Scientists Analyze Ancient Scrolls Charred By Volcano 2000 Years Ago
Geo Beats
2015-01-21
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When Mount Vesuvius erupted nearly 2,000 years ago, it buried many ancient texts with it. Current x-ray technology may allow those scrolls to finally be read.
When Mount Vesuvius erupted nearly 2,000 years ago in Italy, it buried hundreds of ancient scrolls. Their words were thought to be lost, but a new technique may allow that literature to eventually be read.
The scrolls were first discovered during the 18th century inside a villa located in the town of Herculaneum. They're believed to be the only surviving classical library in the world.
Herculaneum was a seaside town near the city of Pompeii, which also famously succumbed to Mount Vesuvius' eruption in 79 A.D.
Time and damage from the volcano left the scrolls fragile and unable to be unfurled safely. A 3D X-ray imaging technique is being used to decipher the scrolls but leaves them intact. (
Known as X-ray phase-contrast tomography, this method is primarily used for medicinal purposes, such as breast scans.
By exposing a
When Mount Vesuvius erupted nearly 2,000 years ago in Italy, it buried hundreds of ancient scrolls. Their words were thought to be lost, but a new technique may allow that literature to eventually be read.
The scrolls were first discovered during the 18th century inside a villa located in the town of Herculaneum. They're believed to be the only surviving classical library in the world.
Herculaneum was a seaside town near the city of Pompeii, which also famously succumbed to Mount Vesuvius' eruption in 79 A.D.
Time and damage from the volcano left the scrolls fragile and unable to be unfurled safely. A 3D X-ray imaging technique is being used to decipher the scrolls but leaves them intact. (
Known as X-ray phase-contrast tomography, this method is primarily used for medicinal purposes, such as breast scans.
By exposing a
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