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ScienceQuiet 46h · day 9

Berkeley scientists burn modern scrolls to decode 2,000-year-old Herculaneum texts

Researchers created and carbonized replica papyrus to develop methods for reading ancient scrolls buried by Vesuvius.

newest coverage 1d agosummary written 5d ago36 pieces574 likes & upvotes16 comments NewswiresMastodonBlueskyGoogle News

What to know

  • UC Berkeley researchers burned modern replica papyrus scrolls to develop techniques for reading 2,000-year-old Herculaneum texts buried by Vesuvius.
  • X-ray tomography of the burned replicas revealed that leaded ink significantly improves readability of carbonized ancient manuscripts.
  • The team created synthetic scroll models to develop text-detection algorithms for recovering lost text from the fragile original scrolls.

Douglas Seiler UC Berkeley researcherUC Berkeley Research institution

Berkeley scientists burn modern scrolls to decode 2,000-year-old Herculaneum texts
arstechnica.com

How it unfolded 3 developments, newest first · click a bar or a number to jump articlesposts

Peak 15 pieces in two hours at Sep 16, 1 PM; 36 pieces over 9 days (24 articles · 12 posts) Sep 16, 1 PM — 15 pieces · 14 articles · 1 post — Google News 9, Newswires 4, Mastodon 1, +1 moreSep 16, 3 PM — quietSep 16, 5 PM — quietSep 16, 7 PM — 2 pieces · 2 posts — Bluesky 1, Mastodon 1Sep 16, 9 PM — 1 piece · 1 post — Mastodon 1Sep 16, 11 PM — quietSep 17, 1 AM — quietSep 17, 3 AM — 2 pieces · 1 article · 1 post — Google News 1, Mastodon 1Sep 17, 5 AM — 2 pieces · 1 article · 1 post — Google News 1, Bluesky 1Sep 17, 7 AM — quietSep 17, 9 AM — 1 piece · 1 post — Bluesky 1Sep 17, 11 AM — quietSep 17, 1 PM — quietSep 17, 3 PM — 1 piece · 1 post — Bluesky 1Sep 17, 5 PM — quietSep 17, 7 PM — quietSep 17, 9 PM — quietSep 17, 11 PM — quietSep 18, 1 AM — quietSep 18, 3 AM — quietSep 18, 5 AM — 3 pieces · 3 articles — Google News 2, Newswires 1Sep 18, 7 AM — quietSep 18, 9 AM — quietSep 18, 11 AM — quietSep 18, 1 PM — 2 pieces · 2 articles — Google News 1, Newswires 1Sep 18, 3 PM — quietSep 18, 5 PM — quietSep 18, 7 PM — quietSep 18, 9 PM — quietSep 18, 11 PM — quietSep 19, 1 AM — quietSep 19, 3 AM — quietSep 19, 5 AM — 1 piece · 1 post — Mastodon 1Sep 19, 7 AM — 1 piece · 1 post — Mastodon 1Sep 19, 9 AM — quietSep 19, 11 AM — quietSep 19, 1 PM — quietSep 19, 3 PM — quietSep 19, 5 PM — quietSep 19, 7 PM — quietSep 19, 9 PM — quietSep 19, 11 PM — quietSep 20, 1 AM — quietSep 20, 3 AM — quietSep 20, 5 AM — quietSep 20, 7 AM — quietSep 20, 9 AM — quietSep 20, 11 AM — quietSep 20, 1 PM — quietSep 20, 3 PM — quietSep 20, 5 PM — quietSep 20, 7 PM — quietSep 20, 9 PM — quietSep 20, 11 PM — quietSep 21, 1 AM — quietSep 21, 3 AM — quietSep 21, 5 AM — quietSep 21, 7 AM — quietSep 21, 9 AM — quietSep 21, 11 AM — quietSep 21, 1 PM — quietSep 21, 3 PM — quietSep 21, 5 PM — quietSep 21, 7 PM — 2 pieces · 1 article · 1 post — Mastodon 1, Newswires 1Sep 21, 9 PM — quietSep 21, 11 PM — quietSep 22, 1 AM — quietSep 22, 3 AM — quietSep 22, 5 AM — 2 pieces · 2 articles — Google News 2Sep 22, 7 AM — quietSep 22, 9 AM — quietSep 22, 11 AM — quietSep 22, 1 PM — quietSep 22, 3 PM — quietSep 22, 5 PM — quietSep 22, 7 PM — quietSep 22, 9 PM — quietSep 22, 11 PM — quietSep 23, 1 AM — quietSep 23, 3 AM — 1 piece · 1 post — Mastodon 1Sep 23, 5 AM — quietSep 23, 7 AM — quietSep 23, 9 AM — quietSep 23, 11 AM — quietSep 23, 1 PM — quietSep 23, 3 PM — quietSep 23, 5 PM — quietSep 23, 7 PM — quietSep 23, 9 PM — quietSep 23, 11 PM — quietYesterday, 1 AM — quietYesterday, 3 AM — quietYesterday, 5 AM — quietYesterday, 7 AM — quietYesterday, 9 AM — quietYesterday, 11 AM — quietYesterday, 1 PM — quietYesterday, 3 PM — quietYesterday, 5 PM — quietYesterday, 7 PM — quietYesterday, 9 PM — quietYesterday, 11 PM — quietToday, 1 AM — quiet 123
Sep 17Sep 18Sep 19Sep 20Sep 21Sep 22Sep 23now · 3:52 AM ET
  1. 3

    Researchers develop text-detection algorithms from synthetic scroll models

    Using the carbonized replica scrolls, researchers created synthetic models and adapted advanced software to achieve layer separation and develop algorithms for detecting and recovering text from the actual Herculaneum scrolls.

    “Douglas Seiler painstakingly sourced papyrus and reed pens from Egypt and traditional lampblack ink from Japan, then paid some high school students to inscribe the papyrus with lines from Star Wars and the Bible and a quote from the '60s sci-fi TV show The Outer Limits.”
    — Phys.org · source
  2. background

    Douglas Seiler sources materials and directs creation of experimental scrolls — Douglas Seiler sourced papyrus and reed pens from Egypt and traditional lampblack ink from Japan, then had high school students inscribe the replicas with lines from Star Wars, the Bible, and The Outer Limits before burning them for analysis.

  3. 2

    X-ray analysis reveals leaded ink improves readability of burned scrolls

    X-ray tomography of the burned replica scrolls demonstrated that leaded ink significantly improves the ability to read carbonized text, providing a crucial insight for recovering ancient manuscripts.

    “The innovative use of leaded ink was highlighted through X-ray scans, providing insights into fragile scrolls from Herculaneum.”
    — Times of India
    1. 2 outlets To help read 2,000-year-old scrolls burned by Vesuvius, Berkeley scientists had students write on modern

      first by The Times of India, 6d ago · also Times of India

      1 more headline
  4. 1 day quiet
  5. 1

    UC Berkeley researchers burn replica papyrus scrolls to study carbonization

    Scientists at the University of California, Berkeley created modern papyrus scrolls inscribed with text and burned them to better understand how to read ancient carbonized documents from Herculaneum.

    1. 4 outlets Scientists read 2,000-year-old Herculaneum scrolls using burned replicas and scans

      first by NewsBytes, 8d ago · also Archaeology News Online Magazine, EurekAlert!, Discover Magazine

      4 more headlines
    2. 3 outlets To read 2,000-year-old burned scrolls, scientists burn their own

      first by phys.org, 6d ago · also CP24, University of California, Berkeley

      1 more headline
    1 more claim →
    • jenlucpiquant.bsky.social

      Scientists made their own model charred papyri to develop new method for deciphering ancient Herculaneum scrolls. Even a handheld XRF scanner is sufficient to determine most promising scrolls for further analysis by detecting if there is lead-based ink.

      jenlucpiquant.bsky.socialBluesky8d ago20▲view on Bluesky ↗
    2 posts in this stretch →

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