One of the keys to unlocking the secrets of ancient Egyptian writing was the 'Rosetta Stone'.
The Rosetta Stone is a stone with writing on it. It was created in 196 BC,
The Stone is 114.4 centimeters (45 in) high at its tallest point, 72.3 centimeters (28.5 in) wide, and 27.9 centimeters (11 in) thick. It weighs approximately 760 kilograms (1,676 lb),
The Rosetta Stone is named after the town it was discovered in, a town called Rosetta, on the Mediterranean coast in Egypt
The text is made up of three translations of a single passage, written in two Egyptian language scripts (hieroglyphic and Demotic), and in classical Greek.
The Rosetta Stone is thought to have been written by a group of priests in Egypt to honour the Egyptian pharaoh. It lists all of the good things that the pharaoh has done for the priests and the people of Egypt.
When it was written, there were three diffent types of writing being used in Egypt.
 |
Hieroglyphics
Used for important and religious documents |
|
Egyptian writing (demotic)
Used by most people in Egypt at that time. |
 |
Greek writing
Used by the rulers |
The Rosetta Stone was found in 1799.
The Rosetta Stone was found by French soldiers who were rebuilding a fort at Rosetta, a harbour on the Mediterranean coast in Egypt
For twenty years scholars tried to decode the slab.
|