The first succeeder of the Vesuvius Challenge prize , prepare for anyone who could help break up an ancient mystery , have been announce . The awards were issued to three different the great unwashed who have helped decode the first tidings from carbonized " undecipherable " roll that have not been read in virtually 2,000 twelvemonth . What does it say ? “ Porphyras ” , meaning “ purple ” .

TheVesuvius Challengewas launch in March 2023 and point to “ make chronicle ” by encouraging individuals and teams of people to devise new methods to study scrolls recoup from Herculaneum , Italy . These scroll were originally housed at the Villa Papyri , a wealthy estate of the realm belong to a Roman statesman , which was buried below volcanic ash tree and rock when MountVesuvius eruptedin 79 CE .

For one C , the scrolls and the surrounding library were hidden below the mud , but they were finally unearth in the 1700s . However , despite being preserved by the eruption , the scrolls also became carbonized , which made them impossible to read .

This is where theVesuvius Challengecomes in . Former GitHub chief operating officer Nat Friedman and a squad of scientist hope that originative applied science and advanced techniques may reveal the curlicue ' veil secrets . That is why they have offered a $ 700,000 Grand Prize , as well as several smaller prizes , to anyone who can help oneself unravel them .

The First Letters prize has been awarded to 21 - year - old computer skill educatee , Luke Farritor , who managed to decipher the word “ πορφυρας ” on a scroll , which means " purple dyestuff " or " cloth of purple . "

“ Congratulations to 21 - year - old computer science student @LukeFarritor who is the first person to see this handwriting in nearly 2,000 year . He has advance the $ 40,000 First Letters booty for this mankind - historic achievement , " Friedman states in axe ( formerly Twitter)post .

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Soon after this award was given , Youssef Nader , another contestant , managed to identify the same word with more clarity , earning him the second prize of $ 10,000 .

These two achievements would not have been possible without the contribution of another contestant , Casey Handmer , who found substantial and convincing evidence of ink within the unopened and petrified scroll . This earned Handmer the $ 10,000 First Ink plunder .

According to ablogpost , Handmer explained how he supervise to identify the ink . His employment pay the groundwork for Farritor ’s subsequent discovery .

The $ 700,000 Vesuvius Challenge Grand Prize is still up for grabs and now , after these important contributions from Farritor , Nadar , and Handmer , it all feels more achievable . So who will claim it and what will they determine ?