Tuesday, March 13, 2012

Hieroglyphics and the Egyptians | 3,000 BC

In the sixth century BC, what three civilizations invaded Egypt? 
-Persians, Greeks, and Romans


Post an example of the inside wall(s) of an Ancient Egyptian temple.






What was discovered on the inside of the temples?
-Carved and painted images on every wall and surface


Scholars believe that Ancient Egyptians were inspired and influenced by which written language?
-Cuneiform


What is the difference between logographic and alphabetic elements?
-A logograms are visual symbols representing ideas or objects. Alphabetic involved words and characters.


The term Hieroglyphic derived from what two Greek words?
-Hero means sacred and glyphic means engraving or writing


What is a scribe? 

-Someone who knows how to read and write. They were responsible for writing a set of scrolls for pharaohs and other important Egyptians on papyrus.

Who else was trained to read and write? Why?
-Students learned to read and write and military leaders were as well so they could communicate while in battle. Priests learned to read and write instructions on the which were performed to please the gods and goddesses.





Post an example of hieroglyphics on papyrus.



demotic_sample.jpg





What is papyrus and how was it made?
Substrate made from reeds native to Egypt

What is a substrate?
The surface or material on or from which an organism lives, grows, or obtains its nourishment.

What were the Books of the Dead?
Instructions and spells to help them find their way to the afterlife that were usually commissioned by the see themselves before death

How did Ancient Egyptian hieroglyphics become a forgotten language?
The hieroglyphics were used under Persian rule, but by the time the Greeks and Romans ruled Egypt, fewEgyptians were capable of reading or writing them.

Post an example of the Rosetta Stone.

220px-Rosetta_Stone.JPG.jpg


What is the Rosetta Stone? Where was it discovered?
A slab of stone with the same inscriptions written on it in three different languages. It was discovered in Rosetta, in the Middle East.


What three languages are included on the stone?
Egyptian hieroglyphics, Demotic, and Greek


Why couldn't the text on the Stone be deciphered?
A chunk of the stone was missing and none of the three texts were complete.


Who finally deciphered the text? What was his breakthrough?
French scholar, Jean Francois Champollion. His breakthrough came when he was able to match up the hieroglyphic symbols with the Greek version of the name, Egyptian pharaoh Ramses


Why does the interpretation of the Rosetta Stone have such significance?

We now know a great deal about the ancient Egyptians and Egyptian hieroglyphics.

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