Keys from grid row and column numbers, on 73 letters left by a column-band filler model

Keys computed from each letter's row and column in a 28-by-31 layout of the sculpture's cipher text, tried on the 73 letters left by a column-band filler model. More than 150 formulas were used (row, column, their sum or difference, remainders, KRYPTOS repeated along the grid, bearing-based values), plus a check of every key of the form a×column + b×row + c. 3,726 settings, best 5 of 24 known letters (chance level). None of the tested formulas produces the key values the known letters require (BLZCDCYYGCKAZ and MUYKLGKORNA for Vigenere).

In plain English: Tried keys worked out from each letter's row and column number in a 28-by-31 layout of the cipher text, on the 73 letters left by a column-band filler model. None of the more than 150 formulas did better than chance (best 5 of 24 known letters). This record is negative within the tested scope.

NOISE Tier 2

How to read this record

Verdict – ELIMINATED (ruled out within the tested scope), NOISE (nothing beyond what chance produces for a search of this size; also shown when a record stored no verdict of its own), INCONCLUSIVE (the test left candidates or options standing, or could not decide, so it does not rule the method out), INTERESTING (slightly above random, almost certainly coincidence), SIGNAL (statistically unusual, warrants investigation), or FULL MATCH (all 24 known letters correct).
Confidence Tier – Tier 1 = mathematical proof, valid while its stated assumptions hold. Tier 2 = every possibility within the stated scope tested. Tier 3 = partially tested or sampled. Tier 4 = not yet properly tested.
Configs Tested – How many different key/parameter combinations were tried.
Best Score – How many of the 24 known plaintext letters the best attempt matched (out of 24). N/A means no such score could be read from this record.
Keystream Consistency (Bean) – Whether the key values at different positions are mathematically consistent with each other. The check only holds when the known letters stay in their carved positions (no letters rearranged or removed), and the full set used here assumes the standard A to Z alphabet.
Scope Limitations – What this elimination does not rule out.

Configs Tested: 3,726
Best Score: 5 / 24 known letters matched · low, no sign of a solution
Confidence: Tier 2: Exhaustive search under stated assumptions. Does not eliminate multi-layer variants.
Truth Tag: [INTERNAL RESULT]
Date Tested: 2026-03-12

Scope Limitations

This elimination does not rule out:

Only tests functions of (row, col). Does not test arbitrary position-dependent keys beyond coordinate derivation.

Assumptions

28×31 grid coordinates
Column mask null removal
Key is a deterministic function of grid position

Reproduce

PYTHONPATH=src python3 -u scripts/grille/e_grid_coordinate_keys_01.py

Requires the kryptos repo, Python 3.11+, PYTHONPATH=src. Some recent scripts may not be in the public repository yet.

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