Codex Seraphinianus
Codex Seraphinianus by Luigi Serafiniby Luigi Serafini
Ranked 2 of 5 illustrated books by recommenders
People recommend this strange, illustrated book for its gorgeous, haunting artwork that is fun to look at and always draws reactions from people who flip through it. Copies can be found relatively cheap.
People recommend this strange, illustrated book for its gorgeous, haunting artwork that is fun to look at and always draws reactions from people who flip through it. Copies can be found relatively cheap.
7 people gave an opinion
- recommend it
- 7
- criticize it
- 0
- approval share
- 100%
Recommended in 2 of 13 months
- November 2025: not recommended
- December 2025: not recommended
- January 2026: not recommended
- February 2026: recommended
- March 2026: not recommended
- April 2026: not recommended
- May 2026: not recommended
- June 2026: recommended
- July 2026: not recommended
- August 2026: not recommended
- September 2026: not recommended
- October 2026: not recommended
- November 2026: not recommended (month in progress)
Why it doesn’t carry the badge
- 7 people recommend itNeeds 10 or more, not met.
- Nobody criticizes itNeeds 2 to 1 or better, met.
- Recommended in 2 of 13 monthsNeeds 4 or more, not met.
The same three rules apply to every product, and the badge can’t be bought. How the badge works
What people say about it
The reasons people give, with the number of comments that give each one. Open a reason to read what they said.
Why people recommend it
Each mark is one comment
Gorgeous, haunting, fun illustrations
“The book itself is beautiful and haunting.”
Comment from 27 Feb 2026 in “An Introduction to the Codex Seraphinianus, the Strangest Book Ever Published” “The art is well done and fun to look at”
Comment from 27 Feb 2026 in “An Introduction to the Codex Seraphinianus, the Strangest Book Ever Published” “The illustrations are gorgeous”
Comment from 27 Feb 2026 in “An Introduction to the Codex Seraphinianus, the Strangest Book Ever Published”
Other illustrated books people recommend
The four most recommended other illustrated books, with the same counts for each, so you can compare like for like. The tick on each bar marks the 2 to 1 line the badge needs.
| Product | Recommend | Criticize | Approval | Months | Owned | Badge |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| The Way Things Workby David Macaulay | 14 | 1 | 93% | 4 | — | Approved |
| Codex Seraphinianusby Luigi SerafiniThis page | 7 | 0 | 100% | 2 | — | — |
| Castleby David Macaulay | 4 | 1 | 80% | 4 | — | — |
| Tool book of a Nuremberg knight from 1505 | 4 | 4 | 50% | 1 | — | — |
| Undergroundby David Macaulay | 3 | 0 | 100% | 2 | — | — |
What people said
6 of the 7 comments that mention it, newest first. Each links to the original comment.
“The art is well done and fun to look at”
“The illustrations are gorgeous”
“never fails to weird people out when they flip through”
“I savored this for a while, but have not gone through the entire book yet.”
“The book itself is beautiful and haunting.”
“I have a nice copy, at least as of a few years ago you can get them for relatively cheap.”
Counts come from 1,795,640 Hacker News comments, November 2025 to November 2026. How we count. Report a mistake.