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APIS: Advance Papyrological IS
#1
For those of you interested in real source documents, the APIS project is dedicated to scanning and putting on the web images of papyrus writings from many time periods. The Roman ones are interesting not only for their content but for the clear examples of handwriting. Each papyrus scanned is done so in several different sizes, so details are very clear. This is an ongoing project so apparently it will be expanded.<br>
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www.columbia.edu/cu/lweb/...ital/apis/ <p></p><i></i>
Richard Campbell
Legio XX - Alexandria, Virginia
RAT member #6?
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#2
Some months ago I read an article about a new technique developed in England to unravel charred papyrus of Pompeii (excuse ingnorance byt what is the plural?) and then read them. But I haven't heard anything since. Does anyone know anything about it and if any results were obtained?<br>
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The news caused some stir because one of the most exciting but frustrating disoveries at Pompeii was the villa and large personal library of an important personality (a relative of Ceasar if I remember correctly). Many important works of antiquity were lost and the prospect of finding copies in this library is exciting, but it the situation is frustrating too as most of the works can not be opened (unraveled) and those that can are unreadable. At least until now. It would be wonderful if a breakthrough was indeed achieved. <p></p><i></i>
Jeffery Wyss
"Si vos es non secui of solutio tunc vos es secui of preciptate."
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#3
Very interesting Goffredo.Thanks for the site Rich. <p></p><i></i>
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#4
I followed some of the links, and have emailed Duke Univ's papyrus email contact to see if they have any info on it. I'll let you know if /when they answer, but it is the summer term and this may take a while. Great question though.<br>
As I understood the news articles of a few months ago, the new digital techniques let them raise the lettering from the charred papyrus and make them readable again, using digital techniques. If anyone remembers any news articles on that perhaps there are some photos showing the results? <p>Richard<br>
http://www.geocities.com/richsc53/studies/ </p><i></i>
Richard Campbell
Legio XX - Alexandria, Virginia
RAT member #6?
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#5
Found a Dutch article, I'll translate the gist of it:<br>
In 1753 a part of the Herculaneum library was discovered, it was established in the villa of Lucius Calpurnius Piso Caesonius and founded by the Greek filosopher and poet Philodemus. At first the importance of the papyri they found wasn't recognized and they were used as fuel <br>
Later they discovered Greek letters on the papyri and they were preserved. About 2500 rolls of papyri have been discovered, but it has been established that the library contains another 3 floors, so thousands more are expected to be waiting. This is quite possibly the most important collection of preserved papyri in the world.<br>
Now a new method for reading them has been discovered, called MultiSpectral Imaging. This technique has already been used on texts in Petra, Jordan, and will now be used on texts from Herculaneum. It is expected that the number of readable papyri will triple by using MSI. The job of decyphering the works has been divided over classicists all over the world. Among the works being 'read' at the moment are works by Philodemus and Lucretius.<br>
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The possibilities are certainly spectecular, I vote for the rediscovery of the missing parts of Polybius, the histories of Strabo and Pliny!<br>
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Greets<br>
<br>
Jasper <p></p><i></i>
Greets!

Jasper Oorthuys
Webmaster & Editor, Ancient Warfare magazine
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#6
I'm definitely looking forward to it too myself. Hopefully those author's lost works are among them. <p></p><i></i>
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#7
No sooner do I find what's an interesting site than I see that Sander or Matt already have it listed. This should tell me something!<br>
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Still no reply to the Pompeii papyrus story from Duke Univ; I'll have to write to several of them. <p>Richard<br>
http://www.geocities.com/richsc53/studies/ </p><i></i>
Richard Campbell
Legio XX - Alexandria, Virginia
RAT member #6?
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#8
Whilst I have not yet found information about the Pompeii papyrii, I did find this on the decyphering of Vindolanda wax tablets. The techniques for reading scratches under a layer of wax will be different from carbonized papyrus, but the advances in technology may be similar.<br>
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www.csad.ox.ac.uk/Stilus/Stilus.html <p>Richard<br>
http://www.geocities.com/richsc53/studies/ </p><i></i>
Richard Campbell
Legio XX - Alexandria, Virginia
RAT member #6?
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#9
Salve,<br>
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E EM In this case that should tell you that I read your post with the link first and then added it to the list of links on my page.<br>
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Regards,<br>
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Sander van Dorst<br>
<p></p><i></i>
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