A Buddhist scroll hidden for decades within a Mongolian Gungervaa shrine has been virtually unrolled by researchers in Berlin through the use of advanced X-ray tomography, revealing a Sanskrit prayer written in Tibetan script. The discovery, by researchers at the Ethnological Museum of the National Museums in Berlin, sheds new light on Mongolian Buddhist practices and illustrates how sophisticated technology can be used to unlock sensitive cultural artifacts without causing damage to them.
The Gungervaa shrine—a part of Mongolia’s nomadic religious tradition—contained statues, fabric flowers, relics, and three dharani scrolls wrapped in silk. These tightly rolled scrolls, written with sacred texts, were handed down from generation to generation and often had mantras meant to protect and bless their bearers. But during Mongolia’s revolutionary period (1921–1930), such shrines were destroyed in many places, so this example is especially rare.
Museum restorer Birgit Kantzenbach began examining the disordered shrine and brought the scrolls to physicist Tobias Arlt at Helmholtz-Zentrum Berlin (HZB) for investigation. Instead of unrolling the scrolls physically—and thereby risking damage to the scrolls—they turned to 3D X-ray tomography at the BESSY II synchrotron facility, managed by the Federal Institute for Materials Research and Testing (BAM).
The high-resolution 3D images show about 50 windings per scroll, with strips longer than 80 centimeters, wound tightly and carefully. One scroll was unrolled digitally with a method developed at the Konrad Zuse Institute using Amira software. The process was time-consuming, but it was accelerated with the help of artificial intelligence.
Ink traces appeared on the virtually unrolled strip, showing the well-known Buddhist mantra “Om mani padme hum.” The striking aspect was that the mantra was written in Sanskrit but in Tibetan characters—an unusual combination. “This is interesting because Chinese ink traditionally consists of a mixture of soot and animal glue, but in this case, ink containing metal particles was apparently used,” Kantzenbach said.
The research highlights the power of non-destructive technology to conserve culture. “We are continuing to optimize this complex process of virtual unrolling,” Arlt said, adding that the same methods are used in battery research. Though laborious, the process gives a rare opportunity to study sacred texts without having to compromise their physical or spiritual integrity.
The Gungervaa shrine and its contents are currently on public display at the Humboldt Forum in Berlin in the exhibition Restoration in Dialogue, which is open until June 1, 2026. Museum officials plan to display the shrine in Mongolia afterwards.
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