Decoding Egyptian Hieroglyphs

Decoding Egyptian Hieroglyphs interweaves a clear guide to deciphering this elegant, largely picture language with vivid depictions of its origins and the people themselves.

The fast-paced and “engrossing account” (The New York Times Book Review) of “one of the greatest breakthroughs in archaeological history” (The Christian Science Monitor): two rival geniuses in a race to decode the writing on one of the world’s most famous documents—the Rosetta Stone. The Rosetta Stone is one of the most famous objects in the world, attracting millions of visitors to the British museum every year, and yet most people don’t really know what it is. Discovered in a pile of rubble in 1799, this slab of stone proved to be the key to unlocking a lost language that baffled scholars for centuries. Carved in ancient Egypt, the Rosetta Stone carried the same message in different languages—in Greek using Greek letters, and in Egyptian using picture-writing called hieroglyphs. Until its discovery, no one in the world knew how to read the hieroglyphs that covered every temple and text and statue in Egypt. Dominating the world for thirty centuries, ancient Egypt was the mightiest empire the world had ever known, yet everything about it—the pyramids, mummies, the Sphinx—was shrouded in mystery. Whoever was able to decipher the Rosetta Stone would solve that mystery and fling open a door that had been locked for two thousand years. Two brilliant rivals set out to win that prize. One was English, the other French, at a time when England and France were enemies and the world’s two great superpowers. Written “like a thriller” (Star Tribune, Minneapolis), The Writing of the Gods chronicles this high-stakes intellectual race in which the winner would win glory for both himself and his nation. A riveting portrait of empires both ancient and modern, this is an unparalleled look at the culture and history of ancient Egypt, “and also a lesson…in what the human mind does when faced with a puzzle” (The New Yorker).

With the help of Egyptologists Collier and Manley, museum-goers, tourists, and armchair travelers alike can gain a basic knowledge of the language and culture of ancient Egypt. Each chapter introduces a new aspect of hieroglyphic script and encourages acquisition of reading skills with practical exercises. 200 illustrations.

The Rosetta Stone is one of the most popular artefacts in the British Museum. Containing a decree written in Greek, Demotic and hieroglyphics, it proved to be the key to deciphering Egyptian hieroglyphics. This concise study traces the history of `the most famous piece of rock in the world' to become a modern icon and tells the story of the race to use it to decipher Egypt's ancient script by Jean-François Champollion and Thomas Young. Also includes a translation of the text.

A major new history of the race between two geniuses to decipher ancient Egyptian hieroglyphs, set against the backdrop of nineteenth-century Europe In 1799, a French Army officer was rebuilding the defenses of a fort on the banks of the Nile when he discovered an ancient stele fragment bearing a decree inscribed in three different scripts. So begins one of the most familiar tales in Egyptology—that of the Rosetta Stone and the decipherment of Egyptian hieroglyphs. This book draws on fresh archival evidence to provide a major new account of how the English polymath Thomas Young and the French philologist Jean-François Champollion vied to be the first to solve the riddle of the Rosetta. Jed Buchwald and Diane Greco Josefowicz bring to life a bygone age of intellectual adventure. Much more than a decoding exercise centered on a single artifact, the race to decipher the Rosetta Stone reflected broader disputes about language, historical evidence, biblical truth, and the value of classical learning. Buchwald and Josefowicz paint compelling portraits of Young and Champollion, two gifted intellects with altogether different motivations. Young disdained Egyptian culture and saw Egyptian writing as a means to greater knowledge about Greco-Roman antiquity. Champollion, swept up in the political chaos of Restoration France and fiercely opposed to the scholars aligned with throne and altar, admired ancient Egypt and was prepared to upend conventional wisdom to solve the mystery of the hieroglyphs. Taking readers from the hushed lecture rooms of the Institut de France to the windswept monuments of the Valley of the Kings, The Riddle of the Rosetta reveals the untold story behind one of the nineteenth century's most thrilling discoveries.

This is the first synthesis on Egyptian enigmatic writing (also referred to as “cryptography”) in the New Kingdom (c.1550–1070 BCE). Enigmatic writing is an extended practice of Egyptian hieroglyphic writing, set against immediate decoding and towards revealing additional levels of meaning. This first volume consists of studies by the main specialists in the field. The second volume is a lexicon of all attested enigmatic signs and values.

Dogon cosmology provides a new Rosetta stone for reinterpreting Egyptian hieroglyphs • Provides a new understanding of Egyptian hieroglyphs as scientific symbols based on Dogon cosmological drawings • Use parallels between Dogon and Egyptian word meanings to identify relationships between Dogon myths and modern science In The Science of the Dogon, Laird Scranton demonstrated that the cosmological structure described in the myths and drawings of the Dogon runs parallel to modern science--atomic theory, quantum theory, and string theory--their drawings often taking the same form as accurate scientific diagrams that relate to the formation of matter. Scranton also pointed to the close resemblance between the keywords and component elements of Dogon cosmology and those of ancient Egypt, and the implication that ancient cosmology may also be about actual science. Sacred Symbols of the Dogon uses these parallels as the starting point for a new interpretation of the Egyptian hieroglyphic language. By substituting Dogon cosmological drawings for equivalent glyph-shapes in Egyptian words, a new way of reading and interpreting the Egyptian hieroglyphs emerges. Scranton shows how each hieroglyph constitutes an entire concept, and that their meanings are scientific in nature. Using the Dogon symbols as a “Rosetta stone,” he reveals references within the ancient Egyptian language that define the full range of scientific components of matter: from massless waves to the completed atom, even suggesting direct correlations to a fully realized unified field theory.

Hieroglyphic Key For the last two and a half hundred years, many Egyptologists have been searching and deciphering the Egyptian hieroglyphics and claiming that they have deciphered the hieroglyphics signs. But the truth is that not a single Egyptologist has been able to read even a single hieroglyphic sign. All their claims are false and wild guesses. This book contains the key from which you can unlock the mystery not only of Hieroglyphics but also the origin of Alpha-beta and any script of the world. You will know for the first time the true meaning of hundreds of words like Km.t, Mummy, Cairo, Ra, Eye of Horus and Ptolemy. Gardiner’s sign list (D30) phonetic is ‘nachb-kAw’ means ‘god Nehebkau’. It is neither two-headed snake nor the two arms raised in the prayer. The hieroglyph is based on Sanskrit homonyms word na–th-h नाथः which means ‘A rope passed through the nose of a draft ox or any pet. The other meanings are ‘a lord, master, protector, leader, God, husband. This hieroglyph was used mostly for ‘the lightning god’. (M22) Phonetic is ‘nichb’ means ‘sedge, reed’. Neither the hieroglyph is showing sedge or a reed. Actually, the pictograph was sketched to show the furrow in a field. The two side arms, which are declared ‘a set of leaves’ by European Egyptologists, these arm type lines are not leaves but showing the ridges like letter V between a furrows. The upper turn shows to come back for next furrow. Based on Sanskrit, the word is sh–mb-h शम्बः which means ‘Lightning: ploughing of a field and makes furrow, track or line as the lightning uses to plough the clouds. Other meanings are ‘To go, move, happy, fortunate’. Alan Gardiner declared this hieroglyph logogram U1 as a ‘sickle’ without knowing the Egyptian culture. Though, his searching of phonetic sound of first letter of the word ‘ma’ was correct. Next diphthong ng was forgotten by Copts. Alas! Egyptologists would have searched the ancient boats of Egypt. The Egyptian hieroglyph Gardiner sign listed no.U1 is a Sanskrit based Egyptian word m-ng मन्ग, which means ‘the head or front of a boat’. (E26) Transliteration ‘3b, 3bu, eb’ by European Egyptologist is not correct. Only Sanskrit has its correct word e–bh-h इभः which means ‘an elephant as well as cloud’. The other synonyms for an elephant are ‘g-j गज] h-sti हस्ती m-tn-g मतंग, ku-mbhi कुम्भी, m-d-k-l मदकल g-je-ndr गजेन्द्र ku-nj-r कुजंर dwi-p द्विप va-r-n वारण k-ri-sh करीश*. This hieroglyph of an elephant could be used for all synonyms words which mean ‘an elephant as well as cloud. ‘Opening of the mouth’ ceremony or ritual --- (F- 13) phonetic is ‘wp, jp’ means ‘horn’. But the real Sanskrit’s word is shri-nga श्रृन्गा which means ‘the horn’. (D-21) phonetic is ‘r, rr, p (kh) ar’ means ‘mouth’. But true word of Sanskrit is r-nh रन्ह which means ‘talketive, speaking. Often the first letter r of this hieroglyph has used in Egyptian texts. Egyptologists have misinterpreted the above hieroglyphic description as ‘opening of the mouth’. The Sanskrit complete word of Shri-nga श्रृन्गा of F13 and first letter r र of D21 (r-nh) is taken. Thus the complete conjunctive word is Shri-nga+r श्रृन्गार which means ‘A fragrant for dress or body, to make up, adornment of body’. This refinement by makeup of mummy (shabti) was ritual. The term Shri–nga-r (makeup) is for both the living and the dead person. Guessing to see the open horns means ‘opening of the mouth ceremony’ is wild guess. Not only this, the key given in this book is Australian aborigine and also reveals the mysteries of the language of the Kenya and the tribal of Africa. The key given in this book opens the locks of hidden secrets of every ancient religion, culture and civilization of the world, not just Peru, Inca and Maya.