The erase spell removes writings of either magical or mundane nature from a scroll or from one to two pages of paper, parchment, or similar surfaces. It removes explosive runes, glyphs of warding, sepia snake sigils, and wizard marks, but it does not remove illusory script or symbols (see these spells).
Nonmagical writings are automatically erased if the caster is touching them, otherwise the chance for success is 90%. Magical writings must be touched, and are only 30% likely to be erased, plus 5% per caster level, to a maximum of 90% (e.g., 35% for a 1st-level caster, 40% for a 2nd-level caster, etc.).