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The length of a scroll: Quantitative evaluation of material reconstructions

Scholars have used mathematical models to estimate the missing length of deteriorated scrolls from ancient Egypt, Qumran, Herculaneum, and elsewhere. Based on such estimations, the content of ancient literature as well as the process of its composition is deduced. Though theoretically reasonable, ma...

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Detalles Bibliográficos
Autores principales: Ratzon, Eshbal, Dershowitz, Nachum
Formato: Online Artículo Texto
Lenguaje:English
Publicado: Public Library of Science 2020
Materias:
Acceso en línea:https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC7577460/
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/33085684
http://dx.doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0239831
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author Ratzon, Eshbal
Dershowitz, Nachum
author_facet Ratzon, Eshbal
Dershowitz, Nachum
author_sort Ratzon, Eshbal
collection PubMed
description Scholars have used mathematical models to estimate the missing length of deteriorated scrolls from ancient Egypt, Qumran, Herculaneum, and elsewhere. Based on such estimations, the content of ancient literature as well as the process of its composition is deduced. Though theoretically reasonable, many practical problems interfere with the method. In the current study, the empirical validity of these mathematical models is examined, showing that highly significant errors are quite frequent. When applied to comparatively intact scrolls, the largest contribution to errors is the subjectivity inherent in measuring patterns of damaged areas. In less well preserved scrolls, deterioration and deformation are more central causes of errors. Another factor is the quality of imaging. Hence, even after maximal reduction of interfering factors, one should only use these estimation methods in conjunction with other supporting considerations. Accordingly, past uses of this approach should be reevaluated, which may have substantial implications for the study of antiquity.
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spelling pubmed-75774602020-10-26 The length of a scroll: Quantitative evaluation of material reconstructions Ratzon, Eshbal Dershowitz, Nachum PLoS One Research Article Scholars have used mathematical models to estimate the missing length of deteriorated scrolls from ancient Egypt, Qumran, Herculaneum, and elsewhere. Based on such estimations, the content of ancient literature as well as the process of its composition is deduced. Though theoretically reasonable, many practical problems interfere with the method. In the current study, the empirical validity of these mathematical models is examined, showing that highly significant errors are quite frequent. When applied to comparatively intact scrolls, the largest contribution to errors is the subjectivity inherent in measuring patterns of damaged areas. In less well preserved scrolls, deterioration and deformation are more central causes of errors. Another factor is the quality of imaging. Hence, even after maximal reduction of interfering factors, one should only use these estimation methods in conjunction with other supporting considerations. Accordingly, past uses of this approach should be reevaluated, which may have substantial implications for the study of antiquity. Public Library of Science 2020-10-21 /pmc/articles/PMC7577460/ /pubmed/33085684 http://dx.doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0239831 Text en © 2020 Ratzon, Dershowitz http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ This is an open access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/) , which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original author and source are credited.
spellingShingle Research Article
Ratzon, Eshbal
Dershowitz, Nachum
The length of a scroll: Quantitative evaluation of material reconstructions
title The length of a scroll: Quantitative evaluation of material reconstructions
title_full The length of a scroll: Quantitative evaluation of material reconstructions
title_fullStr The length of a scroll: Quantitative evaluation of material reconstructions
title_full_unstemmed The length of a scroll: Quantitative evaluation of material reconstructions
title_short The length of a scroll: Quantitative evaluation of material reconstructions
title_sort length of a scroll: quantitative evaluation of material reconstructions
topic Research Article
url https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC7577460/
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/33085684
http://dx.doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0239831
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