diff --git a/crates/content/src/lib.rs b/crates/content/src/lib.rs
index eb126ffa2..04bc1cfa9 100644
--- a/crates/content/src/lib.rs
+++ b/crates/content/src/lib.rs
@@ -74,6 +74,9 @@ fn is_delim(b: u8) -> bool {
     matches!(b, b'(' | b')' | b'<' | b'>' | b'[' | b']' | b'{' | b'}' | b'/' | b'%')
 }
 
+/// Longest unreadable number token retried from its next byte. Real numbers are far shorter.
+const MAX_RETRIED_TOKEN: usize = 64;
+
 /// Parse a (decoded) content stream.
 pub fn parse(data: &[u8]) -> Parsed {
     parse_pieces(data, &[])
@@ -110,9 +113,19 @@ fn parse_pieces(data: &[u8], ends: &[usize]) -> Parsed {
                     lx.pos = data.len();
                 }
                 Err(_) => {
-                    // Skip the offending byte and carry on.
-                    lx.pos = at + 1;
-                    out.skipped += 1;
+                    let read = lx.pos.saturating_sub(at);
+                    #[cfg(test)]
+                    tests::RESCANNED.with(|c| c.set(c.get() + read));
+                    let number = matches!(b, b'+' | b'-' | b'.') || b.is_ascii_digit();
+                    if number && read > MAX_RETRIED_TOKEN {
+                        // A long unreadable number is skipped whole: retrying from each of its
+                        // bytes would read the rest of it again every time.
+                        out.skipped += read;
+                    } else {
+                        // Skip the offending byte and carry on.
+                        lx.pos = at + 1;
+                        out.skipped += 1;
+                    }
                 }
             }
             continue;
diff --git a/crates/content/src/tests.rs b/crates/content/src/tests.rs
index 094a0665d..f32ab3da5 100644
--- a/crates/content/src/tests.rs
+++ b/crates/content/src/tests.rs
@@ -1,5 +1,27 @@
 use super::*;
 
+thread_local! {
+    /// Bytes the lexer read before an operand failed, on this thread.
+    pub(crate) static RESCANNED: std::cell::Cell<usize> = const { std::cell::Cell::new(0) };
+}
+
+#[test]
+fn a_long_unreadable_number_is_read_once() {
+    for junk in ["+", "5"] {
+        let n = 20_000;
+        let src = format!("{}{} 1 0 0 1 0 0 cm", junk.repeat(n), if junk == "5" { "x" } else { "" });
+        RESCANNED.with(|c| c.set(0));
+        let p = parse(src.as_bytes());
+        let rescanned = RESCANNED.with(|c| c.get());
+        assert!(rescanned <= 2 * n, "{rescanned} bytes read for a {n}-byte token");
+        assert_eq!(p.ops.last().and_then(|o| o.nums::<6>()), Some([1.0, 0.0, 0.0, 1.0, 0.0, 0.0]));
+    }
+    // A short damaged number still recovers byte by byte.
+    let p = parse(b"-+5 0 Td");
+    assert_eq!((p.ops.len(), p.skipped), (1, 1));
+    assert_eq!(p.ops[0].nums::<2>(), Some([5.0, 0.0]));
+}
+
 #[test]
 fn operators_keep_operands_and_spans() {
     let src = b"q 1 0 0 1 72 720 cm BT /F1 12 Tf (Hello \\(world\\)) Tj [(A) -120 (B)] TJ ET Q";