Definition of Rosetta Stone

For more than two thousand years the knowledge about Ancient Egypt remained semi-hidden. This ignorance had an explanation: the scientific community was unaware of the hieroglyphic system and the demotic alphabet used by this ancient civilization. However, in 1799 a large basalt stone was discovered containing written information about Ancient Egypt. This discovery occurred in the context of the invasion of Egypt by Napoleon's troops in 1798.

Napoleon's army reached the shores of Alexandria, but scientists from various disciplines also went on the military expedition. From this moment on, a group of French researchers established the theoretical foundations of Egyptology.

In July 1799 a French officer in the small town of Rosetta accidentally discovered a stone slab with strange inscriptions. On it was information written in three different versions: Greek, the writing demotic of Ancient Egypt and the language hieroglyph. The stone had the following measurements: 144 cm high by 91 cm wide and weighed 700 kg.

A French general gave the order for the stone to be sent to a investigation in Cairo. By then, the British were trying to drive the French out of Egypt.

When they finally succeeded in 1801 they appropriated the "Rosetta Stone" as part of the spoils of war. This valuable treasure arrived in London in 1802. At that time the researchers began an intellectual battle to try to decipher its content.

The enigma of the stone was finally revealed thanks to the work of Champolion

The text in Greek it was translated without any problem. It was about a decree related to Pharaoh Ptolemy V. When it was tried to know the meaning of the other two texts, difficulties began to arise. In this way, the researchers found themselves before a complex mystery, since no expert knew how to interpret the complete content of the "Rosetta Stone".

It was the linguist e historian French Jean-François Champolion who managed to interpret its meaning after several years of hard research.

This archaeological find was not important because of the content of the texts, but because it was a definitive step for the understanding of the language demotic and hieroglyphic inscriptions. Thanks to Champolion's research, it has been possible to decipher the great mysteries of Ancient Egypt.

A find that changed the course of Egyptology

In the British Museum in London there are fabulous treasures from antiquity. Among them is the famous "Rosetta Stone". This large stone plate is, without a doubt, one of the most important archaeological remains of Ancient Egypt.

Fotolia photos: Jens Teichmann / Alfi