Glyphs were objects that Desmond Miles could find in the Animus when reliving his ancestor Ezio Auditore's memories. Each Glyph revealed significant details about the history of and conflict between the Assassin and Templar Orders.
The Glyphs were created by Subject 16, Desmond's predecessor in the Abstergo Animus. 16 had discovered 'The Truth' during his prolonged Animus sessions, but he could not share this information during his captivity. Instead, 16 hacked the Animus and hid the file in a number of encrypted fragments which Desmond experienced as Glyphs. In an effort to inform the next Animus subject of the hack, Subject 16 left a number of Cryptic Messages scattered around the Abstergo laboratory in his own blood.[1]
Before Desmond Miles was placed in the Animus, Abstergo had cleaned away Subject 16's messages.[2] These messages were impossible to be seen with the naked eye, but the Bleeding Effect eventually granted Desmond the use of Eagle Vision, which allowed him to perceive 16's cryptic messages. Although Desmond was able to see the messages, he was unable to make any sense of them during his captivity.[3]
During the Escape from Abstergo Industries, Lucy Stillman stole the memory core from the Animus that Subject 16 had tampered with. When this core was transferred to the Animus 2.0, 16's Glyphs were transferred as well.[1]
While reliving the memories of Ezio Auditore da Firenze, Desmond and his fellow Assassins discovered the existence of the Glyphs and surmised how they appeared in the Animus. They eventually reached the conclusion that after Lucy Stillman stole the Animus data core from Abstergo's Animus 1.28, it carried with it the imprinted glyphs originally placed on the core by Subject 16.[1]
While Desmond relived Ezio's memories, he found numerous symbols that acted as a gateway to activating particular glyph file fragments. 16 only wanted Assassins to be able to access these glyphs so scanning a specific symbol in Eagle Vision was the only way to open the glyph, as Eagle Vision was only accessible to those of the Assassin bloodline. Desmond solved the puzzles, 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 whole. The puzzles that Desmond solved described the activities of the Assassins and Templars and instances where Pieces of Eden had emerged throughout history.[1]
When Shaun Hastings analyzed the results of the Glyph puzzles, he discovered the puzzles also contained coordinates to additional hidden locations. This led Desmond to another series of puzzles Subject 16 had placed in the Animus, accessible through locations around the city of Rome.[4]
Each Glyph was located on a historical landmark within the Animus. After completing the first memory sequence, when approaching a landmark with a Glyph, the landmark's Database entry showed an 'Eye' icon. Proximity to one was also signalled by a 'shimmering' sound effect identical to the ones heard near feathers and treasure chests as well as the decipher fragments in The Lost Archive. Searching the landmark in Eagle Vision was the key to revealing the Glyph.
Subject 16 stated that "everything we've been brought up to believe was a lie" and explained he had proof. This proof had been split into 20 encrypted pieces and hidden in the Animus software as the Glyphs.
The puzzle to solve involved finding the "core similarity" in each painting. Desmond had to identify and select the pictures with apples: The Fall, Hercules in the Garden of Hesperides, Atalanta and Hippomenes, Judgement of Paris and Idun and the Apples.
Desmond had to solve 3 picture rings, spinning the various rings in turn until they formed an image. The center circle of the puzzle was fixed to provide a point of reference. Working from this center outward made visualizing the endgame easier.
Each picture was of a famous historical leader who held an Apple of Eden during their career. These leaders were Queen Elizabeth I (Piece #2), Napoleon Bonaparte (Piece #1) and George Washington (Piece #3).
Desmond was presented with a series of pictures, which were seen normally and then under a red light. When the picture was under the red light, Desmond could search the images for the hidden Apple of Eden. While searching the photos, Desmond uncovered some hidden Morse or Masonic Pigpen symbols that contained messages.
Subject 16 explained that each photo subject was murdered by the Templars and their Piece of Eden stolen.
Desmond needed to find the Apple of Eden in each photo.
One needed to select the pictures that shared a common theme. There were two sets of pictures to solve.
<gallery widths="180" spacing="small" position="center" captionalign="center"> cluster5swords.jpg|Swords of Eden
cluster5staves.jpg|Staves of EdenThis was a slightly more difficult variation of the picture rings. As Desmond spun a specific ring, another ring in the puzzle also moved. There were 4 rings to solve, each depicting the story of Cain and Abel.
The quote was from the Pearl of Great Price(Moses 5:29-31) and the Morse Code read "Templar texts adapted by Mr. Smith".
Subject 16 then proclaimed the Templar insignia (technically a Maltese Cross) was actually the Mark Of Cain.
The first part of this puzzle was a 'common picture' puzzle. Desmond had to identify the paintings with a person wearing a red robe: Joseph, Egypt c. 1700 BCE; Jason, Greece Prehistory; Jesus Christ, Jerusalem c. 30; David and Goliath, Valley of Elah c. 970 BCE; Christ Disrobed, Jerusalem c. 30. Each of them once held Piece Of Eden #66, The Shroud. Finishing this resulted in the SPQR logo flashing on the screen.
The second part of the puzzle involved scanning a picture of the crucified Jesus Christ for a Piece of Eden. Desmond would hear a beeping sonar that became more rapid when approaching the target. Located around Jesus's legs was the red Shroud. Hidden amongst this picture was the Templar insignia and the words "They took it."
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 #5 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 |
