Gordian Envelope

Semantic & Data Protocol

Specification for a "smart document" structured data format providing hierarchical binary documents with built-in Merkle-like digest tree, deterministic CBOR encoding, signatures, encryption, and selective elision/redaction. The defining feature is hash-based elision: holders can selectively reveal or hide parts of a document for specific recipients without invalidating the digest tree, supporting both privacy-preserving disclosure and cryptographic proofs of original content. Foundation for the Blockchain Commons "Gordian" stack and underlying format for XID controller documents, Gordian Clubs, and GSTP transport. Sub-specs include Known Values (vocabulary), Permits (cryptographic access control), GSTP (Gordian Sealed Transaction Protocol), and ESC (Encrypted State Continuation)

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Details

License BSD-2-Clause Plus Patent License — bc-envelope (Rust), BCSwiftEnvelope (Swift), bc-envelope-cli, multiple TypeScript ports
Dev Status 🟢 Active
Dev Status Detail Released — production-ready libraries (Rust, Swift, TypeScript); IETF Informational Draft (Experimental track), draft-mcnally-envelope-10; ongoing W3C Credentials Community Group discussion
Owner Blockchain Commons LLC (not-for-profit benefit corporation founded by Christopher Allen, April 25, 2019; Berkeley, California). Specification authors: Wolf McNally (Lead Researcher) and Christopher Allen
Owner - List
  • Blockchain Commons
Governing Body Blockchain Commons LLC (not-for-profit benefit corporation) | IETF (Informational Draft, Experimental track)
Governing Body - List
  • Blockchain Commons
Country USA (Berkeley, California)
Start Year 2022
Stack Rust (bc-envelope), Swift (BCSwiftEnvelope), TypeScript ports; CLI tool (bc-envelope-cli)
Funding Blockchain Commons donations and patron sponsorships (GitHub Sponsors, BTCPay)
Funding - List
  • Blockchain Commons
Last Investigated Jul 1, 2026

Topology view

This tool in the centre and the things it is directly related to. Each line names the kind of relationship.

Topology view: Gordian EnvelopeThis tool in the centre and the things it is directly related to. Each line names the kind of relationship.GordianEnvelopedCBOR (Based on, Built on, Speaks protocol)dCBORGordian Clubs (Basis for, Composes with, Protocol spoken by)GordianClubsHubert (Basis for, Composes with)HubertSchema.org (Based on, Conforms to)Schema.orgXID (Basis for, Hosts)XIDSSKR (Composes with, Conforming implementations, Protocol spoken by)SSKRUniform Resources (Composes with)UniformResourcesJSON-LD (Conforms to)JSON-LDBlockchain Commons (Developed by, Funded by, Stewarded by)BlockchainCommonsGordian Suite (Member of suite)GordianSuite
  • dCBOR (Tool): Based on, Built on, Speaks protocol
  • Gordian Clubs (Tool): Basis for, Composes with, Protocol spoken by
  • Hubert (Tool): Basis for, Composes with
  • Schema.org (Tool): Based on, Conforms to
  • XID (Tool): Basis for, Hosts
  • SSKR (Tool): Composes with, Conforming implementations, Protocol spoken by
  • Uniform Resources (Tool): Composes with
  • JSON-LD (Tool): Conforms to
  • Blockchain Commons (Organization): Developed by, Funded by, Stewarded by
  • Gordian Suite (Suite): Member of suite

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Use Case Domains

Co-Creation & Knowledge

Affordances

Data portability Local-first storage

Semantic & Data Protocol Attributes

Owner - List
  • Blockchain Commons
Origins Blockchain Commons; built atop dCBOR foundation
Database N/A — data format specification; envelopes can be stored in any database, file, or transmitted over any channel
Query Language N/A directly — Envelope structure supports selective-disclosure queries via inclusion proofs; expression evaluation supported via BCR-2023-012 but not a general query language
Data Formats CBOR (deterministic via dCBOR); SHA-256 Merkle digest tree; recursive subject-predicate-object semantic triples
Collaborative Live Editing N/A — data format, not a collaborative editor
Rich Text Editing N/A — data format; rich-text concerns belong to applications using Envelope
Mobile Support Yes (via Swift and Rust libraries)
Web Support Yes (via TypeScript ports)
Native Apps Yes — used in Gordian Seed Tool (iOS/macOS), Gordian Coordinator, and other reference apps
Terms Open standard, BSD-2-Clause Plus Patent License
Funding - List
  • Blockchain Commons
Funds Unknown — funded under Blockchain Commons general operating budget (GitHub Sponsors and corporate sponsors); specific Envelope allocation not separately published
Based On dCBOR (Deterministic CBOR Application Profile); RFC 8949 (CBOR); SHA-256
Governing Body - List
  • Blockchain Commons
Semantic Web Compatibility Subject-predicate-object model derived from RDF; Known Values include Schema.org assignments; cross-references possible to RDF/JSON-LD vocabularies
Protocol Maturity / Standardization IETF Informational Draft (draft-mcnally-envelope-10, Sep 30, 2025, Experimental track); W3C CCG discussion ongoing; production-ready libraries
Vocabulary / Ontology Type Smart document structure with Known Values registry (predicate vocabulary); subject-predicate-object semantic triples
Usage Pattern Foundation for higher-level Blockchain Commons specs (XID, Gordian Clubs, GSTP, ESC); used as a structured data carrier in airgap protocols, credential systems, autonomous cryptographic objects

Relationships

How this tool connects to other tools and organizations, from relationships reviewed by the OpenHaven data steward. They describe how projects connect, not how good they are.

Based on
Built on
Conforms to
Developed by
  • Blockchain Commons
Funded by
  • Blockchain Commons
Member of suite
  • Gordian Suite
Speaks protocol
Stewarded by
  • Blockchain Commons
Composes with
Basis for
Conforming implementations
Hosts
Protocol spoken by