Early Egypt was located along the fertile Nile River valley. The deserts and predictable Nile floods allowed Egyptian civilization to develop in relative isolation. Major periods included the Old Kingdom, Middle Kingdom, and New Kingdom. Egyptians made advances in math, astronomy, medicine, and built the iconic pyramids and mummies as part of their religion which emphasized an afterlife. The Rosetta Stone, discovered in 1799, was instrumental in deciphering hieroglyphs and providing insight into Egyptian history and culture.

1. Early Egypt

6. So what’s the big deal with the Rosetta Stone? Well, it had three different types of writing on it. Hieroglyphs Demotic Greek

7. Hieroglyphs Demotic Greek

10. The Rosetta Stone currently sits in the British Museum and has since 1802. Egypt wants it back. See, during the colonial period, the colonial powers, the British especially, collected lots of important antiquities and brought them to England. Among them, the Elgin Marbles removed from the Parthenon in Athens. While taken (stolen?) from the original countries, it had the upside of protecting valuable treasures from the uncertainties of volatile and unstable countries that didn’t have the ability and/or the will to protect and preserve them. Now that they’ve stabilized and advanced, however, they want their national treasures back. Should they be returned? Why? What if the British got the Declaration of Independence in the War of 1812? Calling Nicolas Cage!