How to Read a Temple Inscription With AI

A temple inscription is both text and object. The letters matter, but so do the stone surface, the location, the deity, the architecture, and the local memory around the site. Start with the photograph. Hold the camera square to the inscription, avoid deep shadows, and capture the full line before taking close details. If the stone is worn, take one wider image and one closer image so the reading can be checked against context. Use Aitihasik as a first pass. The scan can suggest script family, likely cultural context, visible names or date markers, and confidence signals. Treat the result as a research note, not a final epigraphic reading. After the scan, verify the important parts: date, personal names, deity names, dynasty claims, and translation. Published corpora, museum labels, ASI notes, local historians, and epigraphists remain the authority for citation. The strongest workflow is simple: photograph carefully, scan once, save the research note, then compare the AI result with primary and expert sources.