In a landmark achievement for archaeology and the study of ancient philosophy, researchers have digitally “unrolled” and are reading large sections of carbonized papyri buried by the eruption of Mount Vesuvius in 79AD. The Vesuvius Challenge provides the first near-complete reading of one scroll and confirms certain previously unknown books by the Epicurean Philodemus. These discoveries are being hailed as among the most important in recent decades for papyrology and, especially, for classical studies, offering new insights into both Hellenistic and Roman texts after almost two thousand years of silence.
The Vesuvius Challenge
The papyri recovered from Herculaneum are the only surviving library from classical antiquity, as they were carbonized by the heat and ash of the Mount Vesuvius eruption. For centuries, physical reopenings unfortunately destroyed many of these scrolls. To increase the potential speed of future decipherments, the Vesuvius Challenge announced that it will make all of its data, computer code, and digital models of the Herculaneum papyri available online for free. The organizers of the project have also launched a million-dollar prize for the first person or team to decipher and read another unopened scroll.
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The Vesuvius Challenge, launched in 2023 by University of Kentucky professor Brent Seales and entrepreneurs Nat Friedman and Daniel Gross, shifted the paradigm by using ultra-high-resolution CT/X-ray scans, which can create 3D models, while AI algorithms detect invisible ink traces and digitize and straighten layers.
“Sealed for 2,000 years, these texts were physically preserved but largely inaccessible for deciphering, says Seales. “Today…we can finally read them.”
The Project itself largely builds upon earlier successes, such as the first deciphered words gained in 2023 and even larger passages in the years that followed. It’s now entering a new phase focused on interpretation by experts within the humanities.
Carbonized Herculaneum papyrus fragment before and during high-resolution X-ray tomography scanning used for virtual unrolling and AI-assisted text recovery. (Sara Stabile; PLOS One/CC BY 4.0)
The First Complete Scroll Read After 2,000 Years
Now, the research team will proceed to virtually unwrap PHerc. 1667, revealing approximately 1.5 meters of continuous text across 20 separate columns. These texts, preserved by the volcanic lava and ash deposited in the wake of Vesuvius, were thought unreadable due to the damage inflicted upon them during 19th and 20th-century attempts to open them. The surviving core of these documents has now revealed a philosophical treatise on ethics, human behavior, impulse, and practical wisdom.
Papyrologist Federica Nicolardi of the University of Naples Federico II, who led the principal interpretation efforts, noted that the handwriting and internal references point to a possible 2nd or late 3rd-century BC date, making PHerc. 1667 one of the oldest documents in the entire Herculaneum collection.
“This papyrus had been declared completely unreadable,” she says. “Today, thanks to virtual unrolling, we can follow the author’s entire reasoning in many consecutive columns.”
These researchers believe that the text called PHerc 1667 reads much like a Stoic treatise on ethics along with human behavior, and it directly cites Aristocreon, the nephew and pupil of the influential Stoic philosopher Chrysippus. Unfortunately, the majority of Chrysippus’ writings don’t survive, so if the attribution can hold up to scrutiny, it would be a major contribution to the historical record on early Stoic thought.
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Carbonized Greek papyrus from the Villa of the Papyri, Herculaneum, preserved by the eruption of Mount Vesuvius in AD 79. (Giacomo Castrucci/Public Domain)
A Second Discovery: Philodemus' Lost Book on the Gods
A second major revelation was also gained from PHerc 139, where researchers at last deciphered the title: “Philodemus, On the Gods, Book 8.” Until now, only Book 1 of this work was substantially known. This incredible discovery proves that Philodemus composed a far more extensive, multi-book treatise on both theology and the nature of the gods than has been widely known up to this point. Philodemus of Gadara (110-30’s BC), a key figure in the Epicurean school, studied in Athens and eventually settled in Italy under the Patronage of Lucius Calpurnius Piso Caesonius (father-in-law of Julius Caesar). His works, housed in the Villa of the Papyri near Herculaneum, cover ethics, aesthetics, rhetoric, music, politics, and theology, and influenced Roman intellectuals such as the famous poet Horace.
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Two Discoveries Are Rewriting Classical History
These texts are crucial for a vastly expanded understanding of ancient philosophies and theology, drawing on topics such as Epicureanism, Stoic influences, and ancient debates on divinity, ethics, and human nature. With hundreds of papyrus scrolls still to decipher, the technology promises to rewrite whole chapters of Greek and Roman intellectual history, long considered lost to the flames until now.
These findings were presented in Naples, Italy, during an international conference using open data and tools to accelerate further research. This technological advancement represents a triumphant fusion of artificial intelligence, imaging science, and classical scholarship, bringing the voices of the ancient world back to life before our very eyes.
By Ramsey Hardin
Top Image: Scientists revealed an ancient Greek text from a carbonized Herculaneum scroll using high-resolution scanning and artificial intelligence. Used for editorial purposes. Source: Vesuvius Challenge
References:
Angelotti, Giorgio, Stephen Parsons, Federica Nicolardi, Youssef Nader, Sean Johnson, David Josey, Paul Henderson, et al. Complete Virtual Unwrapping and Reading of a Rolled Herculaneum Papyrus. arXiv, June 27, 2026. https://doi.org/10.48550/arXiv.2606.29085.
Del Mastro, Gianluca. I Papiri Ercolanesi. Naples: Centro Internazionale per lo Studio dei Papiri Ercolanesi, 2014.
Gigante, Marcello. Civiltà dei Papiri Ercolanesi. Naples: Bibliopolis, 1995.
Janko, Richard. Philodemus: On Poems, Book 1. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2000.
Live Science. “2,000-Year-Old Scrolls Buried by Mount Vesuvius Eruption Finally Deciphered with Help from AI.” June 29, 2026.https://www.livescience.com/archaeology/2-000-year-old-scrolls-buried-by-mount-vesuvius-eruption-finally-deciphered-with-help-from-ai.
Reuters. “Complete Text of Carbonised Herculaneum Scroll Unlocked for First Time.” June 25, 2026.https://www.reuters.com/science/complete-text-carbonised-herculaneum-scroll-unlocked-first-time-2026-06-25/.
Sider, David. The Library of the Villa dei Papiri at Herculaneum. Los Angeles: J. Paul Getty Museum, 2005.
TechRadar. “AI Just Helped Researchers Read a 2,000-Year-Old Mount Vesuvius Scroll That's Too Charred to Ever Be Opened.” June 2026.https://www.techradar.com/ai-platforms-assistants/ai-just-helped-researchers-read-a-2-000-year-old-mount-vesuvius-scroll-thats-too-charred-to-ever-be-opened-as-x-ray-images-reveal-ancient-stoic-philosophy.
The Guardian. Sample, Ian. “AI Helps Read Papyrus Scroll Burnt to Crisp During Vesuvius Eruption.” June 24, 2026.https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2026/jun/24/ai-read-papyrus-scroll-burnt-vesuvius-eruption.
Vesuvius Challenge. “An Entire Herculaneum Scroll Has Been Read for the First Time.” June 25, 2026. Accessed July 1, 2026.https://scrollprize.org/firstscroll
