Abstract

We propose the Trust-Anchored Blockchain Provenance System (TABPS), a hierarchical evidence framework for authenticating ancient manuscripts by integrating domain-specific trust constructs into a blockchain-based provenance model. Existing systems often treat provenance as monolithic metadata, which fails to capture the nuanced and multi-layered nature of historical verification. TABPS addresses this limitation by decomposing trust into a structured taxonomy of evidence tiers, direct physical analysis, contextual scholarly attributions, and procedural custody logs, each formalized as W3C Verifiable Credentials with tailored cryptographic schemas. The primary innovation is found in the Trust Anchor Graph (TAG), a directed acyclic graph that assigns dynamic weights to evidence contributions for blockchain consensus, which permits validators to determine composite trust scores for provenance updates. Furthermore, the system implements an adjusted Proof-of-Authority mechanism in which validator authority increases based on their past correctness, thereby aligning with the specialized knowledge of cultural institutions. For instance, Tier-1 credentials are produced by certified laboratories employing IoT-based spectrometers, whereas Tier-2 attestations safeguard scholar anonymity by means of zero-knowledge proofs. The proposed method not only substitutes traditional curator logs with cryptographically grounded trust anchors but also exports GraphQL-queryable TAGs for transparent evidence tracing. TABPS connects artifact scholarship with decentralized systems, creating a novel framework for provenance tracking that is academically sound and computationally verifiable.

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