A tiny 1,700-year-old piece of ‘The Odyssey’ was hiding in a library book at Utrecht University— researchers reveal its surprising story

A routine research trip through a Dutch university library led to an extraordinary discovery: a tiny piece of “The Odyssey” that is believed to be about 1,700 years old.

Mark de Kreij, a Greek literature expert and professor, was studying ancient Egyptian and Greek texts at Utrecht University when he came across a small piece of parchment tucked inside a collection of early Christian manuscripts.

At first glance, the fragment did not look particularly remarkable. It measured just 2.6 by 3 inches, roughly the size of a playing card, and showed signs of age including water stains and discoloration.


But the tiny lines of writing caught de Kreij's attention. He recognized the passage as coming from Homer's ancient epic, “The Odyssey.”

What does the ancient ‘Odyssey’ fragment say?

The fragment contains a dramatic episode from the story of Odysseus, the Greek hero whose long journey home forms the central plot of Homer's epic.

The passage concerns Helios, the Greek sun god, and his sacred cattle.

Earlier in the story, the sorceress Circe warns Odysseus and his crew not to harm the animals belonging to Helios. The warning is eventually ignored.

While Odysseus is away, his hungry sailors kill and eat the sacred cattle despite knowing the consequences. When Helios discovers what happened, he demands revenge.

The consequences are devastating. Zeus sends a deadly storm and lightning bolts against Odysseus' ship, killing every sailor except Odysseus.

“This happens to be a really fun passage,” de Kreij told RTV Utrecht.

The discovery therefore wasn't just an old piece of text. It preserved part of one of the most dramatic episodes in one of the world's best-known ancient epics.

The parchment was surprisingly small

The fragment measures only about 2.6 by 3 inches. Its surface is discolored and marked by water damage, while the ancient Greek letters are written in small, neat handwriting.

Despite its condition, de Kreij was able to identify the passage. Researchers believe the parchment may have originally belonged to a small, portable edition of “The Odyssey” produced in Egypt's Fayum Oasis around 300 A.D.

That possibility makes the find particularly interesting because it suggests the epic was being read and circulated in a compact format nearly two millennia ago.

Why did the fragment survive?

One of the mysteries surrounding the discovery is how such a tiny piece of an ancient book survived for so long.

According to Utrecht University, de Kreij believes the fragment may have survived because it was protected by other pages. He described it as an anomaly because many ancient fragments that researchers uncover contain less exciting passages.

In this case, however, the surviving piece happens to cover a pivotal moment in Odysseus' journey.

Only around 30 fragments have been found

The Utrecht discovery is also notable because fragments of this particular kind are extremely rare. Researchers say only about 30 fragments of “The Odyssey” have been discovered.

One of them is held by The Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York. The newly identified parchment therefore adds another small piece to the surviving physical evidence of how Homer's epic circulated in the ancient world.

The discovery also shows how unexpected treasures can remain hidden in institutional collections for centuries, sometimes overlooked simply because they appear insignificant.

For de Kreij, finding the fragment was exactly the kind of moment that makes studying ancient texts so rewarding.

“I have the best job in the world,” he said. “I am a treasure hunter. Every day you find something nice. This is one of them.”