Thanks to modern technology, researchers have uncovered the first image of an ancient papyrus scroll without any physical damage. This exciting development comes from a scroll that was buried in volcanic ash after Mount Vesuvius erupted in 79 AD.
The scroll, known as PHerc. 172, was discovered in 1750 in Herculaneum, Italy, by a farmer. It is one of three such scrolls kept at the Bodleian libraries at the University of Oxford.
A group working on the Vesuvius Challenge, which offers prizes for unlocking such scrolls, used X-ray imaging and artificial intelligence (AI) algorithms to read the text. Some of the identified words include διατροπή (disgust), φοβ (fear), and βίου (life).
The Vesuvius Challenge suggests that the likely author of this scroll is Philodemus, an Epicurean poet. Evidence from the letter shapes indicates it dates back to the first century BCE, sharing similarities with other works attributed to him.
To recover the text, researchers first placed the scroll in a synchrotron machine in Oxford, where it underwent X-ray scans. This provided data to create a 3D image, with AI helping to pinpoint where ink might be present. The AI then digitally highlighted the letters, revealing parts of the lost text, as reported by the BBC.
Project leader Stephen Parsons expressed optimism, stating they could soon read the entire scroll. “We’re confident we will uncover substantial passages,” he told BBC.
The Vesuvius Challenge also highlighted the existence of hundreds of scrolls that remain unopened, with plans to read them using advanced imaging and AI techniques. This initiative has gained over $2 million in funding from Elon Musk’s foundation.
In February, another team connected to the project managed to read around 2,000 Greek letters from a different charred scroll, which they also believe was penned by Philodemus. “This is a complete gamechanger,” noted Robert Fowler, a Greek studies professor, emphasizing the vast potential of these unexamined texts.
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Technology,Discoveries,Herculaneum,Vesuvius
