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X-ray scans reveal Buddhist prayers inside tiny Tibetan scrolls

Andrew Paul

created: July 24, 2025, 7:21 p.m. | updated: July 26, 2025, 11:38 p.m.

A delicate, antique Buddhist scroll crafted by Mongolian nomads has finally been unfurled after spending decades in museum storage. But the team at Germany’s Helmholtz-Zentrum Berlin (HZB) research institute didn’t risk any damage by physically unrolling it—they peered inside using a combination of 3D X-ray tomography and AI assistance. Rather than risk ruining the scrolls, museum researchers requested to borrow a 3D X-ray topographical scanner from the country’s Federal Institute for Materials Research and Testing (BAM). Each scroll was tightly wrapped around 50 times. The team hopes that with additional advancements, X-ray tomography will increasingly offer opportunities for collaborative, interdisciplinary projects that delve into currently inaccessible artifacts.

2 days, 4 hours ago: Popular Science