Urgent call for help deciphering mysterious Roman scroll charred by Vesuvius – and you could win £400k if you crack it
A prize of $400,000 awaits the person who can decipher a MYSTERIOUS Roman scroll that may provide the secret to restoring lost knowledge of the ancient world.
Nearly 2,000 years ago, Mount Vesuvius’s violent eruption darkened the artifact, which is known as PHerc.172.
However, using state-of-the-art X-ray technology, researchers have virtually unrolled it, exposing bits of Greek language.
The public is now being urged by Oxford students to assist in unlocking its mysteries, providing an opportunity to make history and get a sizeable prize.
The project is a component of the Vesuvius Challenge, a global contest that uses artificial intelligence (AI) to decipher the scrolls from Herculaneum, a prosperous Roman city that was buried next to Pompeii following Vesuvius’ eruption in AD 79.
The challenge, which has baffled experts for decades, is for participants to create artificial intelligence (AI) that can distinguish the faint carbon-based ink from the equally carbonized papyrus.
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PHerc.172 is one of about 800 scrolls discovered in the Villa of the Papyri, an opulent home thought to have belonged to Julius Caesar’s father-in-law, Lucius Calpurnius Piso Caesoninus.
One of the best libraries in antiquity is said to be housed in the villa, which also contains perhaps undiscovered Roman literature and Greek philosophical works.
The scrolls were preserved but transformed into brittle lumps of carbon when they were buried beneath meters of ash and molten rock.
They would be destroyed if they were physically unrolled.
However, researchers at the Diamond Light Source facility in Harwell, Oxfordshire, have now produced 3D digital models of the scrolls, enabling a layer-by-layer virtual examination, thanks to advances in imaging technology.
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It’s a huge challenge. The ink’s almost undetectable contrast with the charcoal papyrus has made decoding it extremely challenging, even with advances in scanning.
There has been some improvement, though.
AI was used by rivals earlier this year to decode material from another scroll that was kept at the Institut de France in Paris.
It presented the works of the Epicurean philosopher Philodemus, who also gave thorough explanations of Plato’s Academy and its procedures.
PHerc.172 has special chances for innovations.
Its ink looks denser than that of earlier scrolls, giving X-ray images more contrast.
Greek text, containing a portion of the word that means bewilderment, agitation, or disgust, has been discovered through early deciphering.
Complete words and even sentences, according to the competition’s organizers, are within reach.
In February 2024, three students shared a $700,000 prize for deciphering portions of another scroll, marking the first milestone in the Vesuvius Challenge.
The global project has advanced as a result of this success, with following stages of the competition being funded by tech giants like Elon Musk.
The Oxford Scroll offers intriguing opportunities as well as fresh difficulties.
According to scholarly speculation, it might include missing historical accounts, philosophical treatises, or literary compositions.
The discovery of a Roman library in the Villa of the Papyri could be akin to the Renaissance’s cultural renaissance.
The rivalry is about changing history as much as it is about money.
Already, recent achievements have uncovered hitherto undiscovered aspects of ancient Greek philosophy.
AI, for example, recently figured out where Plato was buried in the garden of his Academy, providing fresh perspectives on ancient academic and cultural customs.
Further is the goal of the Vesuvius Challenge.
Researchers are hoping to find books on music, mathematics, ethics, and possibly works by long-lost authors by revealing the mysteries of PHerc.172 and its counterparts.
Through the Vesuvius Challenge project, which was started by Silicon Valley investor Nat Friedman, participants can access the scroll’s 3D data in order to participate in the challenge.
They need to train AI to recognize ink patterns that are invisible to the human eye using this data.
Submissions are evaluated by a panel of specialists in ancient literature and AI development during the competition, which ends in December 2024.
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The Vesuvius Challenge has captivated people all around the world with its appeal of lost history and its promise of contemporary rewards.
Anyone with a talent for coding or an eye for old languages is welcome to try their hand at solving one of history’s most persistent riddles, regardless of experience level.
How AI & X-rays are unravelling scroll secrets
By allowing scholars to visually “unroll” and decode manuscripts that are too delicate to handle physically, artificial intelligence (AI) and X-rays are transforming the study of ancient scrolls.
Scrolls can be scanned in three dimensions using X-rays, especially with more sophisticated techniques like X-ray micro-computed tomography (micro-CT).
Without physically unrolling the paper or papyrus, these scans preserve its integrity by capturing the layers that are tightly wound or broken.
Additionally, changes in density brought on by metallic or carbon-based inks employed in ancient writing can be seen by X-rays.
By recognizing and distinguishing distinct scroll levels from 3D X-ray data, AI algorithms—especially those that use deep learning—are able to divide text layers, separating the text for study.
By magnifying weak lines or patterns that correlate to ancient writing, they may also recognize text, frequently showing characters that are imperceptible to the human eye.
AI systems are also capable of reconstructing missing portions. Any missing text can be predicted or filled in by machine-learning models.
AI can differentiate between metallic inks, which were generally employed in later eras of history, and carbon-based inks for scrolls where X-rays identify ink changes. This allows for a more thorough and context-sensitive interpretation.
Additionally, sophisticated photography can detect even the smallest traces of ink strokes, allowing for incredibly detailed text reconstruction.
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