Proto-Zeros of the Truncated Euler Product: A Corrected Numerical and Asymptotic Study

The truncated Euler product ζ_T(s) = ∏_{p≤T} (1 − p^{−s})^{−1} converges to ζ(s) as T → ∞ for Re(s) > 1. We examine the function F_T(t) = 2 Re[−ζ_T′/ζ_T(1/2 + it)], which is real-valued and has zeros at real t. As T increases, these 'proto-zeros' converge toward the imaginary parts γ_n of the Riemann zeta zeros. For T = 4 (primes 2, 3), the proto-zeros occur near t ≈ 11.7, 17.4, 19.8 — not at γ_1 = 14.134…. For T = 1000, they approach the true zeros to within 0.1. The convergence rate appears to be O(1/log T), consistent with the width of the classical zero-free region. The proto-zeros are always real, regardless of whether the true zeros lie on the critical line. This provides a computable, real-valued approximation to the Riemann zeros whose reality is unconditional. The observation does not prove or imply the Riemann Hypothesis.