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Herculaneum was one of the towns buried under volcanic ash by the eruption of Mount Vesuvius in 79 AD, although Pompeii is probably better known to most people.
One of the discoveries made by archaeologists at Herculaneum was a vast library of around 900 scrolls that had been carbonised by the hot ash but otherwise preserved. It would be great if the scrolls could be unwound and the contents read, but this has proved to be impossible due to the fragility of the material.
However, scientists at the University of Kentucky may have a solution. The process involves the use of high-energy X-rays and artificial intelligence in the form of machine-learning algorithms.
Work is underway on two of the scrolls. Should the method prove to be successful, it is hoped that eventually all the scrolls will yield their secrets.
Past attempts to decipher ancient texts have often led to somewhat disappointing results, in that the writing turned out to be a laundry list or an invoice, but in this case it would appear that historians might be able to learn what the ordinary citizens of a Roman town chose for their leisure reading from the local library!
Technology is progressing very fast. It would be great if the experts were able to solve this secret.
That would be fascinating to learn what these scrolls have in writing
I only hope there will be no more laundry bills and stuff but considering that it was a library there could be novels but will it not be a waste of time – just saying.
The novel was a much later invention, but there was plenty of Roman poetry and drama. Something unknown by Virgil or Plautus would be a very interesting discovery.
It seems that writing was invented first and foremost for administrative, bureaucratic purposes. Most of the surviving ancient clay tablets in Sumerian, Babylonian and Ugaritic (these were my area of study) fall into that category. But luckily, the function of writing was later extended to include literary and mythical material – luckily for us! Hopefully the Herculaneum scrolls will yield such treasures 🙂
Indeed! It would be good to discover something in literature, history or philosophy that was otherwise unknown.
It would be great if they manage to decipher the scrolls, they might discover some new information.
That will depend on what sort of library this was. I have worked in (and run) libraries of many different types, by no means all of which stocked the latest Stephen King!