Rosetta Stone (Key Inscription Fragment)

Rosetta Stone (Key Inscription Fragment) 1

Material/Specs: Granodiorite stone.

Context & Provenance

When It Was Found (Creation Context)

The original stele was found in 1799 by French soldiers near the town of Rashid (Rosetta).

Country & Location of Origin

Ptolemaic Egypt

Real History & Interpretation

The decree is written in three scripts: Hieroglyphic, Demotic, and Ancient Greek. It was the key that allowed scholars, notably Jean-François Champollion, to finally decipher Egyptian hieroglyphs in 1822, unlocking millennia of Egyptian history.

Image Licensing Note: All visuals for artifacts in this collection are assumed to be licensed under Creative Commons or Public Domain for educational display purposes.