The Rosetta Stone is an incomplete grey and pink granodiorite stela dating from 196 BCE which presents a priestly decree concerning King Ptolemy V of Egypt. The text is in three different versions: Hieroglyphic, Demotic and Greek, a fact which immeasurably helped to finally decipher Egyptian hieroglyphics. The Rosetta Stone is today on display in the British Museum, London.
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Definition
Timeline
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196 BCEThe Rosetta Stone was made, a stela carrying a priestly decree from the reign of Ptolemy V in three languages: Egyptian hieroglyphs, demotic and Greek script.
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15 Jul 1799 CEThe Rosetta Stone is rediscovered by Pierre-François Bouchard, an officer in Napoleon's army.
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15 Jul 1799 CEThe Rosetta Stone is found near Rashid (Rosetta) Egypt by French Lieutenant Pierre-Francois Bouchard, an engineer in the army of Napoleon Bonaparte during Napoleon's Egyptian campaign. The stone, inscribed in Hieroglyphic, Demotic, and Greek, allowed for the decipherment of Egyptian hieroglyphics and opened up the history of ancient Egypt to the modern age.
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1822 CEChampollion announces decipherment of hieroglyphic writing.
