[vc_row full_height=”yes” rt_row_background_width=”fullwidth” rt_row_content_width=”default” rt_row_style=”default-style” rt_column_placement=”middle” rt_row_borders=”” rt_row_paddings=”false” rt_bg_image=”3534″ rt_bg_effect=”classic” rt_bg_image_repeat=”no-repeat” rt_bg_size=”cover” rt_bg_position=”center center” rt_bg_attachment=”scroll” rt_bg_video_format=”self-hosted” src=”“https:\/\/drive.google.com\/file\/d\/1QPYT0wJOBQEna7-Qo4EZQ-AXvm1UKs-V\/preview“” width=”“640“”][vc_column width=”1\/3″ rt_wrp_col_paddings=”false” rt_border_top=”” rt_border_bottom=”” rt_border_left=”” rt_border_right=”” rt_border_top_mobile=”” rt_border_bottom_mobile=”” rt_border_left_mobile=”” rt_border_right_mobile=”” rt_bg_image_repeat=”repeat” rt_bg_size=”auto auto” rt_bg_position=”right top” rt_bg_attachment=”scroll” offset=”vc_hidden-xs”][vc_custom_heading text=”In the News” font_container=”tag:h2|text_align:left|color:%23ffffff|line_height:1.5em” google_fonts=”font_family:Open%20Sans%3A300%2C300italic%2Cregular%2Citalic%2C600%2C600italic%2C700%2C700italic%2C800%2C800italic|font_style:700%20bold%20regular%3A700%3Anormal”][vc_custom_heading text=”Dr. Seales on 60 Minutes.” font_container=”tag:h5|text_align:left|color:%23ffffff|line_height:1.5em” google_fonts=”font_family:Open%20Sans%3A300%2C300italic%2Cregular%2Citalic%2C600%2C600italic%2C700%2C700italic%2C800%2C800italic|font_style:600%20bold%20regular%3A600%3Anormal”][vc_btn title=”Watch Interview” style=”outline-custom” outline_custom_color=”#ffffff” outline_custom_hover_background=”#0033a0″ outline_custom_hover_text=”#ffffff” shape=”square” size=”lg” i_icon_fontawesome=”fa fa-caret-square-o-right” css=”.vc_custom_1564519051671{padding-top: 0px !important;padding-bottom: 0px !important;}” add_icon=”true” link=”url:https%3A%2F%2Fdrive.google.com%2Ffile%2Fd%2F1QPYT0wJOBQEna7-Qo4EZQ-AXvm1UKs-V%2Fview%3Fusp%3Dsharing||target:%20_blank|”][vc_btn title=”Watch 2024 Update” style=”outline-custom” outline_custom_color=”#ffffff” outline_custom_hover_background=”#0033a0″ outline_custom_hover_text=”#ffffff” shape=”square” size=”lg” i_icon_fontawesome=”far fa-caret-square-right” css=”.vc_custom_1710184614450{padding-top: 0px !important;padding-bottom: 0px !important;}” add_icon=”true” link=”url:https%3A%2F%2Fwww.cbsnews.com%2Fvideo%2Fherculaneum-scrolls-60-minutes-video-2024-03-03%2F|target:_blank”][vc_empty_space height=”40px”][vc_btn title=”What’s New” style=”custom” custom_background=”#0033a0″ custom_text=”#ffffff” shape=”square” size=”lg” align=”left” i_icon_fontawesome=”fa fa-chevron-down” add_icon=”true” link=”url:%2Fdri%2Fnews%2F%23whats-new|||”][vc_btn title=”In the Press” style=”custom” custom_background=”#0033a0″ custom_text=”#ffffff” shape=”square” size=”lg” align=”left” i_icon_fontawesome=”fa fa-chevron-down” add_icon=”true” link=”url:%2Fdri%2Fnews%2F%23press|||”][\/vc_column][vc_column width=”2\/3″ rt_wrp_col_paddings=”false” rt_border_top=”” rt_border_bottom=”” rt_border_left=”” rt_border_right=”” rt_border_top_mobile=”” rt_border_bottom_mobile=”” rt_border_left_mobile=”” rt_border_right_mobile=”” rt_bg_image_repeat=”repeat” rt_bg_size=”auto auto” rt_bg_position=”right top” rt_bg_attachment=”scroll”][\/vc_column][\/vc_row][vc_row rt_row_background_width=”fullwidth” rt_row_content_width=”default” rt_row_style=”default-style” rt_row_borders=”” rt_row_paddings=”true” id=”#in-the-press” rt_bg_effect=”classic” rt_bg_image_repeat=”repeat” rt_bg_size=”cover” rt_bg_position=”right top” rt_bg_attachment=”scroll” rt_bg_video_format=”self-hosted”][vc_column rt_wrp_col_paddings=”false” rt_border_top=”” rt_border_bottom=”” rt_border_left=”” rt_border_right=”” rt_border_top_mobile=”” rt_border_bottom_mobile=”” rt_border_left_mobile=”” rt_border_right_mobile=”” rt_bg_image_repeat=”repeat” rt_bg_size=”auto auto” rt_bg_position=”right top” rt_bg_attachment=”scroll”][vc_row_inner rt_row_style=”global-style” rt_row_borders=”” rt_row_paddings=”true” rt_bg_effect=”classic” rt_bg_image_repeat=”repeat” rt_bg_size=”cover” rt_bg_position=”right top” rt_bg_attachment=”scroll” rt_bg_video_format=”self-hosted”][vc_column_inner width=”1\/3″ rt_wrp_col_paddings=”false” rt_border_top=”” rt_border_bottom=”” rt_border_left=”” rt_border_right=”” rt_border_top_mobile=”” rt_border_bottom_mobile=”” rt_border_left_mobile=”” rt_border_right_mobile=”” rt_bg_image_repeat=”repeat” rt_bg_size=”auto auto” rt_bg_position=”right top” rt_bg_attachment=”scroll” offset=”vc_hidden-xs”][vc_single_image image=”5621″ img_size=”full” add_caption=”yes” alignment=”center” css=””][\/vc_column_inner][vc_column_inner width=”2\/3″ rt_wrp_col_paddings=”false” rt_border_top=”” rt_border_bottom=”” rt_border_left=”” rt_border_right=”” rt_border_top_mobile=”” rt_border_bottom_mobile=”” rt_border_left_mobile=”” rt_border_right_mobile=”” rt_bg_image_repeat=”repeat” rt_bg_size=”auto auto” rt_bg_position=”right top” rt_bg_attachment=”scroll”]
At the\u00a0Biblioteca Nazionale di Napoli Vittorio Emanuele III<\/a>\u00a0\u2014 with Mount Vesuvius rising in the distance \u2014 lead researchers, collaborators and distinguished guests gathered to mark the milestone decades in the making.<\/p>\n The achievement underscores both the scale of the scientific breakthrough and the extraordinary international collaboration that made it possible.<\/p>\n It also marks a pivotal moment for a project the\u00a0University of Kentucky<\/a>\u00a0has led for years \u2014 steadily advancing toward a goal many once thought impossible.<\/p>\n \u201cFor nearly two millennia, many of these texts have been physically preserved but intellectually inaccessible,\u201d Brent Seales, Vesuvius Challenge co-founder and the Stanley and Karen Pigman Chair of Heritage Science at the University of Kentucky, said. \u201cToday \u2014 after years of interdisciplinary work combining advanced imaging, artificial intelligence (AI), academic research and an innovation contest \u2014 we are finally able to read them.\u201d<\/p>\n Among the discoveries:<\/p>\n The findings represent the most significant revelation of text since the earliest attempts to physically open the scrolls more than two centuries ago.<\/p>\n Read more<\/a><\/p>\n <\/p>\n [\/vc_column_text][\/vc_column_inner][\/vc_row_inner][vc_row_inner rt_row_style=”global-style” rt_row_borders=”” rt_row_paddings=”true” rt_bg_effect=”classic” rt_bg_image_repeat=”repeat” rt_bg_size=”cover” rt_bg_position=”right top” rt_bg_attachment=”scroll” rt_bg_video_format=”self-hosted”][vc_column_inner width=”1\/3″ rt_wrp_col_paddings=”false” rt_border_top=”” rt_border_bottom=”” rt_border_left=”” rt_border_right=”” rt_border_top_mobile=”” rt_border_bottom_mobile=”” rt_border_left_mobile=”” rt_border_right_mobile=”” rt_bg_image_repeat=”repeat” rt_bg_size=”auto auto” rt_bg_position=”right top” rt_bg_attachment=”scroll” offset=”vc_hidden-xs”][vc_single_image image=”5624″ img_size=”full” alignment=”center” css=””][\/vc_column_inner][vc_column_inner width=”2\/3″ rt_wrp_col_paddings=”false” rt_border_top=”” rt_border_bottom=”” rt_border_left=”” rt_border_right=”” rt_border_top_mobile=”” rt_border_bottom_mobile=”” rt_border_left_mobile=”” rt_border_right_mobile=”” rt_bg_image_repeat=”repeat” rt_bg_size=”auto auto” rt_bg_position=”right top” rt_bg_attachment=”scroll”] Researchers have been able to read part of an ancient scroll burned by Mount Vesuvius nearly 2,000 years ago for the first time.<\/p>\n The Herculaneum scrolls, named after a Roman town carbonized by the eruption of Vesuvius in Pompeii, Italy, in 79 A.D., were thought to be unreadable until a major scientific breakthrough with the help of artificial intelligence.<\/p>\n …<\/p>\n Thanks to the scientific advances, however, the PHerc. 1667 scroll has now been fully virtually unwrapped, allowing researchers to read nearly five feet of text across 20 columns, according to a release<\/a> from the EduceLab laboratory in Kentucky, which has been at the forefront of the research.<\/p>\n Read more<\/a>[\/vc_column_text][\/vc_column_inner][\/vc_row_inner][vc_separator style=”style-4″][\/vc_column][\/vc_row][vc_row rt_row_background_width=”fullwidth” rt_row_content_width=”default” rt_row_style=”default-style” rt_row_borders=”” rt_row_paddings=”true” id=”#in-the-press” rt_bg_effect=”classic” rt_bg_image_repeat=”repeat” rt_bg_size=”cover” rt_bg_position=”right top” rt_bg_attachment=”scroll” rt_bg_video_format=”self-hosted”][vc_column rt_wrp_col_paddings=”false” rt_border_top=”” rt_border_bottom=”” rt_border_left=”” rt_border_right=”” rt_border_top_mobile=”” rt_border_bottom_mobile=”” rt_border_left_mobile=”” rt_border_right_mobile=”” rt_bg_image_repeat=”repeat” rt_bg_size=”auto auto” rt_bg_position=”right top” rt_bg_attachment=”scroll”][vc_row_inner rt_row_style=”global-style” rt_row_borders=”” rt_row_paddings=”true” rt_bg_effect=”classic” rt_bg_image_repeat=”repeat” rt_bg_size=”cover” rt_bg_position=”right top” rt_bg_attachment=”scroll” rt_bg_video_format=”self-hosted”][vc_column_inner width=”7\/12″ rt_wrp_col_paddings=”false” rt_border_top=”” rt_border_bottom=”” rt_border_left=”” rt_border_right=”” rt_border_top_mobile=”” rt_border_bottom_mobile=”” rt_border_left_mobile=”” rt_border_right_mobile=”” rt_bg_image_repeat=”repeat” rt_bg_size=”auto auto” rt_bg_position=”right top” rt_bg_attachment=”scroll”][vc_single_image image=”5617″ img_size=”full” css=””][\/vc_column_inner][vc_column_inner width=”5\/12″ rt_wrp_col_paddings=”false” rt_border_top=”” rt_border_bottom=”” rt_border_left=”” rt_border_right=”” rt_border_top_mobile=”” rt_border_bottom_mobile=”” rt_border_left_mobile=”” rt_border_right_mobile=”” rt_bg_image_repeat=”repeat” rt_bg_size=”auto auto” rt_bg_position=”right top” rt_bg_attachment=”scroll”] A University of Kentucky project using artificial intelligence to help decode an ancient Roman mystery has led to a major discovery, researchers announced Thursday<\/a>.<\/p>\n In 79 A.D., the eruption of Mount Vesuvius buried the Roman city of Pompeii and the nearby town of Herculaneum. During a dig in Herculaneum in the 18th century, archaeologists found 1,800 papyrus scrolls in an intact ancient library<\/a><\/span>, deep under the site of a villa that was destroyed by Vesuvius’ eruption. But reading them was impossible: The scrolls are brittle and charred, and unravelling them turns them into ash.<\/p>\n For centuries, researchers have worked to interpret the scrolls. Recent technology led to a breakthrough: A particle accelerator and AI<\/a><\/span> were used to identify ink, even faint traces, allowing researchers to virtually unwrap the delicate scrolls. But interpreting the ancient language is another project entirely.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n Read more<\/a>[\/vc_column_text][\/vc_column_inner][\/vc_row_inner][vc_separator style=”style-4″][\/vc_column][\/vc_row][vc_row rt_row_background_width=”fullwidth” rt_row_content_width=”default” rt_row_style=”default-style” rt_row_borders=”” rt_row_paddings=”true” id=”#in-the-press” rt_bg_effect=”classic” rt_bg_image_repeat=”repeat” rt_bg_size=”cover” rt_bg_position=”right top” rt_bg_attachment=”scroll” rt_bg_video_format=”self-hosted”][vc_column rt_wrp_col_paddings=”false” rt_border_top=”” rt_border_bottom=”” rt_border_left=”” rt_border_right=”” rt_border_top_mobile=”” rt_border_bottom_mobile=”” rt_border_left_mobile=”” rt_border_right_mobile=”” rt_bg_image_repeat=”repeat” rt_bg_size=”auto auto” rt_bg_position=”right top” rt_bg_attachment=”scroll”][vc_row_inner rt_row_style=”global-style” rt_row_borders=”” rt_row_paddings=”true” rt_bg_effect=”classic” rt_bg_image_repeat=”repeat” rt_bg_size=”cover” rt_bg_position=”right top” rt_bg_attachment=”scroll” rt_bg_video_format=”self-hosted”][vc_column_inner width=”2\/3″ rt_wrp_col_paddings=”false” rt_border_top=”” rt_border_bottom=”” rt_border_left=”” rt_border_right=”” rt_border_top_mobile=”” rt_border_bottom_mobile=”” rt_border_left_mobile=”” rt_border_right_mobile=”” rt_bg_image_repeat=”repeat” rt_bg_size=”auto auto” rt_bg_position=”right top” rt_bg_attachment=”scroll”] Once buried in hot rocks, ash and lava, the scrolls are so fragile and carbonized that they fall apart at the touch. Since their discovery in 1752, various attempts to read them \u2014 splitting them open and scraping away each slice of ancient paper with a knife, pouring mercury between the layers, soaking them in a mix of gelatin and acetic acid \u2014 have destroyed them or rendered them illegible.<\/p>\n Now, researches say they have managed to completely unwrap and read the surviving portion of one scroll, about 20 columns of text, using machine learning methods that they hope can unlock further discoveries from a lost classical library.<\/p>\n Read more<\/a>[\/vc_column_text][\/vc_column_inner][vc_column_inner width=”1\/3″ rt_wrp_col_paddings=”false” rt_border_top=”” rt_border_bottom=”” rt_border_left=”” rt_border_right=”” rt_border_top_mobile=”” rt_border_bottom_mobile=”” rt_border_left_mobile=”” rt_border_right_mobile=”” rt_bg_image_repeat=”repeat” rt_bg_size=”auto auto” rt_bg_position=”right top” rt_bg_attachment=”scroll” offset=”vc_hidden-xs”][vc_single_image image=”4127″ img_size=”large” alignment=”center” css=””][\/vc_column_inner][\/vc_row_inner][vc_separator style=”style-4″][\/vc_column][\/vc_row][vc_row rt_row_background_width=”fullwidth” rt_row_content_width=”default” rt_row_style=”default-style” rt_row_borders=”” rt_row_paddings=”true” id=”#in-the-press” rt_bg_effect=”classic” rt_bg_image_repeat=”repeat” rt_bg_size=”cover” rt_bg_position=”right top” rt_bg_attachment=”scroll” rt_bg_video_format=”self-hosted”][vc_column rt_wrp_col_paddings=”false” rt_border_top=”” rt_border_bottom=”” rt_border_left=”” rt_border_right=”” rt_border_top_mobile=”” rt_border_bottom_mobile=”” rt_border_left_mobile=”” rt_border_right_mobile=”” rt_bg_image_repeat=”repeat” rt_bg_size=”auto auto” rt_bg_position=”right top” rt_bg_attachment=”scroll”][vc_row_inner rt_row_style=”global-style” rt_row_borders=”” rt_row_paddings=”true” rt_bg_effect=”classic” rt_bg_image_repeat=”repeat” rt_bg_size=”cover” rt_bg_position=”right top” rt_bg_attachment=”scroll” rt_bg_video_format=”self-hosted”][vc_column_inner width=”2\/3″ rt_wrp_col_paddings=”false” rt_border_top=”” rt_border_bottom=”” rt_border_left=”” rt_border_right=”” rt_border_top_mobile=”” rt_border_bottom_mobile=”” rt_border_left_mobile=”” rt_border_right_mobile=”” rt_bg_image_repeat=”repeat” rt_bg_size=”auto auto” rt_bg_position=”right top” rt_bg_attachment=”scroll”] Imagine inheriting the finest bottle of wine<\/strong>\u00a0ever made\u2014a rare vintage unlike anything else in the world. Now imagine the bottle is so delicate that even touching the cork would shatter it. It\u2019s there in front of you, a priceless treasure. But \u201cyou can\u2019t drink it,\u201d muses Giorgio Angelotti. That\u2019s the maddening predicament Angelotti and generations of other scholars have endured trying to decipher the Herculaneum scrolls.<\/p>\n The A.D. 79 eruption of Mount Vesuvius that ravaged Pompeii<\/a>\u00a0also buried the nearby town of Herculaneum, entombing its celebrated library at the Villa of the Papyri under 60 feet of ash and rock. Hundreds of papyrus scrolls survived the inferno thanks to that heavy blanket of volcanic debris. Instead of burning, they baked into brittle, misshapen lumps\u2014preserved yet so fragile that archaeologists feared touching them.<\/p>\n The Villa of the Papyri collection is the only known library to survive from Greco-Roman antiquity. Still, its prized texts have long been impossible to read. Even the slightest brush can turn them to dust. Read more<\/a>[\/vc_column_text][\/vc_column_inner][vc_column_inner width=”1\/3″ rt_wrp_col_paddings=”false” rt_border_top=”” rt_border_bottom=”” rt_border_left=”” rt_border_right=”” rt_border_top_mobile=”” rt_border_bottom_mobile=”” rt_border_left_mobile=”” rt_border_right_mobile=”” rt_bg_image_repeat=”repeat” rt_bg_size=”auto auto” rt_bg_position=”right top” rt_bg_attachment=”scroll” offset=”vc_hidden-xs”][vc_single_image image=”5616″ img_size=”large” alignment=”center” css=””][\/vc_column_inner][\/vc_row_inner][vc_separator style=”style-4″][\/vc_column][\/vc_row][vc_row rt_row_background_width=”fullwidth” rt_row_content_width=”default” rt_row_style=”default-style” rt_row_borders=”” rt_row_paddings=”true” id=”#in-the-press” rt_bg_effect=”classic” rt_bg_image_repeat=”repeat” rt_bg_size=”cover” rt_bg_position=”right top” rt_bg_attachment=”scroll” rt_bg_video_format=”self-hosted”][vc_column rt_wrp_col_paddings=”false” rt_border_top=”” rt_border_bottom=”” rt_border_left=”” rt_border_right=”” rt_border_top_mobile=”” rt_border_bottom_mobile=”” rt_border_left_mobile=”” rt_border_right_mobile=”” rt_bg_image_repeat=”repeat” rt_bg_size=”auto auto” rt_bg_position=”right top” rt_bg_attachment=”scroll”][vc_row_inner rt_row_style=”global-style” rt_row_borders=”” rt_row_paddings=”true” rt_bg_effect=”classic” rt_bg_image_repeat=”repeat” rt_bg_size=”cover” rt_bg_position=”right top” rt_bg_attachment=”scroll” rt_bg_video_format=”self-hosted”][vc_column_inner width=”7\/12″ rt_wrp_col_paddings=”false” rt_border_top=”” rt_border_bottom=”” rt_border_left=”” rt_border_right=”” rt_border_top_mobile=”” rt_border_bottom_mobile=”” rt_border_left_mobile=”” rt_border_right_mobile=”” rt_bg_image_repeat=”repeat” rt_bg_size=”auto auto” rt_bg_position=”right top” rt_bg_attachment=”scroll”][vc_single_image image=”5426″ img_size=”full” alignment=”center”][\/vc_column_inner][vc_column_inner width=”5\/12″ rt_wrp_col_paddings=”false” rt_border_top=”” rt_border_bottom=”” rt_border_left=”” rt_border_right=”” rt_border_top_mobile=”” rt_border_bottom_mobile=”” rt_border_left_mobile=”” rt_border_right_mobile=”” rt_bg_image_repeat=”repeat” rt_bg_size=”auto auto” rt_bg_position=”right top” rt_bg_attachment=”scroll”] Almost two millennia after the eruption of Mt. Vesuvius hardened them into lumps of coal in 79 CE, previously indecipherable papyrus scrolls from the ancient library of Herculaneum are finally yielding their secrets, thanks to artificial intelligence (AI) technologies created with support from the National Endowment for the Humanities (NEH).<\/p>\n …<\/p>\n The three decoded more than 2,000 characters of text, which papyrologists have translated to a discussion of the nature of pleasure, most likely part of a previously unknown work by Epicurean poet and philosopher Philodemus of Gadara. In the translated passages, the author considers whether the availability or scarcity of goods such as food affects our experience of pleasure\u2014and critiques intellectual rivals who \u201chave nothing to say about pleasure, either in general or in particular, when it is a question of definition.\u201d<\/p>\n Read more<\/a>[\/vc_column_text][\/vc_column_inner][\/vc_row_inner][vc_separator style=”style-4″][\/vc_column][\/vc_row][vc_row rt_row_background_width=”fullwidth” rt_row_content_width=”default” rt_row_style=”default-style” rt_row_borders=”” rt_row_paddings=”true” id=”#in-the-press” rt_bg_effect=”classic” rt_bg_image_repeat=”repeat” rt_bg_size=”cover” rt_bg_position=”right top” rt_bg_attachment=”scroll” rt_bg_video_format=”self-hosted”][vc_column rt_wrp_col_paddings=”false” rt_border_top=”” rt_border_bottom=”” rt_border_left=”” rt_border_right=”” rt_border_top_mobile=”” rt_border_bottom_mobile=”” rt_border_left_mobile=”” rt_border_right_mobile=”” rt_bg_image_repeat=”repeat” rt_bg_size=”auto auto” rt_bg_position=”right top” rt_bg_attachment=”scroll”][vc_row_inner rt_row_style=”global-style” rt_row_borders=”” rt_row_paddings=”true” rt_bg_effect=”classic” rt_bg_image_repeat=”repeat” rt_bg_size=”cover” rt_bg_position=”right top” rt_bg_attachment=”scroll” rt_bg_video_format=”self-hosted”][vc_column_inner width=”7\/12″ rt_wrp_col_paddings=”false” rt_border_top=”” rt_border_bottom=”” rt_border_left=”” rt_border_right=”” rt_border_top_mobile=”” rt_border_bottom_mobile=”” rt_border_left_mobile=”” rt_border_right_mobile=”” rt_bg_image_repeat=”repeat” rt_bg_size=”auto auto” rt_bg_position=”right top” rt_bg_attachment=”scroll”][vc_single_image image=”5615″ img_size=”large” css=””][\/vc_column_inner][vc_column_inner width=”5\/12″ rt_wrp_col_paddings=”false” rt_border_top=”” rt_border_bottom=”” rt_border_left=”” rt_border_right=”” rt_border_top_mobile=”” rt_border_bottom_mobile=”” rt_border_left_mobile=”” rt_border_right_mobile=”” rt_bg_image_repeat=”repeat” rt_bg_size=”auto auto” rt_bg_position=”right top” rt_bg_attachment=”scroll”] ROME \u2014 Buried in ash after Mount Vesuvius\u2019<\/a> cataclysmic eruption in A.D. 79, hundreds of papyrus scrolls have kept their secrets hidden for centuries. But archeologists have now been able to decipher some of the ancient text with the help of artificial intelligence<\/a>.<\/p>\n …<\/p>\n The breakthrough came after a global competition was launched to accelerate the reading of the texts. The Vesuvius Challenge offered $1 million in prizes to anyone who could solve the problem and find a way to read the remaining 270 closed scrolls, most of which are preserved in a library in Naples, which is around 8 miles west of Herculaneum<\/p>\n It was launched by a team at the University of Kentucky led by professor Brent Seales, who released software and thousands of 3D X-ray images of three papyrus fragments and two rolled-up scrolls, in the hope that global research groups would take up the challenge.<\/p>\n Read more<\/a>[\/vc_column_text][\/vc_column_inner][\/vc_row_inner][vc_separator style=”style-4″][\/vc_column][\/vc_row][vc_row rt_row_background_width=”fullwidth” rt_row_content_width=”default” rt_row_style=”default-style” rt_row_borders=”” rt_row_paddings=”true” id=”#in-the-press” rt_bg_effect=”classic” rt_bg_image_repeat=”repeat” rt_bg_size=”cover” rt_bg_position=”right top” rt_bg_attachment=”scroll” rt_bg_video_format=”self-hosted”][vc_column rt_wrp_col_paddings=”false” rt_border_top=”” rt_border_bottom=”” rt_border_left=”” rt_border_right=”” rt_border_top_mobile=”” rt_border_bottom_mobile=”” rt_border_left_mobile=”” rt_border_right_mobile=”” rt_bg_image_repeat=”repeat” rt_bg_size=”auto auto” rt_bg_position=”right top” rt_bg_attachment=”scroll”][vc_row_inner rt_row_style=”global-style” rt_row_borders=”” rt_row_paddings=”true” rt_bg_effect=”classic” rt_bg_image_repeat=”repeat” rt_bg_size=”cover” rt_bg_position=”right top” rt_bg_attachment=”scroll” rt_bg_video_format=”self-hosted”][vc_column_inner width=”2\/3″ rt_wrp_col_paddings=”false” rt_border_top=”” rt_border_bottom=”” rt_border_left=”” rt_border_right=”” rt_border_top_mobile=”” rt_border_bottom_mobile=”” rt_border_left_mobile=”” rt_border_right_mobile=”” rt_bg_image_repeat=”repeat” rt_bg_size=”auto auto” rt_bg_position=”right top” rt_bg_attachment=”scroll”] The Herculaneum papyri, ancient scrolls housed in the library of a private villa near Pompeii, were buried and carbonized by the eruption of Vesuvius in 79 AD. For almost 2,000 years, this lone surviving library from antiquity was buried underground under 20 meters of volcanic mud. In the 1700s, they were excavated, and while they were in some ways preserved by the eruption, they were so fragile that they would turn to dust if mishandled. How do you read a scroll you can\u2019t open? For hundreds of years, this question went unanswered.<\/p>\n That is until Luke Farritor, a contestant of the\u00a0Vesuvius Challenge<\/a>, became the first person in two millennia to see an entire word from within an unopened scroll this August. For that, we are thrilled to award Luke a $40,000 First Letters Prize, which required contestants to find at least 10 letters in a 4 cm2<\/sup>\u00a0area in a scroll.<\/p>\n Read more<\/a>[\/vc_column_text][\/vc_column_inner][vc_column_inner width=”1\/3″ rt_wrp_col_paddings=”false” rt_border_top=”” rt_border_bottom=”” rt_border_left=”” rt_border_right=”” rt_border_top_mobile=”” rt_border_bottom_mobile=”” rt_border_left_mobile=”” rt_border_right_mobile=”” rt_bg_image_repeat=”repeat” rt_bg_size=”auto auto” rt_bg_position=”right top” rt_bg_attachment=”scroll” offset=”vc_hidden-xs”][vc_single_image image=”5352″ img_size=”large” alignment=”center”][\/vc_column_inner][\/vc_row_inner][vc_separator style=”style-4″][\/vc_column][\/vc_row][vc_row rt_row_background_width=”fullwidth” rt_row_content_width=”default” rt_row_style=”default-style” rt_row_borders=”” rt_row_paddings=”true” id=”#in-the-press” rt_bg_effect=”classic” rt_bg_image_repeat=”repeat” rt_bg_size=”cover” rt_bg_position=”right top” rt_bg_attachment=”scroll” rt_bg_video_format=”self-hosted”][vc_column rt_wrp_col_paddings=”false” rt_border_top=”” rt_border_bottom=”” rt_border_left=”” rt_border_right=”” rt_border_top_mobile=”” rt_border_bottom_mobile=”” rt_border_left_mobile=”” rt_border_right_mobile=”” rt_bg_image_repeat=”repeat” rt_bg_size=”auto auto” rt_bg_position=”right top” rt_bg_attachment=”scroll”][vc_row_inner rt_row_style=”global-style” rt_row_borders=”” rt_row_paddings=”true” rt_bg_effect=”classic” rt_bg_image_repeat=”repeat” rt_bg_size=”cover” rt_bg_position=”right top” rt_bg_attachment=”scroll” rt_bg_video_format=”self-hosted”][vc_column_inner width=”2\/3″ rt_wrp_col_paddings=”false” rt_border_top=”” rt_border_bottom=”” rt_border_left=”” rt_border_right=”” rt_border_top_mobile=”” rt_border_bottom_mobile=”” rt_border_left_mobile=”” rt_border_right_mobile=”” rt_bg_image_repeat=”repeat” rt_bg_size=”auto auto” rt_bg_position=”right top” rt_bg_attachment=”scroll”] October 12, 2023 – <\/strong>From deep within a papyrus scroll that has not been read in almost 2,000 years and would crumble to pieces if unrolled, researchers have retrieved a handful of letters and a single word: \u201cporphyras,\u201d<\/em>\u00a0ancient Greek for \u201cpurple.\u201d<\/p>\n …<\/p>\n The new approach used to read the scrolls has been developed over the past 20 years by Brent Seales, a computer scientist at the University of Kentucky. It uses computer tomography, the same technique as in CT scans, plus advancements in artificial intelligence.<\/p>\n Read more<\/a>[\/vc_column_text][\/vc_column_inner][vc_column_inner width=”1\/3″ rt_wrp_col_paddings=”false” rt_border_top=”” rt_border_bottom=”” rt_border_left=”” rt_border_right=”” rt_border_top_mobile=”” rt_border_bottom_mobile=”” rt_border_left_mobile=”” rt_border_right_mobile=”” rt_bg_image_repeat=”repeat” rt_bg_size=”auto auto” rt_bg_position=”right top” rt_bg_attachment=”scroll” offset=”vc_hidden-xs”][vc_single_image image=”5353″ img_size=”large” alignment=”center”][\/vc_column_inner][\/vc_row_inner][vc_separator style=”style-4″][\/vc_column][\/vc_row][vc_row rt_row_background_width=”fullwidth” rt_row_content_width=”default” rt_row_style=”default-style” rt_row_borders=”” rt_row_paddings=”true” id=”#in-the-press” rt_bg_effect=”classic” rt_bg_image_repeat=”repeat” rt_bg_size=”cover” rt_bg_position=”right top” rt_bg_attachment=”scroll” rt_bg_video_format=”self-hosted”][vc_column rt_wrp_col_paddings=”false” rt_border_top=”” rt_border_bottom=”” rt_border_left=”” rt_border_right=”” rt_border_top_mobile=”” rt_border_bottom_mobile=”” rt_border_left_mobile=”” rt_border_right_mobile=”” rt_bg_image_repeat=”repeat” rt_bg_size=”auto auto” rt_bg_position=”right top” rt_bg_attachment=”scroll”][vc_row_inner rt_row_style=”global-style” rt_row_borders=”” rt_row_paddings=”true” rt_bg_effect=”classic” rt_bg_image_repeat=”repeat” rt_bg_size=”cover” rt_bg_position=”right top” rt_bg_attachment=”scroll” rt_bg_video_format=”self-hosted”][vc_column_inner width=”1\/3″ rt_wrp_col_paddings=”false” rt_border_top=”” rt_border_bottom=”” rt_border_left=”” rt_border_right=”” rt_border_top_mobile=”” rt_border_bottom_mobile=”” rt_border_left_mobile=”” rt_border_right_mobile=”” rt_bg_image_repeat=”repeat” rt_bg_size=”auto auto” rt_bg_position=”right top” rt_bg_attachment=”scroll” offset=”vc_hidden-xs”][vc_single_image image=”5336″ img_size=”full” alignment=”center”][\/vc_column_inner][vc_column_inner width=”2\/3″ rt_wrp_col_paddings=”false” rt_border_top=”” rt_border_bottom=”” rt_border_left=”” rt_border_right=”” rt_border_top_mobile=”” rt_border_bottom_mobile=”” rt_border_left_mobile=”” rt_border_right_mobile=”” rt_bg_image_repeat=”repeat” rt_bg_size=”auto auto” rt_bg_position=”right top” rt_bg_attachment=”scroll”] LEXINGTON, Ky. (Aug.24, 2023)\u00a0\u2014\u00a0<\/strong>Restoring an ancient library from the ashes of Mount Vesuvius is now closer to a reality. To highlight the progress, this is the first in a four-video series featuring Brent Seales, University of Kentucky Alumni Professor in the\u00a0Department of Computer Science<\/a>\u00a0<\/strong>in the Stanley and Karen Pigman College of Engineering and his\u00a0Digital Restoration Initiative\u00a0<\/strong>team.<\/p>\n Watch now<\/a><\/p>\n Read more<\/a>[\/vc_column_text][\/vc_column_inner][\/vc_row_inner][vc_separator style=”style-4″][\/vc_column][\/vc_row][vc_row rt_row_background_width=”fullwidth” rt_row_content_width=”default” rt_row_style=”default-style” rt_row_borders=”” rt_row_paddings=”true” id=”#in-the-press” rt_bg_effect=”classic” rt_bg_image_repeat=”repeat” rt_bg_size=”cover” rt_bg_position=”right top” rt_bg_attachment=”scroll” rt_bg_video_format=”self-hosted”][vc_column rt_wrp_col_paddings=”false” rt_border_top=”” rt_border_bottom=”” rt_border_left=”” rt_border_right=”” rt_border_top_mobile=”” rt_border_bottom_mobile=”” rt_border_left_mobile=”” rt_border_right_mobile=”” rt_bg_image_repeat=”repeat” rt_bg_size=”auto auto” rt_bg_position=”right top” rt_bg_attachment=”scroll”][vc_row_inner rt_row_style=”global-style” rt_row_borders=”” rt_row_paddings=”true” rt_bg_effect=”classic” rt_bg_image_repeat=”repeat” rt_bg_size=”cover” rt_bg_position=”right top” rt_bg_attachment=”scroll” rt_bg_video_format=”self-hosted”][vc_column_inner width=”2\/3″ rt_wrp_col_paddings=”false” rt_border_top=”” rt_border_bottom=”” rt_border_left=”” rt_border_right=”” rt_border_top_mobile=”” rt_border_bottom_mobile=”” rt_border_left_mobile=”” rt_border_right_mobile=”” rt_bg_image_repeat=”repeat” rt_bg_size=”auto auto” rt_bg_position=”right top” rt_bg_attachment=”scroll”] LEXINGTON, Ky. (March 21, 2023)<\/strong>\u00a0\u2014<\/strong>\u00a0They are among the most iconic and inaccessible of the world\u2019s vast collection of damaged manuscripts.<\/p>\n Burned and buried in the eruption of Mount Vesuvius in 79 CE, the Herculaneum scrolls offer a unique window to the ancient world.<\/p>\n Unfortunately, they are too fragile to unroll.<\/p>\n But now, you can help resurrect the ancient library from the volcanic ashes. Brent Seales, a\u00a0computer science<\/a>\u00a0professor at the\u00a0University of Kentucky<\/a>, is leading a global competition to read the charred scrolls after demonstrating that an artificial intelligence program (AI) can successfully extract letters and symbols from X-ray images of the unrolled papyri\u00a0(EduceLab-scrolls)<\/a>.<\/p>\n Read more<\/a><\/p>\n Join the challenge<\/a>[\/vc_column_text][\/vc_column_inner][vc_column_inner width=”1\/3″ rt_wrp_col_paddings=”false” rt_border_top=”” rt_border_bottom=”” rt_border_left=”” rt_border_right=”” rt_border_top_mobile=”” rt_border_bottom_mobile=”” rt_border_left_mobile=”” rt_border_right_mobile=”” rt_bg_image_repeat=”repeat” rt_bg_size=”auto auto” rt_bg_position=”right top” rt_bg_attachment=”scroll” offset=”vc_hidden-xs”][vc_single_image image=”5276″ img_size=”large” alignment=”center”][vc_single_image image=”5274″ img_size=”large” alignment=”center”][\/vc_column_inner][\/vc_row_inner][vc_separator style=”style-4″][\/vc_column][\/vc_row][vc_row rt_row_background_width=”fullwidth” rt_row_content_width=”default” rt_row_style=”default-style” rt_row_borders=”” rt_row_paddings=”true” id=”#in-the-press” rt_bg_effect=”classic” rt_bg_image_repeat=”repeat” rt_bg_size=”cover” rt_bg_position=”right top” rt_bg_attachment=”scroll” rt_bg_video_format=”self-hosted”][vc_column rt_wrp_col_paddings=”false” rt_border_top=”” rt_border_bottom=”” rt_border_left=”” rt_border_right=”” rt_border_top_mobile=”” rt_border_bottom_mobile=”” rt_border_left_mobile=”” rt_border_right_mobile=”” rt_bg_image_repeat=”repeat” rt_bg_size=”auto auto” rt_bg_position=”right top” rt_bg_attachment=”scroll”][vc_row_inner rt_row_style=”global-style” rt_row_borders=”” rt_row_paddings=”true” rt_bg_effect=”classic” rt_bg_image_repeat=”repeat” rt_bg_size=”cover” rt_bg_position=”right top” rt_bg_attachment=”scroll” rt_bg_video_format=”self-hosted”][vc_column_inner rt_wrp_col_paddings=”false” rt_border_top=”” rt_border_bottom=”” rt_border_left=”” rt_border_right=”” rt_border_top_mobile=”” rt_border_bottom_mobile=”” rt_border_left_mobile=”” rt_border_right_mobile=”” rt_bg_image_repeat=”repeat” rt_bg_size=”auto auto” rt_bg_position=”right top” rt_bg_attachment=”scroll”] LEXINGTON, Ky. (April 19, 2022) \u2014\u00a0<\/strong>It\u2019s the signature on a bourbon barrel. It’s the ancient footprints in Mammoth Cave. Heritage science is all around us and has deep roots in the Commonwealth. Kentucky\u2019s story begins in prehistoric times, when mammoths roamed the Ohio River Valley at Big Bone Lick.<\/p>\n In November 2021, the University of Kentucky announced a new $14 million mid-scale infrastructure grant from the\u00a0National Science Foundation<\/a>, that will allow UK to tell that story in new, groundbreaking ways through the lens of heritage science.<\/p>\n Read more<\/a><\/p>\n Listen in on Part 1<\/a> and Part 2<\/a>[\/vc_column_text][\/vc_column_inner][\/vc_row_inner][vc_separator style=”style-4″][\/vc_column][\/vc_row][vc_row rt_row_background_width=”fullwidth” rt_row_content_width=”default” rt_row_style=”default-style” rt_row_borders=”” rt_row_paddings=”true” id=”#in-the-press” rt_bg_effect=”classic” rt_bg_image_repeat=”repeat” rt_bg_size=”cover” rt_bg_position=”right top” rt_bg_attachment=”scroll” rt_bg_video_format=”self-hosted”][vc_column rt_wrp_col_paddings=”false” rt_border_top=”” rt_border_bottom=”” rt_border_left=”” rt_border_right=”” rt_border_top_mobile=”” rt_border_bottom_mobile=”” rt_border_left_mobile=”” rt_border_right_mobile=”” rt_bg_image_repeat=”repeat” rt_bg_size=”auto auto” rt_bg_position=”right top” rt_bg_attachment=”scroll”][vc_row_inner rt_row_style=”global-style” rt_row_borders=”” rt_row_paddings=”true” rt_bg_effect=”classic” rt_bg_image_repeat=”repeat” rt_bg_size=”cover” rt_bg_position=”right top” rt_bg_attachment=”scroll” rt_bg_video_format=”self-hosted”][vc_column_inner width=”1\/3″ rt_wrp_col_paddings=”false” rt_border_top=”” rt_border_bottom=”” rt_border_left=”” rt_border_right=”” rt_border_top_mobile=”” rt_border_bottom_mobile=”” rt_border_left_mobile=”” rt_border_right_mobile=”” rt_bg_image_repeat=”repeat” rt_bg_size=”auto auto” rt_bg_position=”right top” rt_bg_attachment=”scroll” offset=”vc_hidden-xs”][vc_single_image image=”5260″ img_size=”full” alignment=”center”][\/vc_column_inner][vc_column_inner width=”2\/3″ rt_wrp_col_paddings=”false” rt_border_top=”” rt_border_bottom=”” rt_border_left=”” rt_border_right=”” rt_border_top_mobile=”” rt_border_bottom_mobile=”” rt_border_left_mobile=”” rt_border_right_mobile=”” rt_bg_image_repeat=”repeat” rt_bg_size=”auto auto” rt_bg_position=”right top” rt_bg_attachment=”scroll”] “We are at a turning point, science and technology present a host of exciting opportunities to the heritage sector. They must not be wasted.” Dr. Brent Seales said.<\/p>\n Watch Video<\/a><\/p>\n Read more<\/a>[\/vc_column_text][\/vc_column_inner][\/vc_row_inner][vc_separator style=”style-4″][\/vc_column][\/vc_row][vc_row rt_row_background_width=”fullwidth” rt_row_content_width=”default” rt_row_style=”default-style” rt_row_borders=”” rt_row_paddings=”true” id=”#in-the-press” rt_bg_effect=”classic” rt_bg_image_repeat=”repeat” rt_bg_size=”cover” rt_bg_position=”right top” rt_bg_attachment=”scroll” rt_bg_video_format=”self-hosted”][vc_column rt_wrp_col_paddings=”false” rt_border_top=”” rt_border_bottom=”” rt_border_left=”” rt_border_right=”” rt_border_top_mobile=”” rt_border_bottom_mobile=”” rt_border_left_mobile=”” rt_border_right_mobile=”” rt_bg_image_repeat=”repeat” rt_bg_size=”auto auto” rt_bg_position=”right top” rt_bg_attachment=”scroll”][vc_row_inner rt_row_style=”global-style” rt_row_borders=”” rt_row_paddings=”true” rt_bg_effect=”classic” rt_bg_image_repeat=”repeat” rt_bg_size=”cover” rt_bg_position=”right top” rt_bg_attachment=”scroll” rt_bg_video_format=”self-hosted”][vc_column_inner width=”2\/3″ rt_wrp_col_paddings=”false” rt_border_top=”” rt_border_bottom=”” rt_border_left=”” rt_border_right=”” rt_border_top_mobile=”” rt_border_bottom_mobile=”” rt_border_left_mobile=”” rt_border_right_mobile=”” rt_bg_image_repeat=”repeat” rt_bg_size=”auto auto” rt_bg_position=”right top” rt_bg_attachment=”scroll”] “This scan session promises to be a key moment in our quest for a reliable pathway to reading the invisible library,” said Seales. “The brightness and speed of the Diamond beam, and its ability to handle massive data sets, are crucial.\u00a0We are using the Diamond facility to acquire scans of complete scrolls and also open fragments, with the hope that the open fragments will form a reference library \u2014 or training set \u2014 that can inform our machine learning software approach to visualizing carbon ink,” Seales continued. “If things work as we expect, the scans and the machine learning will open up the chance to see the ink very clearly for the first time.”<\/p>\n Watch video<\/a><\/p>\n Read more<\/a>[\/vc_column_text][\/vc_column_inner][vc_column_inner width=”1\/3″ rt_wrp_col_paddings=”false” rt_border_top=”” rt_border_bottom=”” rt_border_left=”” rt_border_right=”” rt_border_top_mobile=”” rt_border_bottom_mobile=”” rt_border_left_mobile=”” rt_border_right_mobile=”” rt_bg_image_repeat=”repeat” rt_bg_size=”auto auto” rt_bg_position=”right top” rt_bg_attachment=”scroll” offset=”vc_hidden-xs”][vc_single_image image=”4715″ img_size=”full” alignment=”center”][\/vc_column_inner][\/vc_row_inner][vc_separator style=”style-4″][\/vc_column][\/vc_row][vc_row rt_row_background_width=”fullwidth” rt_row_content_width=”default” rt_row_style=”default-style” rt_row_borders=”” rt_row_paddings=”true” id=”#in-the-press” rt_bg_effect=”classic” rt_bg_image_repeat=”repeat” rt_bg_size=”cover” rt_bg_position=”right top” rt_bg_attachment=”scroll” rt_bg_video_format=”self-hosted”][vc_column rt_wrp_col_paddings=”false” rt_border_top=”” rt_border_bottom=”” rt_border_left=”” rt_border_right=”” rt_border_top_mobile=”” rt_border_bottom_mobile=”” rt_border_left_mobile=”” rt_border_right_mobile=”” rt_bg_image_repeat=”repeat” rt_bg_size=”auto auto” rt_bg_position=”right top” rt_bg_attachment=”scroll”][vc_row_inner rt_row_style=”global-style” rt_row_borders=”” rt_row_paddings=”true” rt_bg_effect=”classic” rt_bg_image_repeat=”repeat” rt_bg_size=”cover” rt_bg_position=”right top” rt_bg_attachment=”scroll” rt_bg_video_format=”self-hosted”][vc_column_inner width=”1\/3″ rt_wrp_col_paddings=”false” rt_border_top=”” rt_border_bottom=”” rt_border_left=”” rt_border_right=”” rt_border_top_mobile=”” rt_border_bottom_mobile=”” rt_border_left_mobile=”” rt_border_right_mobile=”” rt_bg_image_repeat=”repeat” rt_bg_size=”auto auto” rt_bg_position=”right top” rt_bg_attachment=”scroll” offset=”vc_hidden-xs”][vc_single_image image=”3891″ img_size=”full” alignment=”center”][\/vc_column_inner][vc_column_inner width=”2\/3″ rt_wrp_col_paddings=”false” rt_border_top=”” rt_border_bottom=”” rt_border_left=”” rt_border_right=”” rt_border_top_mobile=”” rt_border_bottom_mobile=”” rt_border_left_mobile=”” rt_border_right_mobile=”” rt_bg_image_repeat=”repeat” rt_bg_size=”auto auto” rt_bg_position=”right top” rt_bg_attachment=”scroll”] The prestigious Mellon grant will provide the resources the team needs to virtually unwrap and digitally restore the scrolls. It will also support the electronic compilation and dissemination of the entire Herculaneum collection, which is currently spread across four different institutions: the Bodleian Library at Oxford University, the British Library, the Institut de France and the Biblioteca Nazoinale di Napoli.<\/p>\n Read more<\/a>[\/vc_column_text][\/vc_column_inner][\/vc_row_inner][vc_separator style=”style-4″][\/vc_column][\/vc_row][vc_row rt_row_background_width=”fullwidth” rt_row_content_width=”default” rt_row_style=”default-style” rt_row_borders=”” rt_row_paddings=”true” id=”#in-the-press” rt_bg_effect=”classic” rt_bg_image_repeat=”repeat” rt_bg_size=”cover” rt_bg_position=”right top” rt_bg_attachment=”scroll” rt_bg_video_format=”self-hosted”][vc_column rt_wrp_col_paddings=”false” rt_border_top=”” rt_border_bottom=”” rt_border_left=”” rt_border_right=”” rt_border_top_mobile=”” rt_border_bottom_mobile=”” rt_border_left_mobile=”” rt_border_right_mobile=”” rt_bg_image_repeat=”repeat” rt_bg_size=”auto auto” rt_bg_position=”right top” rt_bg_attachment=”scroll”][vc_row_inner rt_row_style=”global-style” rt_row_borders=”” rt_row_paddings=”true” rt_bg_effect=”classic” rt_bg_image_repeat=”repeat” rt_bg_size=”cover” rt_bg_position=”right top” rt_bg_attachment=”scroll” rt_bg_video_format=”self-hosted”][vc_column_inner width=”2\/3″ rt_wrp_col_paddings=”false” rt_border_top=”” rt_border_bottom=”” rt_border_left=”” rt_border_right=”” rt_border_top_mobile=”” rt_border_bottom_mobile=”” rt_border_left_mobile=”” rt_border_right_mobile=”” rt_bg_image_repeat=”repeat” rt_bg_size=”auto auto” rt_bg_position=”right top” rt_bg_attachment=”scroll”]\n
Roman Scroll Damaged by Mount Vesuvius Eruption Is Read Again for First Time in 2,000 Years – People Magazine<\/h2><\/a>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>[vc_column_text css=””]June 26, 2026 –<\/strong><\/p>\n
Scientists decipher new secrets from ancient scrolls scorched by Vesuvius eruption: “Finally able to read them” – CBS News<\/h2><\/a>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>[vc_column_text css=””]June 26, 2026 –<\/strong><\/p>\n
Scientists have just unlocked the secrets of an ancient scroll torched by Mount Vesuvius – Washington Post<\/h2><\/a>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>[vc_column_text css=””]June 25, 2026 –<\/strong><\/p>\n
Vesuvius buried these scrolls. AI is bringing them back. – National Geographic<\/h2><\/a>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>[vc_column_text css=””]June 24, 2026 –<\/strong><\/p>\n
\nNow, nearly 2,000 years after the Vesuvian tragedy, the scrolls are giving up their secrets at last. Using particle accelerators and\u00a0artificial intelligence<\/a>, researchers finally have the ability to virtually \u201cunwrap\u201d the Herculaneum scrolls and read their contents.<\/p>\nStudents Decipher 2,000-Year-Old Herculaneum Scrolls<\/h2><\/a>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>[vc_column_text]February 13, 2024 –<\/strong><\/p>\n
Secrets of ancient Herculaneum scroll deciphered by AI – NBC News<\/h2><\/a>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>[vc_column_text css=””]February 9, 2024 –<\/strong><\/p>\n
First Word Discovered in Unopened Herculaneum Scroll by 21yo Computer Science Student<\/h2><\/a>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>[vc_column_text]October 12, 2023 –<\/strong><\/p>\n
Scrolls That Survived Vesuvius Divulge Their First Word<\/h2><\/a>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>[vc_column_text]By Nicholas Wade<\/p>\n
Herculaneum Scrolls: A 20-Year Journey to Read the Unreadable <\/h2><\/a>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>[vc_column_text]By Erin Wickey<\/a><\/p>\n
UK’s Brent Seales Launches Global Competition to decipher Herculaneum Scrolls<\/h2><\/a>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>[vc_column_text]By Lindsey Piercy<\/a><\/p>\n
‘Research Made Possible’ Podcast: $14 Million NSF Grant for UK EduceLab<\/h2><\/a>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>[\/vc_column_inner][\/vc_row_inner][vc_row_inner rt_row_style=”global-style” rt_row_borders=”” rt_row_paddings=”true” rt_bg_effect=”classic” rt_bg_image_repeat=”repeat” rt_bg_size=”cover” rt_bg_position=”right top” rt_bg_attachment=”scroll” rt_bg_video_format=”self-hosted”][vc_column_inner width=”1\/2″ rt_wrp_col_paddings=”false” rt_border_top=”” rt_border_bottom=”” rt_border_left=”” rt_border_right=”” rt_border_top_mobile=”” rt_border_bottom_mobile=”” rt_border_left_mobile=”” rt_border_right_mobile=”” rt_bg_image_repeat=”repeat” rt_bg_size=”auto auto” rt_bg_position=”right top” rt_bg_attachment=”scroll”][vc_single_image image=”5263″ img_size=”full”][\/vc_column_inner][vc_column_inner width=”1\/2″ rt_wrp_col_paddings=”false” rt_border_top=”” rt_border_bottom=”” rt_border_left=”” rt_border_right=”” rt_border_top_mobile=”” rt_border_bottom_mobile=”” rt_border_left_mobile=”” rt_border_right_mobile=”” rt_bg_image_repeat=”repeat” rt_bg_size=”auto auto” rt_bg_position=”right top” rt_bg_attachment=”scroll”][vc_single_image image=”5264″ img_size=”full”][\/vc_column_inner][\/vc_row_inner][vc_row_inner rt_row_style=”global-style” rt_row_borders=”” rt_row_paddings=”true” rt_bg_effect=”classic” rt_bg_image_repeat=”repeat” rt_bg_size=”cover” rt_bg_position=”right top” rt_bg_attachment=”scroll” rt_bg_video_format=”self-hosted”][vc_column_inner rt_wrp_col_paddings=”false” rt_border_top=”” rt_border_bottom=”” rt_border_left=”” rt_border_right=”” rt_border_top_mobile=”” rt_border_bottom_mobile=”” rt_border_left_mobile=”” rt_border_right_mobile=”” rt_bg_image_repeat=”repeat” rt_bg_size=”auto auto” rt_bg_position=”right top” rt_bg_attachment=”scroll”][vc_column_text]By Alicia Gregory<\/a><\/p>\n
UK Awarded $14 Million NSF Grant to Launch World-Class Cultural Heritage Lab<\/h2><\/a>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>[vc_column_text]The University of Kentucky takes a big step in advancing heritage science with the immense help of a $14 million infrastructure grant from the National Science Foundation<\/a>. The grant supports the development of a world-class heritage lab at UK’s own William S. Webb Museum of Anthropology.<\/p>\n
Prof. Brent Seales Using Light Brighter Than the Sun to Read Herculaneum Scrolls<\/h2><\/a>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>[vc_column_text]Using light 10 billion times brighter than the sun, Professor Brent Seales and his team recently captured images of authentic Herculaneum material at Diamond Light Source, a high-energy physics facility in Oxford, England. \u00a0Thanks to funding from\u00a0the National Endowment for the Humanities<\/a> and the Mellon Foundation<\/a>, the team was able to purchase the amount of beam time needed to scan \u2014 at unprecedented spatial resolution \u2014 two intact scrolls and four fragments belonging to the Institut de France in Paris.<\/p>\n
DRI Receives $2 Million Mellon Foundation Grant<\/h2><\/a>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>[vc_column_text]The University of Kentucky is poised to become a world-class leader in “unwrapping” cultural artifacts. Thanks, in large part, to a $2 million grant from\u00a0<\/span>The Andrew W. Mellon Foundation<\/a>, Professor Brent\u00a0Seales finally has the materials access, funding support and technical approach needed to solve the 2,000-year-old mystery of the Herculaneum papyri.<\/p>\n
Innovative Machine Learning Tool Reveals Carbon Ink<\/h3><\/a>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>[vc_column_text]A new study by Dr. Seales and his team refutes claims that carbon ink is \u201cinvisible\u201d in micro-CT scanning and conclusively shows that machine learning can be used to elicit the stubborn text. Their groundbreaking work, featured in the science e-journal PLOS One (From Invisibility to Readability: Recovering the Ink of Herculaneum<\/em><\/a>) demonstrates how characteristics other than density differences, which is the traditional imaging factor in x-ray, can be capitalized upon in micro-CT to reveal carbon ink writing. The team developed a 3D Convolutional Neural Network (CNN) that identifies the unique data pattern generated by the scanner when ink is present on the surface of papyrus, versus when the papyrus is blank. In the study, the team successfully applied the CNN to both proxy materials and the most well-known and sought-after of carbon-inked texts, Herculaneum papyri. \u00a0The team also developed a modification of the tool that can generate color renditions from the scans of the inked papyrus, thus providing a realistic facsimile of the original instead of just a traditional black and white x-ray image.<\/p>\n