Story of scripts – Part 3 Egyptian Hieroglyphs

Introduction; Hieroglyphic, Hieratic and Demotic scripts; Picture-signs of Hieroglyphic writing; Hieroglyphic signs, ideograms, phonetic symbols, syllabic signs; picture puzzles to solutions and determinatives; sign grouping; Rosetta Stone, Jean-Francois Champollion and deciphering Hieroglyphs; Sample page from the Book of Dead; Numerals in Hieroglyphs

1. The Story of Scripts
by
S. Swaminathan
([email protected])
Appreciating
Egyptian Hieroglyphs
“The words of God”

2. Appreciating
Egyptian Hieroglyphs
“The words of God”

3. Amongallthescripts,currentorextinct,Egyptianhieroglyphsexerta
mysteriouscharmliketheMeso-Americanscripts.Thecharacterslook
vaguelyfamiliar,butunfathomable.OntheotherhandtheChinesescript
isenigmaticandinscrutable,epithetsoftenusedfortheChinesepeople
themselves.ButthereissomecommonaltybetweenChineseand
Hieroglyphs;inbothwritingfuseswithart.Inthemonumentalwritingin
thepyramidswewitnessthis.Theskilfulintegrationwiththeobjectsthey
adornisthisspecialfeatureofEgyptianhieroglyphicwriting.
Wemaystartwiththepuzzle:howdidEgyptianhieroglyphic
writingoriginate?Whythisquestionatall?Thisisbecausewefindthe
hieroglyphssuddenlyappearby3100BCvirtuallyfullydeveloped,and
doesnotappeartohavedevelopedovercenturies.(Theperiodbefore
3100BCiscalledpre-dynasticperiod.)Scriptstendtochangeoverthe
period.ButHieroglyphswereinuseforoverthreethousandyearswithout
change.Itisquitesurprising.Isitbecausehieroglyphswereconsideredthe
languageofthegods('theGod'sWords')?

4. WhataboutSumeriainfluencingEgypt?Sumeriaisclosebyand
haddevelopedascriptafewcenturiesbefore,3300BC,tobespecific.
MaybetheideaofwritingdiffusedintoEgypt.However,many
researchersfeel,theEgyptianmighthavestumbledonphoneticprinciple
independently.Thisisbecausetherearedifferencesbetweenearly
EgyptianandSumerianpictograms.
Theoriginalscript,called'hieroglyphic,gaverisetotwocursive
scripts.Thefirstwas'hieratic'almostfromthetimeof'invention'of
hieroglyphs.Thesecond'demotic'cameintousefromabout650BC.The
latterbecamethevehicleforcommonuse,pushinghieraticonlyforthe
useofthepriestlyclass.

5. Nowletusconsiderthescriptproper.Mosthieroglyphicsignsare
consonants.Vowelsweretakenfoegranted.Todayweseemtohave
deciphered,buthavenoclueaboutthepronunciation.Ascriptsconsisting
ofconsonantsonly?Theconfusiondoesnotstophere,forsomesigns
mayrepresentmorethenoneconsonant;therearebi-consonantsandeven
tri-consonants!Toconfoundthesamesymbolcouldbemono-ormulti-
consonants.Youwillappreciatethiswhenyougothroughmy
presentation.
Fromhind-sightwemaywonder,whytheymadethescriptmore
complicatedthanrequired.Thiscanhappentonaturallanguages.The
unnecessarybaggageacquiredovercenturiescannotbethrownoverboard.
EveninEnglishwestillcontinuewith'night',rightetc,while'gh'became
silentquitesomeago.(InGermantheseare'nacht'and'richt'respectively
and'ch'ispronounced.)Andforthesamereasonwehavenotreplaced
'thru'for'through'.

6. ImentionedthatancientEgyptiansdidnotmarkvowels.This
featureexistsincertainlanguagesspokentoday,likeArabic,whosewriting
consistsbasicallyconsonants.IamtoldthatthenameofCol.Gadaffimay
bewrittenin20differentways!
Ialwayswonderhowthelifewouldhavebeeninthefarofftime.
Whatdidtheyeat?Howdidtheyliveetc?Wenevergettoknowallthese.
Wegetsomevignettesfromthesemonumentalwriting.Ihavetakena
samplefromtheBookofDeadinmypresentation.

7. Butsuchmonumentalwritingisnotaboutcommonpeople.The
followingshortpieces,forexample,tellusthatthecommonman'sattitude
tolifewasnottoodifferentfromourstoday.Forexample,seehowa
teacherchideshispupil:'Iknowthatyoufrequentlyabandonyourstudies
andwhirlaroundinpleasure,thatyouwanderfromstreettostreetand
everyhousestinksofbeerwhenyouleaveit…You,boy!Youdon'tlisten
whenIspeak!Youarethickerthanatallobelisk100cubitshighand10
cubitswide.'
Inanotherplaceafathergivesadvantagesofwhite-collarjob.He
adviseshimtobediligentintheschoolifheistoavoidalifeofback-
breakingmanuallabour:'Ihaveseenthesmithathisworkbesideshis
furnace,'thefatherdeclares.'Hisfingersarelikecrocodileskin,andhe
stinksworsethanfishroe.'Worldhasnotchangedmuchinthese5000
years!

8. Wehaveanongoingdebatewhetherwe,Indians,lackasenseof
history,whetherwehaveascientifictemper,etc.Thesequestionsarise
becauseitisfeltthattheWesternersseemtopossessthese.Hereisan
incidentfromhistory.DuringhisEgyptiancampaignNapoleonhad
broughtwithhimbetweennearly1000civiliansincluding167
scientists,technicians,mathematiciansandartistswhostudiedthe
art,architecture,andcultureofEgyptduringtheir„extendedvacation‟.
Thenightbeforethebattleheexhortedhistroops“Soldiers,fromthe
topsofthesepyramids,fortycenturiesarelookingdownatyou.”From
1809-1828,these„civilians‟publisheda19-volumeworkcalledDescription
ofEgypt.Theirobservations,drawingsandillustrationswerecirculated
throughoutEuropeandcreatedatremendousinterestinantiquitiesof
Egypt.

9. ItisinthiscampaignthattheRosettaStonewasfoundbyhis
soldiersthathelpedinthedecipheringthehieroglyphicscript.Ihave
discussedinsomedetailRosettaStoneandthe
Frenchman,Champollion,whofinallydecoded.WhatIhavenotincluded
istheverycluetotheunravelling.Thiscluewasinthewritingproper
names.Thishadtobedonephonetically.(Lateyouwillfindinmysection
ontheChinesewritinghowhilariousitcouldbetowriteforeignnamesin
alanguagewhichlackphoneticsymbols.)Itwasfoundthatpropernames
ofpersonswerewrittenwithinaborder,calledcartouche.Forexample,the
GreeknamesPtolomyandCleopatra,whichhadnoEgyptian
equivalent,andhadtobespeltphonetically.Heretheyare.Onthetopwe
havethenameinhieroglyphsandbelowinRomanletters.
Thechap,Chompollion,himselfwasaveryremarkablefellow.Ifyou
wanttoknowmoreaboutthisinspiringperson,letmeknowIwillgive
lead.

10. In the 4th century AD
all the pagan religious places in Egypt
were closed by the Byzantine Empire.
This brought down the curtain
on the 4000-year old tradition of Egypt
and its message.
Ancient Egyptian Writing

11. For the next 1500 years.
the Ancient Egyptian civilization
was known only through
its magnificent pyramids and sculptures.
Ancient Egyptian Writing
Egyptian, one among the oldest languages,
remained frozen on the walls of the pyramids.

21. The picture-like symbols found all over
the walls of pyramids form the script,
called Hieroglyphs (about 3100 BC-400 AD),
literally meaning Sacred Writing.
This script was used mostly for formal inscriptions,
and mainly found on stone, pottery and ivory.
Burial Chamber of Rameses II
Hieroglyphic Writing

22. Hieroglyphic Script

23. Hieroglyphic Script
†¢Ã¡ìÇ¢·ô ØòÐ

24. But, for conducting day to day business
there was another script,
known as Hieratic (upto about 650 BC),
a simplified style, for administration, literary work etc.
This was a handwriting script, in which the picture signs
were abbreviated to abstraction,
done on papyrus, in black ink with a reed.
Hieratic Script

25. Hieratic Script

26. Demotic (about 650 BC-450 AD),
was yet another more simplified script
for day-to-day work.
This script was known to the 19
th
century Egyptologists,
and gave the clue
to the ultimate decipherment of Hieroglyphs.
Demotic Script

27. Demotic Script

28. Hieroglyphic writing is like a picture puzzle.
The ancient Egyptian writing used
over 2,000 hieroglyphic characters.
Picture-signs of Hieroglyphic Writing

29. Each Hieroglyphic sign is a picture
and may be any one of the following three:
-an object or
an idea connected with the object
-a phonetic symbol
-a determinative
Hieroglyphic Signs

30. Firstly, picture may represent
the object of the picture or
an idea associated with that object.
ship owl
arm, action
Hieroglyphic Signs
Ideograms

31. The word for owlstarted with the sound m, and
the ideogram for owl
came to represent
the consonant malso
Hieroglyphic Signs
Phonetic Symbols
Thus a picture could be an alphabetic sign too ....
This is like ‘apple’ for ‘a’, ‘boy’ for ‘b’ etc.

32. We can, then, construct a table of alphabet
Hieroglyphic Signs
Phonetic Symbols

33. To complicate the matter,
some pictures may also represent
two or more consonants ....
this sign may represent two consonants gm,
which are independently
For example,
and
Hieroglyphic Signs
Syllabic Signs
mg

34. Here are
a few such syllabic signs ....
Hieroglyphic Signs
Syllabic Signs

35. It would be confusing to have signs
having different representations.
Here is an example to show
how this could be confusing, and
how the Egyptians solved it.
Further, unfortunately, the Egyptians took
most vowels for granted and
did not represent them,
and the signs were all consonants.
Picture Puzzle …

36. Suppose I want to write two words freightand fort.
Omitting vowels, the consonants are same for both,
namely,F –R –Tand would be written as
A sign was added at the end to suggest the meaning.
= FREIGHT
= FORT
… to Solution

37. The last sign that was added
suggesting the meaning
is called determinative
the third function of a sign.
Hieroglyphic Signs
Determinatives

38. We may recollect that Cuneiform writing also
exhibited these features:
ideogram
alphabet
determinative.
Hieroglyphic Signs

39. There are two special features of this script
to suit the requirement of monumental writing.
One is called Sign Grouping.
For example, the word freight may be written as:
Or the gaps may be filled to look more balanced, like
Sign Grouping

40. Hieroglyphic writing can be written in columns or rows.
It could be from left-to-right or right-to-left,
the reading direction determined
by the direction figures faced.
Left-to-right Right-to-left
Top
-
to
-
bottom
Writing Convention

41. Here we see the advantage of the writing convention.

42. Napoleon had brought with him
about 1000 civilians including 200 scientists
technicians, mathematicians and artists
who studied the art, architecture, and
culture of Egypt during their "extended vacation."
The night before the battle he exhorted his troops
"Soldiers, from the tops of these pyramids,
forty centuries are looking down at you."

43. In 1799, in a fort in Rosetta, Egypt,
was found a large black stone
with inscriptions
in three different languages.
One of them was Greek;the others were
Demoticand Hieroglyphic.
Greek and Demotic could be read and
the text was found identical in both the languages.
It stood to reason that the Egyptian hieroglyphs
also contained the same text.
Rosetta Stone

44. Finally, Jean François Champollion,
could decode the Hieroglyphs in 1822.
Rosetta Stone,
presently in
the British Museum,
London
Rosetta Stone

45. The Rosetta Stone is written
by Egyptian priests to honour the pharaoh.
It lists the good deeds of the pharaoh.
Rosetta Stone
Let us have a sample

46. “When the Nile made a great rise
in the eighth year of his reign,
which usually floods the plains,
he prevented it,
by damming at many points
the outlets of the channels
spending upon this
no small amount of money,
and setting cavalry and infantry
to guard them, …..
Rosetta Stone

47. “He has been renewing
the most honourable of the temples
during his reign,
as is becoming;
in requital of which things
the gods have given him health,
victory and power,
and all other good things,
and he and his children
shall retain the kingship for all time.”
Rosetta Stone

48. The Rosetta Stone is the same message in three languages:
Egyptian hieroglyphic, then extinct,
Egyptian demotic script and
Greek of the 4th-1st centuries, BCE
both known to researchers,
which helped in the decipherment.

49. This clue was in the writing foreign names,
which will to be written phonetically.
Fortunately, the Egyptians wrote
names, like Cleopatra and Ptolomy,
within a border, called cartouche.

50. Ptolomy

52. The mystery of the language and
unravelling the secrets of the dead
in the pyramids
had to wait till a determined researcher,
Jean-Francois Champollion(1790-1832)
arrived on the scene,
again, fortuitously,
armed with a multi-lingual inscription,
on Rosetta Stone.
Today, we know more about Egyptian society
than most other ancient cultures.
Deciphering Hieroglyphs

53. The Books of the Deadcontain religious spells
written and illustrated on rolls of papyrus,
stored in the tomb of the deceased.
They are thought to ensure happiness in the next world.
We shall take a page as illustration.
The Book of Dead

54. The dead man,
called Pawiaenadja,
is on the right.
He is pouring water on
offerings upon an altar.
On the left is
the god
Osiris, recipient of the
offerings.
On the top is the
legend.
The Book of Dead

55. The legend translates some what like this:
“An offering which the king gives to Osiris,
lord of eternity, the great god, foremost of the West,
that he may give a good burial
to the god‟s father of Amun-Re, king of gods,
Pawiaenadja, true of voice.”
The Book of Dead

56. This is transliterated as
htp-di-nswt ws-ir nb (n)h-h.
It means:
„An offering, which the king gives
to Osiris, lord of eternity‟.
This line is enlarged
and letters identified

57. Numerals in Egyptian Hieroglyphs

58. 8x1 5x10 4x10
2
8x10
3
5x10
4
2x10
5

59. Fractions
1
-
12

60. Fractions
Horus is the falcon-headed
Egyptian god.
The symbol representing his
eye, Eye of Horus,
was a powerful symbol used to
protect from evil.
The 'Rx' symbol used by doctors
has its origins in the Eye of
Horus, and was used
to record prescriptions, land and
grain.

61. A fraction system was used with the Eye of Horus symbol.
The system is based on halves: ½, ¼, etc,
each fraction being associated with a part of the symbol.

62. = 5/8s

63. These six parts are also associated with six senses:
touch, taste, hearing, thought, sight and smell.

64. Finally, let me write my name,
SWAMINATHAN
in Hieroglyphs

65. And, if I were a pharaoh it
would be in a cartouche

66. The Egyptian Hieroglyphs exert a mysterious charm.
The monumental writing is a fusion with art.
The skilful integration with the objects they adorn
is a special feature of this script.
The writing suddenly appears
in the fully completed state 5000 years ago and
remains unchanged for 3000 years.
Is it because hieroglyphs were considered
‘the God’s Words’?