Urgent call for help deciphering mysterious Roman scroll charred by Vesuvius – and you could win £400k if you crack it
A MYSTERIOUS Roman scroll could hold the key to unlocking lost knowledge of the ancient world — and a £400,000 prize awaits anyone who can crack it.
Known as PHerc.172, the relic was blackened by the fiery eruption of Mount Vesuvius nearly 2,000 years ago.
But it has been virtually “unrolled” by researchers using cutting-edge X-ray technology, revealing fragments of Greek text.
Oxford scholars are now calling on the public to help decipher its secrets, offering a chance to make history while earning a hefty reward.
The endeavour is part of the Vesuvius Challenge, an international competition that leverages AI to read the scrolls from Herculaneum, a wealthy Roman town buried alongside Pompeii during Vesuvius’s eruption in AD 79.
Participants are tasked with developing AI capable of detecting the faint carbon-based ink against the similarly carbonised papyrus, a challenge that has stumped researchers for decades.
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PHerc.172 is one of approximately 800 scrolls unearthed in the Villa of the Papyri, a luxurious estate believed to have belonged to Lucius Calpurnius Piso Caesoninus, Julius Caesar’s father-in-law.
The villa is thought to house one of the finest libraries of antiquity, including works of Greek philosophy and possibly undiscovered Roman literature.
Buried under meters of ash and molten rock, the scrolls were preserved but turned into fragile lumps of carbon.
Any attempt to physically unroll them would lead to their destruction.
But now, thanks to advancements in imaging technology, researchers at the Diamond Light Source facility in Harwell, Oxfordshire, have created 3D digital models of the scrolls, allowing them to be virtually examined layer by layer.
The challenge is immense. Despite scanning advancements, deciphering the ink has proven exceptionally difficult due to its near-invisible contrast with the blackened papyrus.
However, some progress has been made.
Earlier this year, competitors using AI deciphered text from another scroll housed at the Institut de France in Paris.
PHerc.172 offers unique opportunities for breakthroughs.
Unlike previous scrolls, its ink appears denser, presenting higher contrast in X-ray scans.
Early deciphering has uncovered Greek text, including part of the word διατροπή, meaning “confusion, agitation, or disgust.”
The competition’s organisers believe complete words—and even sentences—are within reach.
The first milestone in the Vesuvius Challenge was reached in February 2024, when three students shared a $700,000 prize for reading parts of another scroll.
This success has spurred the global initiative forward, with tech moguls like Elon Musk funding later phases of the competition.
The Oxford scroll presents new challenges and exciting possibilities.
Scholars speculate that it could contain lost works of literature, histories, or philosophical treatises.
If a Roman library within the Villa of the Papyri is ever excavated, it may hold discoveries comparable to the cultural revival of the Renaissance.
The competition is not just about money but rewriting history.
Recent successes have already revealed previously unknown details about ancient Greek philosophy.
For instance, AI recently deciphered the location of Plato’s burial in the garden of his Academy, offering new insights into the cultural and scholarly practices of antiquity.
The Vesuvius Challenge aims to go further.
By unlocking the secrets of PHerc.172 and its counterparts, researchers hope to uncover texts on ethics, mathematics, music, and potentially works by long-lost authors.
To join the challenge, participants can access the scroll’s 3D data via the Vesuvius Challenge project, founded by Silicon Valley investor Nat Friedman.
Using this data, they must train AI to detect ink patterns invisible to the human eye.
The competition runs through December 2024, with submissions reviewed by a panel of experts in ancient texts and AI development.
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With the allure of lost histories and the promise of modern rewards, the Vesuvius Challenge has captured imaginations worldwide.
Whether amateur enthusiasts or seasoned researchers, anyone with a knack for coding or an eye for ancient languages is invited to try their hand at unravelling one of history’s most enduring mysteries.
How AI & X-rays are unravelling scroll secrets
AI and X-rays are revolutionising the study of ancient scrolls by enabling researchers to virtually "unroll" and decipher texts that are too fragile to handle physically.
X-rays, particularly advanced methods like like X-ray micro-computed tomography (micro-CT), create highly detailed 3D scans of scrolls.
These scans capture the layers of tightly wound or damaged parchment or papyrus without physically unrolling them, preserving their integrity.
X-rays can also detect variations in density caused by metallic or carbon-based inks used in ancient writing.
AI algorithms, particularly those using deep learning, can segment layers of text by identifying and separating individual layers of the scroll from 3D X-ray data, isolating the text for analysis.
They can also recognise text by enhancing faint markings or patterns corresponding to ancient writing, often revealing characters that are invisible to the naked eye.
AI algorithms can reconstruct incomplete sections as well. Machine-learning models can fill in the gaps or predict any missing text.
For scrolls where X-rays detect ink differences, AI can distinguish metallic inks - typically used in later periods of history - from carbon-based inks, enabling a more detailed and context-sensitive interpretation.
Advanced imaging can also track even faint remnants of ink strokes, reconstructing text in incredible detail.