstergo memory core.[1]
Desmond found numerous symbols scattered across various landmarks, which contained the encrypted file fragments. Clay placed a safeguard the files however, as each Glyph had to be scanned with Eagle Vision to access it, and the files were only compatible with the Animus itself.
Desmond solved the puzzles contained within each Glyph, allowing him to access a short clip of The Truth video. Once all the Glyphs were solved, these short clips combined to form a complete footage from one of Clay's classified session at Abstergo, depicting Adam and Eve running through Eden with a stolen Apple of Eden.
The puzzles revealed some of the activities of the Assassins and Templars and instances where Pieces of Eden had emerged across the human history.[1]
When Shaun Hastings analyzed the results of the Glyph puzzles, he discovered the puzzles also contained coordinates to additional certain locations within the Animus. These led Desmond to a series of Cluster puzzles, accessible through the Rifts in programming in the city of Rome.
These Rifts were also safeguarded, as they did not physically appear on the landmarks at all, unless seen with the Eagle Vision. Another notable difference was that Ezio had to physically enter a Rift, rather than just scan it.
After solving all ten of the Rift puzzles, a video message "The miracle is in the execution" appeared, though the Assassins figured it was not a video at all, but rather an encrypted file. Rebecca managed to make it accessible to Desmond. The file contained a course similar to the Animus Virtual Training Program. At the end, Desmond was presented with a digital image of Clay Kaczmarek, which spoke to him about Eve, the Sun, Eden and the darkness, before disappearing.[4]
Each Glyph was located on a historical landmark within the Animus. After approaching a landmark with a Glyph on it, the landmark's Database entry was marked with an eye icon.
Proximity to a Glyph was also noticeable by a shimmering sound effect, identical to the one heard near feathers and treasure chests, as well as the decipher fragments in The Lost Archive.
The puzzles were solved in numerical order, regardless of which Glyph they were accessed through. Whenever stuck on a puzzle, a help option appeared and Shaun Hastings offered a hint upon activating it.
The puzzle involved finding the core similarity in each painting. It was solved by selecting the images containing apples.
The solved puzzle
The puzzles were solved by rotating the various rings in turn until they formed an image.
The first solved image.
The second solved image.
The third solved image.
The puzzle was solved by locating a hidden Apple of Eden in each image, under the infrared light.
The first solved image.
The second solved image.
The third solved image.
Hidden Morse and Masonic Pigpen symbols containing messages were present in the images.
The puzzle was solved by locating a hidden image in each photo.
The first image's location.
The second image's location.
The third image's location.
The fourth image containing an Apple of Eden.
Hidden messages were present in the images.
The puzzles were solved by selecting images which shared a common theme. A sword in the first set, a staff in the second set.
The first solved puzzle.
The second solved puzzle.
The puzzles were solved by rotating the various rings in turn until they formed an image of Cain slaying Abel.
The first puzzle required rotating Ring One 2 times to the left, Ring Two 3 times to the left, Ring Four once to the right, Ring Five 3 times to the right, and Ring Three around to complete the image.
The second puzzle required rotating Ring One 3 times to the left, Ring Three 1 time to the left, Ring Four 4 times to the left, Ring Five once to the right, and Ring 2 around to complete the image.
The third puzzle required rotating Ring One 3 times to the left, Ring Three 1 time to the right, Ring Four 5 times to the left, Ring Five once to the left, and Ring Two around to complete the image.
The fourth puzzle required rotating Ring Three once to the right, Ring Five 2 times to the left, Ring Four 2 times to the left, Ring Two 6 times to the right, and Ring One around to complete the image.
The quotes accompanying the images were taken from the Pearl of Great Price, and the Morse Code underneath the final image read "Templar texts adapted by Mr. Smith".
The first puzzle required finding the core similarity in each painting. It was solved by selecting the images containing the red shroud.
The second part of the puzzle involved scanning a picture of the crucified Jesus Christ, in search for the Shroud of Eden. The Templar insignia and the words "They took it." were hidden in the image.
Similar to the previous Glyph, Desmond needed to look for a Piece of Eden using the sonar beeps as a guide.
The next phase of this puzzle involved picking up the flame and placing it over the picture of Joan. Subject 16 explained the Templars killed Joan to recover The Sword. After Desmond placed the image of Rasputin over the image of Nicholas, Subject 16 explained that Nicholas used The Staff to maintain power, but Rasputin stole The Staff and Nicholas lost control of the populace, resulting in the Russian Revolution.
The first part of this puzzle involved using sonar to locate a Piece of Eden in the photos.
The next puzzle involved solving a Caesar cipher to obtain the access code. The cipher key was easily spotted amongst the images (6=1). The access code was 312.
The unlocked letter revealed the Templars plan to kill John F. Kennedy for "planning to give the vote to everyone". Oswald was the successful assassin, but another agent referred to as "Z" was also present to ensure success. Once JFK was down, PE1 was used to stage a distraction on the infamous 'Grassy Knoll'. The driver (who was trained with PE2 in the Templar labs) took advantage of the confusion to steal PE3.
The first puzzle involved using sonar to locate and identify the Apollo 11 landing module. The module was not actually over the Moon itself but out in space, around lower left of the picture. Over the Moon was a Mason pigpen cipher that read "Johnson was one of them. The bee's drone too. Follow the money".
The next puzzle was another picture ring. Spinning Ring Five 6 times to the left, Ring Two 4 times to the left, Ring Four 3 times to the right, Ring Three 5 times to the left, and Ring One completed the puzzle.
The final puzzle involved using sonar to locate the Piece of Eden. Surveying the image, several hidden alterations could be found. The title of the Moon photo read "Apollo 11 photograph released to public"; underneath it read "Original unreleased negative." When scanned, the US Flag contained the Abstergo logo, and the white flag contained the Templar insignia, resembling the Jerusalem cross. Piece of Eden could be found next to the astronaut's foot on the left.
This puzzle began with a letter from Nikola Tesla before giving Desmond two 'find the Apple' pictures. Unlike previous puzzles, Desmond couldn't home in on the sonar.
Subject 16 revealed that Tesla found the Fourth Apple in Croatia, but the Templars found the Apple in Tesla's lab and used it to drive Tesla mad.
For the final image, moving the cursor over each of the light globes activated them.
The first puzzle was a Caesar wheel: the key was hidden in the schematics that was also shown on the page, 4=1. The password was thus 240.
For the next map, the cursor over each of the light globe deactivated them.
The next puzzle was a 'spot the Apple' picture, showing Mark Twain in Tesla's lab. The Apple was in Twain's hands; there was also a hidden Morse cipher reading "They used it to make Tesla go insane. The organization took his research. Alien Property Custodian."
Desmond was then shown a letter from Thomas Edison to a Mr. Morgan, both Templars, discussing Tesla's intention to use the Fourth Apple to provide free electricity and information networks, against the Templars ideas. Edison thus urged Morgan to cut Tesla's funding.
Now Desmond had a second Caesar wheel to solve: but some of the symbols used on the wheel were obscured. The symbol pattern was fairly simple: dashes represent multiple dots, which represent a tally. The key to the Caesar wheel was split amongst two images: the Model T car (2) and the cover of the newspaper. The code to enter was thus:
The next letter was from Henry Ford to Edison. Edison apparently gave (or at least authorized the use of) the Fourth Apple by Ford, allowing Ford to keep his workers on lower wages. Ford was eventually instructed to give the Apple to "H," who would "take over" and begin a war that would allow a new Templar order to arise from the chaos. The letter also revealed the Templars knew H was intending to "purge" Europe and that Ford, at least, supported this idea. The letter also implied that Firestone was also a Templar.
The first phase of the puzzle was another partially-obscured Caesar wheel. The two pictures on the left each had the key: one had the number 9 while the other had a triangle rafter highlighted. When the wheel was aligned, Desmond saw how the symbols go from triangles to squares and circles. The solution was thus:
An Abstergo memo instructed a Templar to give "O" the authorization to proceed with a real-world verification of his experiments.
The next screen presented a big red button. There were no hidden texts here, so pushing the button revealed a video clip of an atomic explosion.
The final screen presented a 'sonar location' puzzle. Listening to the sounds of the Geiger counter allowed Desmond to home in on the access code that completed the puzzle.
Subject 16 was starting to deteriorate. He had visions of holding a rifle at Gettysburg, stabbing a man and getting blood on his waistcoat; of an opera soprano who cried as they copulated; and of speaking at the Forum but no one listening.
The only puzzle involved selecting the paintings with a common theme: that of the union of gods and mortals. The paintings are: Danaë Visited by Zeus, Jupiter and Io, Leda and the Swan, Cupid and Psyche, and the Rape of Europa.
Subject 16 then revealed the Assassins' abilities were the result of interbreeding between humans and Those Who Came Before.
The first puzzle was a picture ring (of Ivan the Terrible holding his dead son). Twisting Ring Three 2 times to the right, Ring One 4 times to the right, Ring Four 5 times to the right, Ring One 5 times to the left, Ring Two 5 times to the left, and Ring Five 5 times to the right to complete the puzzle.
The next part was a map of targets murdered by the Assassins. The cursor moved over each one to complete the puzzle.
The puzzle began with a letter sent to Nikola Tesla from the Assassins, warning of the Templar's plan for Tunguska. A map was then presented with various place names, but only one name marked the correct spot: Tunguska. If the cursor hit any place names other than Tunguska, the names would shuffle again. Moving the cursor over the Tunguska text revealed a portrait of Nikola Tesla and a picture of The Staff; dragging the Staff to Tesla completed the puzzle.
An anonymous memo appeared from 1908: the Templars had taken The Staff to Tunguska to conduct experiments on it, but the Assassins recruited Tesla to destroy the artifact. The Assassins knew Tesla's career had been destroyed by the Templars, and so Tesla agreed. The Staff was destroyed before the Templars could take advantage of it.
The Caesar wheel in this puzzle didn't simply obscure two portions: the order of the symbols in the code box was random and there were some fake symbols to choose from as well. Looking at the symbols in the wheel and counting the number of sharp vertices, a pattern could be discerned. On the image with the tank, the < symbol was shown, and between the pictures was the number 4; placing the symbol at the number 4 on the wheel aligned it correctly. The number of angles in the picture was lesser than the number given in the wheel by three angles from the number 3 onwards. For 0, 1, and 2, the number of angles were 7,8, and 9 respectively. The solution to the wheel was thus:
An Abstergo memo showed that the war had mostly gone to plan by ushering in a new order, but "H" was supposed to meet "C" with the Piece of Eden and didn't make the expected rendezvous on 30 April 1945.
Subject 16 explained that although the Templars ushered in their new order, the Assassins were able to kill Adolf Hitler.
The final part of the puzzle involved locating the Assassin emblem in a picture of the Führerbunker. Looking in the upper-right corner over the bunker entrance revealed the emblem. On the wall of the small cubic building in front of the bunker was a hidden Caesar cipher reading "The double was killed in the bunker".
The first phase of the puzzle was a Caesar wheel. The key to the cipher was amongst the black & white brain images, but two necessary symbols were obscured from the wheel. As Shaun explained, the 'trees' were 'ones' and the 'mountains' were 'tens': the values of the wheel were still in order. The correct key was thus:
Desmond was then presented with an article from the inaugural issue of Biological Frontier from January 2012. This article, by Doctors Yijie Wu and PJ Traunero, described a unique neurotransmitter that appeared exclusively in humans and yet did not react to any sort of stimulation.
The second part of the puzzle involved moving the cursor over the various synapses within the picture. Amongst the nerve lines were two circular parts.
Subject 16 revealed the neurotransmitter described by Wu & Traunero reacted in the presence of a Piece of Eden.
Subject 16 advised "It happened once before. The Pieces were once part of a whole." The first puzzle was a 'common theme' picture set: selecting the five pictures revealed a depiction of the sun: Nazca Textile c. 200; Aztec Calendar Stone 1427; The Eastern Gate 1816; Book of the Dead c. 1310 BCE.; Sistine Chapel Ceiling Fresco 1512.
Finally Desmond needed to locate the Earth within the picture of the Sun. It was located just below and left of the center. There were also four unencrypted messages in the picture, indicating that "fire from the heavens" caused terrible loss of life.
The first puzzle was a picture ring: twisting Ring Five 10 times to the right, Ring Four 2 times to the left, Ring Three 2 times to the right, Ring Two 5 times to the right, and Ring One 3 times to the left completed the puzzle.
Next was a picture location puzzle. There were no hidden messages in the picture. When the cursor was held over the eye at the top of the picture an image of the Vitruvian Man is revealed, which was Desmond's target.
Desmond would now come to a Caesar wheel that had no values on it whatsoever. The clue was in the Assassin's creed that was displayed: everything is permitted. Submitting any combination of symbols allowed the puzzle to proceed.
Desmond was shown an Abstergo memo from 3 January 1997, instructing that faked fossil evidence must be planted for Tim D. White to find so the world continued to believe human evolution did not have any assistance.
For the final part of the puzzle, moving Desmond's Apple cursor over each of the bones in the hominid skeleton transmuted the skeleton into a Homo sapiens skeleton.
| Icon | Name | How to obtain | Points | Trophy |
|---|---|---|---|---|
|
Tip of the Iceberg | Use Ezio's Eagle Vision to scan a Glyph in the environment | 10
|
Bronze |
|
Vitruvian Man | Unlock all 20 pieces of Subject 16's video | 20
|
Bronze |
