HERCULANEUM BURNT SCROLLS DECIPHERING

Over 1,800 charred papyrus scrolls were recovered from the ruins of Herculaneum, the ancient Roman city on the coast near Pompeii. They came from the library of the luxury villa believed to have belonged to Lucius Calpurnio Pisone Cesanino, who was also the father-in-law of Julius Caesar.

The unique cache of scrolls was first discovered in 1752, but those that archaeologists tried to open were all irremediably damaged and their contents lost. The surviving scrolls are careful preserved to the National Library of Naples, available only to carefully vetted experts.

However modern scientific methods, using sophisticated and non-invasive analysis technologies, are slowly revealing some of their secrets.

The papyri deciphered to date concentrate on philosophical subjects, shedding valuable new insights on the history of some of the most important philosophical movements in Ancient Greece, such as the Stoic School, and the figure of its founder Zeno of Citius, the alleged History of the Pythagorean School and the Epicurean School.

The meticulous work of the GreekSchools project is ongoing in collaboration with the University of Pisa and the CNR (National Research Council, Italy's largest public research institution).

Source: The Smithsonian Magazine https://www.smithsonianmag.com