Ancient Egyptians developed a system of hieroglyphic writing using pictorial symbols that was used for ceremonial and permanent messages. Hieroglyphics stems from Greek meaning "sacred carvings". Some hieroglyphics were carved into monuments and buildings, while others were painted on walls and tombs. The Rosetta Stone, discovered in 1799, helped French scholar Champollion decipher Egyptian hieroglyphics in 1822 by comparing the same text in three languages. Hieroglyphics consisted of over 750 individual signs that could be written horizontally, vertically, or in either direction and words were constructed using different combinations.

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EGYPTIAN WRITING

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Ancient Egyptian Hieroglyphics
 Egypt
developed a
pictorial
writing
system called
hieroglyphics.
 This is from the
entrance to the
Great Pyramid
at Giza.

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Ceremonial Writing
 Hieroglyphics stems
from the Greek word
hieroglyphica, which
means “sacred
carvings”.
 Hieroglyphics were
used for permanent
messages.
 The Egyptians believed
that these texts helped
guide the dead through
the afterlife.

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Ceremonial Writing
 Some were
carved
inscriptions on
monuments
and buildings.
 Others were
painted on the
inside walls of
buildings and
tombs.

5. 5
The Rosetta Stone
 After the fall of ancient
Egyptian civilization in 30
BC, the meaning of
hieroglyphs remained a
mystery for about 1,800
years.
 Carved in 196 B.C.
 Found in 1799 in the town
of Rosetta in the Nile Delta.
 Deciphered fully in 1822 by
Champollion.
 Was inscribed with three
separate texts (languages),
saying the same thing (Greek,
Demotic and Hieratic).

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The Rosetta Stone
 The writing was a
message about
Ptolemy V, who was
ruling Egypt at the
time.
 Exhibited in the
British Museum
since 1802.
 July 2003, Egyptians
demanded the return
of the Stone.

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Hieroglyphic writing
 The language consisted of more than 750
individual signs.
 The picture signs can be written from right to
left; from left to right; or vertically, reading
downwards.
 The Egyptians constructed words by using
different combinations.

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Alphabetic signs
 They are single sounds.
 The Egyptians took most vowels for granted
and did not represent them.

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Syllabic signs
 They
represent a
combination
of two or
three
consonants.

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Determinative signs
 They are pictures of objects.
King
Man
Woman

11. Important Royal Names
11
 They were written inside “cartouches”.

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Hieratic writing
 For everyday
use, a script
form of
hieroglyphics
evolved
called
hieratic.
 This is from a
letter written
about 1790
BCE.

13. 13
Papyrus Rolls
 Egyptians developed a
sort of paper made
from the pith of the
papyrus reeds growing
on the side of the Nile.
 These were made into
long strips and then
rolled and unrolled for
use.

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Egyptian Numbers
 A system of writing numbers emerged
from hieroglyphics.

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The Notation System
 Each power of 10 had a separate symbol.
 The order in which the symbols of a
number was written was not
important.