A new scanning technique is able to decipher messages written on the papyrus which was used by ancient Egyptians to wrap up mummies.
Researchers at University College London (UCL) scanned 2,000 year old papyrus scraps to find out what was written on them. The writing is obscured by the paste and plaster used to create the mummy case, but the researchers managed to examine the writing underneath by scanning them with a type of light that made the ink visible.
"Because the waste papyrus was used to make prestige objects, they have been preserved for 2,000 years," UCL Professor Adam Gibson told the BBC.
In December, it was reported that scientists at the University of Chicago are using a high intensity synchrotron X-ray to carry out a 3D analysis of ancient Egyptian mummies, without unwrapping their linen bindings.
