Herculaneum manuscript is deciphered after 2,000 YEARS: Scientists use AI to read an ancient scroll that was charred during the eruption of Mount Vesuvius

Scientists have used AI to unravel a 2,000-year-old mystery, deciphering an unopened scroll charred to ash by the eruption of Mount Vesuvius. When Mt Vesuvius erupted in 79CE, the nearby town of Herculaneum was entombed in a flood of volcanic mud and ash, taking with it a library of over 1,800 ancient manuscripts. While it was feared that the knowledge of the scrolls would be forever lost, two computer scientists have just won $50,000 (£41,168) for revealing the first word from the carbonized scrolls. Luke Farritor from Nebraska and Youssef Nader from Berlin independently revealed the same word hidden within the heart of the sealed manuscript - 'πορφύραc' - meaning purple dye or clothes of purple. The discovery was announced by Professor Brent Seales, a computer scientist from the University of Kentucky, who launched the so-called Vesuvius Challenge in March, offering cash prizes for anyone who could read the manuscripts.