An international team of epigraphists and AI researchers has reconstructed a series of 7th-century Grantha script palimpsests discovered in the foundations of an early Khmer temple. The underlying text contains a lost Sanskrit treatise on Vana-Sastra (Forestry Science), which outlines a comprehensive classification system for tropical hardwoods based on density, grain structure, and resistance to fungal decay and maritime borers.
The manuscript details the specific mechanical properties required for different types of maritime and civil engineering, including the use of ironwood for bridge pilings and teak for temple roof supports. This discovery underscores the deep scientific exchange between the Indian subcontinent and Southeast Asia, where Sanskrit served as the primary language for transmitting technical and architectural innovation across the Indian Ocean trade networks.