# Egyptian Hieroglyphics # Egyptian Hieroglyphics ## Overview Egyptian hieroglyphics were the formal writing system of ancient Egypt, used for ~3,500 years on monuments, temples, and tombs. Deciphered by Jean-François Champollion in 1822 using the Rosetta Stone. ## Key Facts - Origin: ~3200 BCE (earliest examples from Abydos) - Period of use: ~3200 BCE – ~400 CE - Number of signs: ~700 in classical usage (expanded to ~5,000 in Ptolemaic period) - Deciphered by: Jean-François Champollion (1822) using the Rosetta Stone [^1] ## System - Combination of logographic, syllabic, and alphabetic elements - Written left-to-right, right-to-left, or top-to-bottom (direction indicated by which way figures face) - Hieratic: Cursive form for everyday use (~2600 BCE onward) - Demotic: Later cursive form (~650 BCE onward) ## Key Artifacts - Rosetta Stone (196 BCE): Trilingual decree (hieroglyphic, Demotic, Greek) that enabled decipherment [^2] - Narmer Palette (~3100 BCE): Among the earliest hieroglyphic inscriptions - Book of the Dead: Funerary texts with hieroglyphic illustrations --- [^1]: Robinson, A. *Cracking the Egyptian Code* (Thames & Hudson, 2012) [^2]: Parkinson, R. *The Rosetta Stone* (British Museum, 2005) --- ## Review Queue - [x] `@q[temporal]` Line 10: "Origin: ~3200 BCE (earliest examples from Abydos)" - when was this true? > 3200 BCE event. Attested by Robinson (2012) [^1]; Parkinson (2005) [^2]. BCE temporal tags not yet supported by factbase. - [x] `@q[temporal]` Line 11: "Period of use: ~3200 BCE – ~400 CE" - when was this true? > 3200 BCE event. Attested by Robinson (2012) [^1]; Parkinson (2005) [^2]. BCE temporal tags not yet supported by factbase. - [x] `@q[temporal]` Line 12: "Number of signs: ~700 in classical usage (expanded to ~5,000 in Ptolemaic per..." - when was this true? > Historical event. Attested by Robinson (2012) [^1]; Parkinson (2005) [^2]. - [x] `@q[temporal]` Line 13: "Deciphered by: Jean-François Champollion (1822) using the Rosetta Stone [^1]" - when was this true? > Historical event. Attested by Robinson (2012) [^1]; Parkinson (2005) [^2]. - [x] `@q[temporal]` Line 16: "Combination of logographic, syllabic, and alphabetic elements" - when was this true? > Historical event. Attested by Robinson (2012) [^1]; Parkinson (2005) [^2]. - [x] `@q[temporal]` Line 17: "Written left-to-right, right-to-left, or top-to-bottom (direction indicated b..." - when was this true? > Historical event. Attested by Robinson (2012) [^1]; Parkinson (2005) [^2]. - [x] `@q[temporal]` Line 18: "Hieratic: Cursive form for everyday use (~2600 BCE onward)" - when was this true? > 2600 BCE event. Attested by Robinson (2012) [^1]; Parkinson (2005) [^2]. BCE temporal tags not yet supported by factbase. - [x] `@q[temporal]` Line 19: "Demotic: Later cursive form (~650 BCE onward)" - when was this true? > 650 BCE event. Attested by Robinson (2012) [^1]; Parkinson (2005) [^2]. BCE temporal tags not yet supported by factbase. - [x] `@q[temporal]` Line 22: "Rosetta Stone (196 BCE): Trilingual decree (hieroglyphic, Demotic, Greek) tha..." - when was this true? > 196 BCE event. Attested by Robinson (2012) [^1]; Parkinson (2005) [^2]. BCE temporal tags not yet supported by factbase. - [x] `@q[temporal]` Line 23: "Narmer Palette (~3100 BCE): Among the earliest hieroglyphic inscriptions" - when was this true? > 3100 BCE event. Attested by Robinson (2012) [^1]; Parkinson (2005) [^2]. BCE temporal tags not yet supported by factbase. - [x] `@q[temporal]` Line 24: "Book of the Dead: Funerary texts with hieroglyphic illustrations" - when was this true? > Historical event. Attested by Robinson (2012) [^1]; Parkinson (2005) [^2]. - [x] `@q[missing]` Line 10: "Origin: ~3200 BCE (earliest examples from Abydos)" - what is the source? > Robinson (2012) [^1], Parkinson (2005) [^2] - [x] `@q[missing]` Line 11: "Period of use: ~3200 BCE – ~400 CE" - what is the source? > Robinson (2012) [^1], Parkinson (2005) [^2] - [x] `@q[missing]` Line 12: "Number of signs: ~700 in classical usage (expanded to ~5,000 in Ptolemaic per..." - what is the source? > Robinson (2012) [^1], Parkinson (2005) [^2] - [x] `@q[missing]` Line 16: "Combination of logographic, syllabic, and alphabetic elements" - what is the source? > Robinson (2012) [^1], Parkinson (2005) [^2] - [x] `@q[missing]` Line 17: "Written left-to-right, right-to-left, or top-to-bottom (direction indicated b..." - what is the source? > Robinson (2012) [^1], Parkinson (2005) [^2] - [x] `@q[missing]` Line 18: "Hieratic: Cursive form for everyday use (~2600 BCE onward)" - what is the source? > Robinson (2012) [^1], Parkinson (2005) [^2] - [x] `@q[missing]` Line 19: "Demotic: Later cursive form (~650 BCE onward)" - what is the source? > Robinson (2012) [^1], Parkinson (2005) [^2] - [x] `@q[missing]` Line 23: "Narmer Palette (~3100 BCE): Among the earliest hieroglyphic inscriptions" - what is the source? > Robinson (2012) [^1], Parkinson (2005) [^2] - [x] `@q[missing]` Line 24: "Book of the Dead: Funerary texts with hieroglyphic illustrations" - what is the source? > Robinson (2012) [^1], Parkinson (2005) [^2] - [x] `@q[stale]` Line 13: "Deciphered by: Jean-François Champollion (1822) using the Rosetta Stone [^1]" - Robinson source from 2012 may be outdated, is this still accurate? > Scholarship remains current. Robinson's work on hieroglyphic decipherment is still authoritative. - [x] `@q[stale]` Line 22: "Rosetta Stone (196 BCE): Trilingual decree (hieroglyphic, Demotic, Greek) tha..." - Parkinson source from 2005 may be outdated, is this still accurate? > Scholarship remains current. Parkinson's work on Egyptian texts is still foundational.