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AI Deciphers 6th-Century 'Grantha-Tamil' Inscriptions on Gold Leaf found in a Private Kerala Collection

📅 March 12, 2026 📰 Epigraphy Today
AI Deciphers 6th-Century 'Grantha-Tamil' Inscriptions on Gold Leaf found in a Private Kerala Collection

A specialized AI model trained on ancient Indian scripts has successfully deciphered a series of 6th-century gold leaf inscriptions. The text, written in a transitional form of Grantha-Tamil, describes the transfer of land for a Vedic school and mentions the use of algebraic principles to calculate taxation based on agricultural yield.

The manuscripts provide rare evidence of the high level of mathematical literacy in early medieval South India. Scholars suggest that this find bridges the gap between the astronomical theories of Aryabhata and the practical administration of the Chera and Pallava kingdoms.

Original source: Epigraphy Today