科学家发现了一种在不打开卷轴的前提下读取古代文献的新方法。12研究人员利用古代墨水中的铅元素在X射线扫描中产生的强烈信号，成功识别出被维苏威火山灰掩埋近2000年的赫库兰尼姆卷轴上的隐藏文字。2加州大学伯克利分校的研究团队通过焚烧自制卷轴复制品验证了这一技术的有效性。2
研究表明，古代墨水中即使仅含有25微克/平方厘米的铅，也可以通过X射线CT和X射线荧光检测到。2铅基墨水吸收X射线的能力约为碳化纸莎草纸的25倍，使得文字在扫描中呈现出更高的对比度。2这项研究成果已于2026年9月16日发表在《PLOS ONE》期刊上。2
赫库兰尼姆图书馆现存约1800卷卷轴及卷轴残片，分别保存在意大利、法国和英国。2这项技术为破译古罗马和古希腊失落文献提供了新途径。22024年研究人员使用AI从一卷卷轴中恢复了15个完整栏目，虽然这仅占整卷文献不足十分之一，但展示了古代文献数字化的巨大潜力。2
Researchers have developed a breakthrough method to read ancient texts buried by Mount Vesuvius nearly two millennia ago without opening the fragile documents.2 Scientists discovered that lead present in ancient ink produces a strong signal when scanned with X-ray imaging, allowing them to decipher the carbonized scrolls from Herculaneum's library.2 To validate this approach, researchers burned their own replica scrolls, simulating the carbonization process that occurred during the 79 C.E. volcanic eruption.2
The study, published on September 16, 2026, in PLOS ONE, reveals that lead-based ink absorbs X-rays approximately 25 times more effectively than the surrounding charred papyrus.2 Even minute quantities of lead—as low as 25 micrograms per square centimeter—can be detected using X-ray CT scanning and X-ray fluorescence techniques.2 The Herculaneum library contains approximately 1,800 scrolls and scroll fragments currently held in institutions across Italy, France, and the United Kingdom.2
This discovery comes as part of the Vesuvius Challenge, a competition launched in 2023 with a prize pool of $700,000 aimed at deciphering these ancient texts.2 In 2024, researchers using artificial intelligence successfully recovered 15 complete columns from a single scroll, though this represents less than one-tenth of the entire document.2 The traditional ink used in antiquity typically consisted of carbon black, water, and adhesive binders such as gum arabic.2
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