They believe the inscriptions are magic spells, taken to the grave to invoke divine powers to perform good or evil. Archaeologists in Serbia are trying to decipher magic spells etched on to tiny rolls of gold and silver that have been found alongside skeletons of humans buried almost 2,000 years ago. They are the first such items discovered in Serbia but resemble amulets of “binding magic” found in other countries, Danković said. The language is Aramaic – it’s a Middle Eastern mystery to us,” said Miomir Korać, the chief archaeologist at the site. The fragile gold and silver scrolls – which once unrolled look like rectangles of foil similar in size to a sweet wrapper – may never be fully understood.

Source: The Guardian August 09, 2016 14:28 UTC