Item #: SCP-1042-RU
Object Class: Safe
Special Containment Procedures: The object must be stored in a specially reinforced chamber resistant to all known forms of breach. SCP-1042 must remain under a vacuum seal made of [DATA EXPUNGED] to protect against potential damage. Access to the storage chamber must be secured with three safe doors with [DATA EXPUNGED]. All copies of keys to SCP-1042's storage chamber must be held by [REDACTED] to prevent attempts to steal the object. All personnel, regardless of their clearance level and position, must take amnesiac █████████ after working with SCP-1042. It is strictly forbidden to place any other SCP objects within a radius of less than one kilometer from the storage chamber of SCP-1042. Bringing any items capable of damaging SCP-1042 into the object's storage chamber is prohibited, as well as performing dangerous actions with the object. SCP-1042 is of immense value but can easily be used to cause irreversible catastrophes.
Description: SCP-1042 appears to be an ordinary book measuring 21 x 15 cm and approximately 5 cm thick. The book's cover is made of paper, faded gray-blue in color, with a black embossed title at the top reading "Do-it-yourself" and an embossed ornament of tools and various mechanical parts around the perimeter. The spine of the book features the same title, opposite which is the embossed black symbol Ѫ. On the bottom side of front and back covers, there is a partially erased illegible inscription consisting of two to three short words. Inner sides of the covers are white and do not have any visible inscriptions. The book appears very old, and some pages may crumble with careless handling. Radiocarbon analysis has shown that the book is ███ years old. All pages of SCP-1042 that contain text have individual numbers in the lower corner, written in Arabic numerals in the decimal system. Some page numbers are illegible due to the condition of the object.
Pages of SCP-1042 describe methods for creating all known and unknown devices using relatively simple and accessible materials, as well as many other instructions related to technology. The description of each device takes from one to twelve pages and is accompanied by detailed black-and-white illustrations rendered in a graphic style. Text of the book consists of illegible symbols that vary clearly in the descriptions of devices with different levels of complexity. From time to time, readable words are found written in Russian, English, Italian, and 112 other languages, including dead or altered languages (for example, in description of ██████████████, words written in pre-revolutionary Cyrillic appear three times), as well as sequences of numbers recorded as text. The only way to understand content of the book is through illustrations; however, much cannot be fully comprehended without knowledge of caption text. In particular, names of materials are encountered almost everywhere.
Among the instructions found in SCP-1042 are:
- Creation of a primitive spear (stone and shaft processing, attaching parts with resin);
- Detailed diagram of the AK automatic rifle;
- Structure and production of Damascus steel;
- Method for performing coronary bypass surgery;
- Device for remotely controlling human movements;
- Water gun that shoots liquid at a pressure of 3200 atmospheres;
- Wiring layout on a motherboard of model ███████;
- Several four-dimensional shapes of varying complexity made from simple wooden blocks;
- Diagram of a self-replicating nanoassembler and instructions for its assembly;
- Antigravity device made from components of a diesel engine;
- [DATA EXPUNGED]
Exact volume of information contained in SCP-1042 could not be determined and is unlikely to ever be established. Although there are a total of ███ pages with descriptions of technologies, text on them changes after each closing of book. Pattern of appearance for various descriptions remains unclear — often, several consecutive pages list completely unrelated instructions, such as method for obtaining distilled water, constructing minibus, and ways to germinate sunflower seeds in sandy terrain. Dr. A███████ and other researchers say that it is simply impossible to stop reading, as it is unknown what will appear on next page.
I bet this book contains methods for destroying all the Keters in the world! - Dr. A███████
Addendum 1: The object was accidentally found by agent V███████ at a book fair in Moscow on █.██.████. The seller apparently had no idea about properties of the object and, when asked about origin of SCP-1042, replied the following:
I don't know what's in there; I found it in attic and only flipped through it a couple of times. I thought maybe it would be useful to someone - well, it was useful, wasn't it?
After that, the object was immediately transferred to [DATA EXPUNGED], where it remains to this day.
Addendum 2: Testing showed that any instructions, even those seeming incredible, can be easily realized in practice. During experiments, [REDACTED] was created and subsequently destroyed after testing. Storage of SCP-1042 has been additionally fortified, and other security measures related to storage and use of object have been enhanced. Instructions related to [DATA EXPUNGED] and SCP-███ were found. Due to fragility of object, [DATA EXPUNGED] is ongoing.
Addendum 3: During testing of the object, page number ██ was destroyed due to object deterioration. Gluing and placing the page back in the book did not restore its properties, which is why it is considered lost and [REDACTED]. Study of SCP-1042 has been suspended indefinitely. One of the last conducted studies of SCP-1042 showed that page numbering had fully restored; however, their total number has accordingly decreased by two.