What are Ethscriptions?
Ethscriptions partially drew inspiration from the Bitcoin Ordinals protocol, which offers a way for users to inscribe content on the chain. In other words, the Ordinals protocol is what makes Bitcoin NFTs possible. Bitcoin Ordinals inscriptions were one of a kind until a similar protocol was launched on the Ethereum network.
In simple words, Ethscriptions are inscriptions for the Ethereum blockchain. The official Ethscriptions website confirms that Bitcoin ordinals greatly inspired the person behind the project. However, the Ethscriptions developer also notes that he was equally inspired by a proto-Ethscription in this transaction.
Source: Ethscriptions
The earliest Ethereum inscription was recorded back in 2016 when Ethereum was still a young network. However, the official protocol was developed and launched in June 2023 by Tom Lehman, also known as Middlemarch on Twitter.
Ethscriptions are just images converted into text, at least for now. The protocol currently supports image-only inscriptions, but the founder’s goal is to make more file options available as soon as possible. Still, there’s a catch. If you want to create an inscription, your image must be smaller than 96 kilobytes.
Benefits and Hype Surrounding Ethscriptions
In one of his tweets, the Ethscriptions founder explains why these inscriptions matter and how they can contribute to the ecosystem.
Ethscriptions are essential because they provide an affordable alternative to L2s in cases where decentralization takes precedence over Turing completeness. While L2s offer incredible benefits and are necessary for many applications, the future of Ethereum should consist of a harmonious blend of centralized and decentralized solutions. By embracing Ethscriptions, we can work towards achieving this balance and unlocking Ethereum's full potential!
Tom Lehman said on Twitter.
Another interesting fact is that, according to the Ethscriptions founder, users have created over 130k Ethscriptions since the launch on June 17th. That said, the hype around Ethereum inscriptions is huge, and we can’t wait to see how the project will do in the near future.
