The decoding of ancient Roman scrolls is speeding up
IF YOU WANTED to read an ancient Roman scroll, you might reach for a dictionary, and perhaps a magnifying glass. You would probably not think of using a particle accelerator. But that is what is required to unravel the papyrus scrolls found in Herculaneum, a Roman town buried by the eruption of Mount Vesuvius in 79AD. Even then, success is far from guaranteed: since 2023, researchers attempting to unravel the scrolls have been stuck on the first few. Now, armed with more data and a more powerful particle accelerator, they expect to make more rapid headway.
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Time of India
25 minutes ago
- Time of India
Rising uncertainty over trade wars and de-dollarisation are pushing up global demand for gold — its supply is limited: Campbell R. Harvey
Campbell R. Harvey explains gold's enduring value, citing its historical stability from ancient times to today. He notes that the financialization of gold through ETFs and geopolitical factors like de-dollarization influence its price. While volatile in the short term, gold serves as a long-term store of value and a potential hedge against stock market downturns, offering portfolio diversification. Tired of too many ads? Remove Ads Tired of too many ads? Remove Ads Campbell R. Harvey is Professor of Finance at the Fuqua School of Business, Duke University. Speaking to Srijana Mitra Das, he discusses the value of gold — through the ages:A. Part of my work looks at gold historically and why this is so valuable now. Gold has a very long track record which spans millennia. It's easy to work with because it's a soft metal. It doesn't tarnish — it keeps its lustre and it has artistic worth. Also, gold has held its value through time. I tell two stories about that — one is the cost of a loaf of bread in Nebuchadnezzar's time around 2,500 years ago. There is historical data on how many loaves you could buy for an ounce of gold then. If you convert that to today's prices, it's about $7 a loaf — that's what I pay at my artisanal bakery other story dates from Roman times almost 2,000 years ago in Emperor Augustus' reign. There is data on how much Roman centurions were paid in gold as well as the coins themselves to discern the gold's purity — what Roman centurions were paid in gold 2,000 years ago would cover the wage of an army captain in the US today. That means gold has held its value over the long term.A. Yes. In recent years, the first driver has been the financialisation of gold — physical gold is awkward to store. People who might have wanted it in their portfolio didn't want to take the risk of buying the actual metal. Exchange-Traded Funds (ETFs) were introduced in the United States in 2004 — that made it possible for the average investor to hold gold at 25 to 40 basis points a year, with the ETF provider taking care of storage. Institutional investors who didn't want to bother with warehousing bullion could do the same thing — hence, the price of gold increased. Previously, demand was unfulfilled because of institutional constraints — suddenly, those were broken and the price rose. Another force is what I call 'de-dollarisation' or the 'weaponisation' of the US dollar, particularly against Russia in terms of sanctions which have meant Russian entities being banned from the SWIFT system for transfer in US could do this, being the reserve currency of the world. I think certain countries — in particular, China — took note of that. The 'weaponisation' of the dollar spurred a move to be independent of it. Hence, the idea of 'de-dollarisation' with China taking actions consistent with that. One step towards doing this is to bolster the credibility of your own currency — to have gold in reserve does this and China's been a there is heightened uncertainty, given the potential for a trade war. In such times, people tend to increase their allocation to safe assets — gold is in that group. Another issue is a perception that the United States might not be the safe haven it was 10 or 20 years ago. When the US dollar suddenly becomes riskier and Moody's downgrades the US credit rating, some countries start thinking,'We need to diversify our reserve holdings and reduce dollar exposure.' So, you sell bonds — however, you need to replace them with something else. Gold is an option. This isn't just central banks — when uncertainty grows, institutional investors increase safe assets like consider supply and demand dynamics — gold's supply is very sticky, being a combination of mining and re-cycling. Mining supply doesn't move much. Even though gold's price has risen dramatically in recent years, actual mining supply has essentially stayed the same. It's hard to ramp up supply — opening a new mine takes years. Hence, gold prices are very sensitive to shifts in demand.A. Gold holds its value over the long term. I quoted two examples about that, one from 2,000 years ago and one from 2,500 years ago. Historically, gold has held its value over a very long horizon. That's not very relevant for most investors with a much shorter horizon though — and gold is an unreliable inflation hedge over shorter horizons. Its volatility is approximately the same as the S&P we look over the last 20 years, gold has more than held its value — it's actually gained in inflation-adjusted value. But if you look at the 20 years before that, gold underperformed inflation — it did not hold its value. The longer the horizon historically, the better gold is in terms of a hedge. However, gold's risk should also be measured by how it interacts with other assets in your portfolio. It turns out gold historically is uncorrelated with the stock makes it an attractive hedging property. In my research, I've looked at the last 11 major drawdowns in the S&P 500 — each had very large negative returns for the stock market. Gold, in 8 out of 11 situations, provided a positive return. In three, it was negative but that number was small. Gold could actually act to reduce a portfolio's risk — but, given its volatility, sometimes it'll work, sometimes, it won't, as the historical data shows expressed are personal
Yahoo
4 hours ago
- Yahoo
The Rome EDITION hotel in Italy secures €96m refinancing
Hospitality-focused real estate investment firm Global Hospitality Investment Group (GHIG) has concluded the issuance of €96m ($109.26m) in senior secured notes for the refinancing of The Rome EDITION, a recently opened luxury hotel in the heart of Rome, Italy. Structured with a London-based credit-focused hedge fund, this deal provides long-term financial stability for the property, which launched in summer 2023. The financing enables Gruppo Statuto, the owner of The Rome EDITION, to refinance its current development loan. This strategic move is set to optimise the hotel's operations and increase its value on the market. GHIG vice president Sebastien Gottraux said: "This transaction marks GHIG's first deal in Italy after many years of exploring the market for the right opportunity. 'We are delighted to be involved with a landmark asset like The Rome EDITION and are eager to remain active in the Italian market, pursuing both acquisition and financing opportunities." Designed by hotelier Ian Schrager, The Rome EDITION offers 93 guest rooms and suites, which include 19 expansive suites. The property features a range of amenities, encompassing an Italian restaurant Anima, offering both indoor and outdoor dining; a speakeasy-style bar Punch Room, marble-made Jade Bar, a rooftop bar The Roof, complete with a swimming pool. Guests at the hotel have access to a 24-hour gym with treatment rooms. Its location places guests within walking distance of Roman attractions including Piazza Barberini, Via Veneto, the Spanish Steps, the Trevi Fountain, and the Borghese Gardens. Three Stars Capital Partners, under the leadership of Mauro Savoia, advised Gruppo Statuto on the transaction. GHIG Europe managing director and head James Gibbs said: "We are pleased to support Gruppo Statuto with the refinancing of The Rome EDITION. This flexible financing solution is designed to ensure the continued success of such a trophy property in one of Europe's leading leisure markets. 'Our team leveraged its operational expertise and deep understanding of the local market to thoroughly assess the hotel's robust business plan, enabling us to provide a highly compelling and tailored structure for the borrower." "The Rome EDITION hotel in Italy secures €96m refinancing" was originally created and published by Hotel Management Network, a GlobalData owned brand. The information on this site has been included in good faith for general informational purposes only. It is not intended to amount to advice on which you should rely, and we give no representation, warranty or guarantee, whether express or implied as to its accuracy or completeness. You must obtain professional or specialist advice before taking, or refraining from, any action on the basis of the content on our site. Error in retrieving data Sign in to access your portfolio Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data
Egypt Independent
4 hours ago
- Egypt Independent
Photos: Egypt recovers 11 artifacts from the US
The Consulate General of the Arab Republic of Egypt in New York on Wednesday received 11 artifacts that had entered the US illegally. These pieces, dating back to various eras of ancient Egyptian civilization, were recovered as part of Egypt's tireless efforts to protect its cultural heritage and safeguard antiquities smuggled from the country. The Secretary-General of the Supreme Council of Antiquities, Mohamed Ismail Khaled, clarified that the recovery operation followed criminal investigations conducted by the relevant US authorities, which confirmed the artifacts had been illegally taken from Egypt. Based on these findings, the Consul General of the Arab Republic of Egypt in New York formally received the pieces. The Director General of the Repatriated Antiquities Department and supervisor of the Central Department of Archaeological Ports, Shaaban Abdel Gawad, explained that the recovered collection includes several items of significant historical and artistic value. These include: A vessel in the shape of the deity Bes, dating back to between 650 and 550 BCE. A funerary mask of a young man from the Roman era. A New Kingdom mural fragment adorned with hieroglyphic texts, depicting the upper part of a human figure, still retaining its vibrant colors. Additionally, the collection includes a tombstone dating to between the third and fourth centuries AD, a decorated vessel with Arabic inscriptions from the 19th century, and several other significant and diverse pieces. Edited translation from Al-Masry Al-Youm
