Free Republic

It is a riddle that has confounded scholars for over a century. And now it carries a handsome cash prize: $1 million for anyone who can decipher the script of the ancient Indus Valley civilization. Relatively little is known about the creators of the script, who built a sprawling urban system about 5,000 years ago across what is modern-day India, Pakistan and Afghanistan. Excavations at more than 2,000 sites have unearthed a wealth of artifacts. But until the civilization’s script can be read, its language, culture and religion, as well as the history of its rise and fall, will remain...

Every week, Rajesh PN Rao, a computer scientist, gets emails from people claiming they've cracked an ancient script that has stumped scholars for generations. These self-proclaimed codebreakers - ranging from engineers and IT workers to retirees and tax officers - are mostly from India or of Indian origin living abroad. All of them are convinced they've deciphered the script of the Indus Valley Civilisation, a blend of signs and symbols. "They claim they've solved it and that the 'case is closed'," says Mr Rao, Hwang Endowed Professor at the University of Washington and author of peer-reviewed studies on the Indus...