His predictions were based on events from the past.

His predictions were based on events from the past.

Although the perception of Nostradamus as a prophet with an uncanny ability to accurately predict the future has persisted since the 16th century, scholars now believe that he didn’t actually possess a supernatural power to see into the hereafter, but rather the ability to project past events into the future. According to Peter Lemesurier, a former Cambridge linguist and professional translator who has written at least 10 books on the enigmatic figure, Nostradamus was neither an astrologer nor a seer; he simply believed that history will repeat itself. Using a technique dating back to biblical times known as bibliomancy, Nostradamus purportedly selected extracts from older sources at random and then used astrological calculations to project its recurrence in the future. One of the major sources used for his most famous work, “The Prophecies,” was the “Mirabilis liber” of 1522, an anthology of prophecies from well-known seers of the time, while “Livre de l’estat et mutations des temps” by Richard Roussat provided the basis for his astrological references.