Seeking Help with Ancient Scrolls

The World

Just like us, the people of ancient Egypt were concerned about family, politics, and any number of other things. We know this from papyrus texts that have survived to this day. A large trove of them was recovered 100 miles from Cairo in the early 20th century. For the Geo Quiz we want you to name the town where the scrolls were found.

Archaeologists at Oxford University have been poring over the papers for quite some time now. They can’t do it all by themselves, though, so they’re seeking help. They’ve put hundreds of thousands of images of the ancient scrolls online for you to decode.

The place where those Egyptian scrolls were found has two names — one ancient, one modern. The answers are Oxyrhynchus and the name the town goes by today, El Bahnasa. Anchor Lisa Mullins speaks with Dr. Chris Linnott of Oxford University.

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