After Two Millennium Researchers Finally Digitally Unwrap Burnt Scroll From Mount Vesuvius

Researchers recently made a breakthrough in their pursuit of learning the secrets of Herculaneum scrolls found in Italy. These scrolls came into being around 2000 years ago, as per examinations, and have remained tightly bound since their discovery in an ancient Roman town, stated BBC. Experts were fearful of analyzing these scrolls, some of which are now stored in the University of Oxford's Bodleian Library since past instances led to the crumbling of certain documents. However, new technology encouraged them to take the brave step. 

These scrolls look like a lump of charcoal, which researchers believe was due to being burnt in the eruption of Mount Vesuvius in 79 A.D. The incurred damage was so much, that physically opening them had become a difficult task for experts. Researchers therefore decided to take the route of digitally unwrapping these documents. To achieve this objective, they combined X-ray imaging and artificial intelligence. To their delight, the plan worked, and the team had a view of rows and columns of texts written in one of the scrolls. Experts claim that more work would be needed for deciphering these texts.

The scroll taken for analysis was labeled PHerc. 172, stated the University of Oxford. The artifact was donated by Ferdinand IV, King of Naples and Sicily in the early 19th century. The particular scroll stood apart for researchers, because of the distinct chemical composition of its ink, which appeared more clearly in X-ray scans. Researchers believe there may be a denser substance in the ink, like lead, but further testing is needed for an accurate recipe.

The whole process took place in a facility called Diamond Light Source in Oxfordshire, stated BBC. The document was placed inside a machine called a synchrotron. In this appliance, electrons are sped up, so much that they begin traveling at the speed of light, and as a result produce an X-ray beam, powerful enough to scan the scroll, without causing any form of damage. "It can see things on the scale of a few thousandths of a millimeter," explained Adrian Mancuso, director of physical sciences at Diamond.

The scan creates a 3D reconstruction of the scroll. Experts then identify the several layers inside the 10m papyrus artifact. "We have to work out which layer is different from the next layer so we can unroll that digitally," added Dr Mancuso. After these steps, AI comes into play to locate the ink. The task is complicated as both the papyrus and ink are made of carbon, making distinguishing difficult. AI looks out for the tiniest signals associated with the ink, after which it is painted digitally, for deciphering. Looking at some lines, researchers speculated that the writing could be related to philosophy.

"We can tell the entire scroll is full of text," said Stephen Parsons, project lead for the Vesuvius Challenge, an international competition attempting to unlock the Herculaneum scrolls. "Now we can work on making it show up more clearly. We're going to go from a handful of words to really substantial passages."

One of the first words that researchers have been able to translate was the Ancient Greek διατροπή, as per the University of Oxford. They believe the term means 'disgust.' Researchers noted it appeared twice within a few columns of the text. The success bolstered the team's ambition regarding the examination, according to BBC. "We're confident we will be able to read pretty much the whole scroll in its entirety, and it's the first time we've really been able to say that with high confidence," said Parsons. Researchers have identified some letters from the particular scroll, and believe it is a work of philosophy.