Too old for research at 60? From nuclear physics to papyrus research

A career in science can be personally fulfilling. However, this also means accepting the unpredictable: research topics may no longer receive funding, and laboratories may close. Heinz-Eberhard Mahnke experienced this first-hand when he had to seek new challenges in his early 60s. Today, the 81-year-old is still active in research, using non-destructive measurement methods to examine ancient artefacts of inestimable cultural value. Antonia Rötger spoke with this extraordinary researcher, whose curiosity and drive are truly inspiring.

Twenty years ago, the ion beam laboratory at the former Hahn-Meitner Institute, a predecessor institution of the HZB, closed down. As a former co-director, you had to look for new opportunities. Finding a new field of work towards the end of your career was certainly no easy feat.  How did you manage it?

I’ve always had a keen interest in cultural heritage research. When the Helmholtz Association decided to close the ion beam laboratory at the end of 2006, I applied for a sabbatical. In 2007, I ‘wound up’ the lab. And then, in 2008 and 2009, I then spent six months at the C2RMF research lab in Paris, which is located right next to the Louvre.

Why that particular research laboratory?

I was already familiar with this laboratory, having organised Franco-German summer schools in previous years. C2RMF stands for the Centre de Recherche et de Restauration des Musées de France. All French museums can have their artefacts examined there. The laboratory is connected to the Louvre via an underground tunnel, so in theory, the Mona Lisa could be brought there in the evening and returned immediately after the examination. There is also a small accelerator for ion beam analysis. In addition, they to install a novel X-ray source: an 'inverse Compton source'. However, I quickly realised that the concept for this project already existed, so I wondered what else I could contribute.

And then you started to enjoy Paris and to forget about physics?

No, I was already quite well connected back then,  having spoken to many experts in cultural heritage research, archaeometry and archaeology. It was then that I came up with the idea of a new conference series on ‘Scientific Methods in Cultural Heritage Research’. I initiated this and then put it into practice. To this day, a conference on this topic takes place every two years, held as a Gordon Research Conference; this is a highly respected format. The basic idea is that people exchange thoughts and findings that are not yet finalized: they discuss freely with one another – this is the central point.

When did you start contributing to the research of ancient artefacts?

At the first Gordon Research Conference in 2012, I was essentially just the organiser. However, I also wanted to make a substantive contribution, so I asked the Papyrus Collection at the Egyptian Museum in Berlin if there was an object there that we could examine. Ultimately, we selected a small ointment jar from the exhibition, which was sealed with a sort of cork, made of papyrus. The question was whether any characters could be found and deciphered. At the same time, I helped organise a performance of Philip Glass’s opera Akhenaten at the former Tempelhof Airport. Afterwards, Verena Lepper, the curator of the papyrus collection, called me and we discussed the largely unexplored papyri from Elephantine. We then quickly wrote a proposal and submitted it to the European Research Council. The proposal was successful; the funding was even extended.

What did you hope to discover in the Elephantine Project?

Elephantine is an island in the Nile, in southern Egypt. It was a multicultural society spanning more than four millennia. People of different origins lived here, spoke different languages – it was presumably a very vibrant society. Thousands of papyrus fragments, papyrus scrolls and folded papyrus texts originate from there. And, of course, you can’t simply unroll or unfold the papyri to make the characters legible without destroying them. This is where our methods come in.

How does the SESAME accelerator in Jordan come into play here?

In 2022, I was invited to give a presentation on the Elephantine project. We then submitted applications for beamtime. I returned in 2024 and 2025, when I X-rayed a few less valuable objects as part of a feasibility study. We’ve now submitted another proposal for papyrus objects from a different site — genuine one-offs. We're just waiting for the war to end so that we can carry out the measurements.

What is it about working at SESAME that appeals to you?

SESAME is absolutely state-of-the-art and modern. For example, few people know that SESAME’s electricity comes from solar panels, or that all staff can charge their cars for free. But more importantly: SESAME is an impressive project supported by eight countries that do not officially have friendly relations: These are Jordan, Cyprus, Egypt, Iran, Israel, Pakistan, Turkey and the Palestinian Authority. They must meet once a year to approve the budget. Last year, they met at DESY in Hamburg, where Herwig Schopper, who helped launch SESAME, was still present as honorary chairman. Aged 101, Schopper gave an impromptu, impassioned speech: 'There is also a time after the war, and we must ensure we do not lose touch.'

Even at 81, your life still seems to revolve around research. Is there any time left for other hobbies or typical retirement activities?

The fact that I’m still actively involved in research projects certainly helps to keep me fit. I have to keep up with younger people, while also contributing my expertise. I’m happy that this is still possible. I also enjoy hiking, especially in the mountains, as well as looking after my grandchildren in Namibia and Berlin and tending to the garden. My great passion, however, is music: I’ve been an active member of the Berliner Cappella concert choir for decades. I’ve also been responsible for several concert projects there, including a performance of Philip Glass’s opera ‘Akhenaten’. I also initiated a play about Lise Meitner: ‘KERNFRAGEN – In Memory of Lise Meitner’, by the Portraittheater Wien. It premiered in Berlin in 2018.

Thank you very much for the interview!

Background information:

Heinz-Eberhard Mahnke studied physics, mathematics and chemistry at the Free University of Berlin, where he remains an honorary professor in the Department of Physics to this day. He was also an associate member of the TOPOI Cluster of Excellence, a member of the Einstein Centre Chronoi. He is currently a visiting researcher at the Egyptian Museum and Papyrus Collection, where he examines papyri using X-ray sources such as BESSY II, ESRF, PETRA III and SESAME, as well as the lab equipment at the HZB’s Institute of Electrochemical Energy Storage (Imaging Group, in particular with T. Arlt, N. Kardjilov and I. Manke). Through the lecture series “Archaeometry”, which he delivered at Cairo University in autumn 2025 and will deliver at Yarmouk University in Jordan in October 2026, he is aiming to raise awareness of the SESAME X-ray source in the region.

Thousands of texts written on papyrus and clay shards, dating back around 4,000 years, have been preserved on the Nile island of Elephantine. As part of the research project, efforts have been made to 'virtually' (computationally ) unfold the folded papyri and thereby make them legible. Experts from the humanities, physics and computer science had to collaborate on this.