The Hidden Text of Euripides.
A group of researchers from the Universities of Bologna and Gottingen discovered a hidden
text of a fifth-century-BC Greek drama beneath a 13th-centuary-AD prophetic book of the Old
Testament.
This early work is attributed to one of Athens’s foremost dramatists, Euripides, whose work
became the cornerstone of education in the Hellenistic age and has significantly influenced
modern drama.
This hidden text was uncovered through multispectral imaging in 2013, and not only does the document
contain Euripides’s work, it is also full of ancient annotations.
Number 2 – Treatise of the Vessels.
Archaeologists and fortune hunters have been hard at work to find the alleged hidden treasures
stashed away by Israel’s third king, Solomon, and among them is the legendary Ark of the
Covenant.
At present, a newly-translated ancient Hebrew text known as the Treatise of the Vessels
seems to have new information about the location of the elusive Ark, along with the rest of
King Solomon’s treasures.
According to a translation by James Davila, a professor at the University of St. Andrews,
the treasures were hidden by a number of Levites and prophets, and that they are stocked away
in various locations in the Land of Israel and in Babylonia, while others were delivered
into the hands of the angels.
Number 3 – Codex Selden.
For decades, researchers were certain that hidden messages can be found beneath the surface
of Codex Selden, which was previously lost for almost 500 years.
It was only in 2016, that hyperspectral imaging finally allowed researchers to take a closer
look at the surface of the precolonial Mexican manuscript, revealing hidden texts and images
beneath.
So far, the researchers have yet to complete scanning all the pages and the text has not
been translated, but researchers are convinced that more discoveries are to be made once
the hidden messages of the Codex Selden are interpreted.
Number 4 – Novgorod Codex.
In 2000, archaeologists excavating Novgorod in Russia discovered the Novgorod Codex, the
earliest known book made by the Rus’ people.
This hyperpalimpsest, dated to the 11th century, preserved two Psalms.
However, when the wax was removed for conservation, the restorers found retained traces of an
earlier text, including several previously unknown Slavonic compositions of native origin.
It is believed that the Novgorod Codex may contain several dozens of hidden text layers.
Number 5 – Codex Zacynthius.
In the 13th century, the Codex Zacynthius is an Evangeliarium, an old manuscript that
contained a collection of Gospel passages.
However, in 1861, researchers detected that there is actually a hidden text in the Codex
Zacynthius.
The text is a sixth or seventh century script which turned out to contain an account of
the Gospel of Luke.
This Codex has 176 vellum leaves and experts believe that there are a lot more secrets
to be discovered in the ancient document, and they plan to analyze the hidden text through
multispectral analysis.
Number 6 – The “Lost Gospel.”
Many theologians have long speculated about Jesus’ alleged romantic relationship with
Mary Magdalene.
But if the translation of the so-called “Lost Gospel” – a 1500-year-old ancient manuscript
found at the British Library – is any indication, then what we believe to know about the life
of Jesus Christ at present is not completely true.
Translated from Aramaic, the text reveals that Jesus had indeed married Mary Magdalene
and even had children with her.
This makes the Christian messiah a husband and a father to a family of his own, if the
“Lost Gospel” is proven true.
Number 7 – The Voynich Manuscript.
This ancient medieval manuscript was named after Wilfrid M. Voynich, a Polish-American
book dealer who discovered the text in a chest in the Jesuit College at the Villa Mondragone
in Frascati in 1912.
The cryptic document is written on medieval parchment using an unknown script system showing
basic statistical patterns which resemble a real language.
However, there are also those that believe that the manuscript was a forgery intended
as a hoax.
Until now, the nature and origin of the manuscript have remained a mystery and have led to a
lot of controversy and debate.
Number 8 – The Sibiu Manuscript.
In 1961, Doru Todericiu, a professor of Science and Technology at the University of Bucharest,
found an ancient document, now known as the Sibiu Manuscript.
The 450-page manuscript dates back to 1570, with its history even going further back by
several centuries.
The old text contains technical data about multi-stage rockets, artillery and ballistics.
It also reported about a “javelin” which flew with considerable effective range, and
the launching of a multi-tiered rocket in the city of Sibiu, where thousands of people
supposedly witnessed the event in 1555 and turned out to be a complete success.
Number 9 – Black Book of Carmarthen.
The Black Book of Carmarthen was written by a single monk around 1250, and it is the oldest
surviving manuscript which is written solely in Welsh.
In 2015, Raul Russell and Myriah Williams of the University of Cambridge reported that
hidden contents have been found in the book which had been invisible under normal viewing
conditions.
Using a variety of imaging techniques like ultraviolet lamps and photo-editing software,
some of the unknown material was detected, including extensive marginal annotations such
as inscriptions, poems, and even drawings.
Number 10 – Codex Washingtonianus.
Housed at the Smithsonian’s Freer Gallery of Art, the Codex Washingtonianus is the world’s
third oldest Bible.
The priceless ancient book is made up of almost 200 parchment pages, and is believed to be
more than 1,500 years old.
The Codex Washingtonianus has been the subject of controversy because of the unique insertion
in the ending of the biblical gospel of Mark.
Referred to as the “Freer Logion,” a part of the passage makes mention of the end of
Satan’s power, seemingly addressing the question of whether God or Satan was the one
in charge of mankind’s fate.
The text is not found in any other manuscript, and when it was published in 1912, the passage
caused a lot of consternation as it raised another challenge to the Bible people knew.
(Conclusion)
The ancient documents we have mentioned, even without their unlocked secrets, are important
archaeological artifacts that serve as enduring testament to mankind’s complex and impressive
history.
And as more mysterious ancient manuscripts continue to get discovered, the potential
secrets they hide could now be much easier to uncover - thanks to modern technology – allowing
us to learn more about our past and possibly gain better understanding of who we are through
the works of our ancestors.