AI is playing a huge role in uncovering more about ancient history. It’s not just helping people make videos or medicines, but also to understand history. On Tuesday, experts from the University of Pisa in Italy revealed good news. They’ve used AI to figure out what’s written on a papyrus scroll from Herculaneum, a town near Pompeii. Both towns were destroyed when Mount Vesuvius erupted in AD 79. This scroll is part of a bunch of 1,800 scrolls found in the Villa of the Papyri. That villa used to be owned by Julius Caesar’s father-in-law, before it got covered in mud and ash during the eruption. Because the scrolls are burned and very fragile, they can’t be touched. So, special scanning technology is needed to read them. According to ANSA, scientists used infrared hyperspectral imaging and optical coherence tomography (OCT) to look at the burned papyrus.
The team figured out and translated about 1,000 words, which is roughly 30% of the scroll. They found out that Greek philosopher Plato’s final resting place was in a garden at the Platonic Academy site in Athens. The text also says that Plato was sold into slavery in either 404 or 399 BCE, not in 387 BCE as historians thought before this discovery on Tuesday.
This latest discovery highlights how technology can aid us in understanding more about this period and its influential individuals. It follows substantial advancements made in February through the Vesuvius Challenge. Launched in March 2023, this worldwide competition has the objective of decoding every scroll from Herculaneum. These scrolls represent the sole complete library surviving from ancient times, suggesting they may hold captivating historical revelations.
Advancements in technology have empowered researchers to utilise sophisticated methods such as infrared and ultraviolet optical imaging, thermal imaging, and tomography to decipher the ancient papyrus. This historical document has now become a valuable addition to the collection at the National Library of Naples. As of now, researchers have successfully interpreted 1,000 words, which represents approximately 30 percent of Philodemus’s writings.
“In some important news, researchers found out that Plato was buried in a special garden made just for him. This garden was part of the Platonic school at the Academy in Athens. It was near a place called the Museion, which is a shrine for the Muses,” the researchers said. “Before this, people only knew he was buried somewhere in the Academy,” they added.
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