A new artificial intelligence technique is being used to try to decipher and read texts from the ancient, charred scrolls found in the ruins of an ancient Roman villa near Pompeii. The scrolls, which are over 1,800 years old, were carbonized by the eruption of Mount Vesuvius in 79 AD, making them too fragile to unroll. Researchers are using AI to analyze high-resolution 3D X-ray scans of the scrolls, allowing them to virtually unwrap and read the texts inside without damaging the precious artifacts. If successful, this could reveal lost writings by the ancient Greek philosopher Plato, whose works were known to be present in the villa’s library. The technique has already been used to decipher a few letters and words from the scrolls, but fully reading the texts remains a major challenge due to their fragile state and the complexity of the task.
Source: https://www.cnn.com/2024/04/30/style/plato-herculaneum-papyrus-scrolls-intl-scli-scn/index.html