Rosetta Stone

De Rosetta Stone be a stele granodiorite dem inscribe plus three versions of a decree dem issue insyd 196 BC during de Ptolemaic dynasty of Egypt, on behalf of King Ptolemy V Epiphanes.

Na dem carve de stone during de Hellenistic period wey dem dey believe na e originally be displayed within a temple, possibly for Sais. Na dem probably move am insyd late antiquity anaa during de Mamluk period, wey na dem eventually use am as building material insyd de construction of Fort Julien near de town of Rashid (Rosetta) insyd de Nile Delta. Na dem find am der insyd July 1799 by French officer Pierre-François Bouchard during de Napoleonic campaign insyd Egypt. Na e be de first Ancient Egyptian bilingual text dem recover insyd modern times, wey na e arouse widespread public interest plus ein potential make e decipher dis previously untranslated hieroglyphic script. Na lithographic copies den plaster casts soon begin dey circulate among European museums den scholars. Wen na de British defeat de French, na dem take de stone to London under de terms of de Capitulation of Alexandria insyd 1801. Since 1802, na e dey on public display for de British Museum almost continuously wey na ebe de most visited object der.

Na study of de decree already be underway wen na dem publish de first complete translation of de Greek text insyd 1803. Ma Jean-François Champollion announce de transliteration of de Egyptian scripts insyd Paris insyd 1822; na e still take longer before na scholars be able make dem read Ancient Egyptian inscriptions den literature confidently. Na major advances insyd de decoding be recognition dat de stone offer three versions of de same text (1799); dat de Demotic text use phonetic characters make dem spell foreign names (1802); dat na de hieroglyphic text do so as well, wey na e get pervasive similarities to de Demotic (1814); den dat na dem sanso use phonetic characters make dem take spell native Egyptian words (1822–1824).

Na dem discover three oda fragmentary copies of de same decree later, den chaw similar Egyptian bilingual anaa trilingual inscriptions now be known, wey dey include three slightly earlier Ptolemaic decrees: de Decree of Alexandria insyd 243 BC, de Decree of Canopus insyd 238 BC, den de Memphis decree of Ptolemy IV, c. 218 BC. Though dem now know de Rosetta Stone no be unique, na ebe de essential key to de modern understanding of ancient Egyptian literature den civilisation. Dem now dey use de term "Rosetta Stone" make e refer to de essential clue to a new field of knowledge.

 Description 

Na dem list de Rosetta Stone as "a stone of black granodiorite, wey dey bear three inscriptions ... dem find for Rosetta" insyd a contemporary catalogue of de artefacts wey de French expedition discover wey dem surrender to British troops insyd 1801.Bierbrier (1999) pp. 111–113 For sam period after ein arrival insyd London, na de inscriptions be coloured insyd white chalk make e make dem more legible, wey na dem cover de remaining surface plus a layer of carnauba wax dem design make e protect am from visitors dema fingers.Parkinson et al. (1999) p. 23 Na dis give a dark colour to de stone wey lead to ein mistaken identification as black basalt.Synopsis (1847) pp. 113–114 Na dem komot dese additions wen na dem clean de stone insyd 1999, wey reveal de original dark grey tint of de rock, de sparkle of ein crystalline structure, den a pink vein wey dey run across de top left corner.Miller et al. (2000) pp. 128–132 Na comparisons plus de Klemm collection of Egyptian rock samples show a close resemblance to rock from a small granodiorite quarry for Gebel Tingar for de west bank of de Nile, west of Elephantine insyd de region of Aswan; de pink vein be typical of granodiorite wey komot dis region.Middleton and Klemm (2003) pp. 207–208

De Rosetta Stone be  high for ein highest point,  wide, den  thick. E dey weigh approximately .The Rosetta Stone E dey bear three inscriptions: de top register insyd Ancient Egyptian hieroglyphs, de second insyd de Egyptian Demotic script, den de third insyd Ancient Greek.Ray (2007) p. 3 Dese three scripts no be three different languages, as be commonly misunderstood. Na dem polish de front surface wey na dem lightly incise de inscriptions for ein top; de sides of de stone be smoothed, buh de back be only roughly worked, presumably secof na e no go be visible wen na dem erect de stele.Middleton and Klemm (2003) pp. 207–208Parkinson et al. (1999) p. 28

 Original stele 
alt="Image of the Rosetta Stone set against a reconstructed image of the original stele it came from, showing 14 missing lines of hieroglyphic text and a group of Egyptian deities and symbols at the top"|thumb|One possible reconstruction of de original stele

De Rosetta Stone be a fragment of a larger stele. Na dem no find additional fragments insyd later searches of de Rosetta site.Parkinson et al. (1999) p. 20 Owing to ein damaged state, none of de three texts be complete. De top register, wey be composed of Egyptian hieroglyphs, suffer de most damage. Dem fi see last 14 lines of de hieroglyphic text per; all of dem be broken on de right side, den 12 of dem on de left. Below am, na de middle register of demotic text survive best; e get 32 lines, of wich de first 14 be slightly damaged on de right side. De bottom register of Greek text dey contain 54 lines, of wich de first 27 survive in full; de rest be increasingly fragmentary secof a diagonal break for de bottom right of de stone.Budge (1913) pp. 2–3

De full length of de hieroglyphic text den de total size of de original stele, of wich de Rosetta Stone be a fragment, e fi be estimated based on comparable steles wey na survive, wey dey include oda copies of de same order. Na dem erect de slightly earlier decree of Canopus, insyd 238 BC during de reign of Ptolemy III, be  and  wide, wey dey contain 36 lines of hieroglyphic text, 73 of demotic text, den 74 of Greek. De texts be of similar length.Budge (1894) p. 106 From such comparisons, e fi be estimated dat an additional 14 anaa 15 lines of hieroglyphic inscription be missing from de top register of de Rosetta Stone, wey dy amount to anoda .Budge (1894) p. 109 For addition to de inscriptions, der go probably be a scene wey dey depict de king be presented to de gods, top plus a winged disc, as on de Canopus Stele. Dese parallels, den a hieroglyphic sign for "stela" on de stone einself (spy Gardiner's sign list),

 O26
dey suggest say na e originally get a rounded top.Ray (2007) p. 3Parkinson et al. (1999) p. 26 De height of de original stele be estimated to e be about .

 Memphis decree den ein context 

Na dem erect de stele after de coronation of King Ptolemy V wey na dem inscribe am plus a decree wey establish de divine cult of de new ruler.Parkinson et al. (1999) p. 25 Na de decree be issued by a congress of priests wey na dem gather for Memphis. De date be given as "4 Xandikos" insyd de Macedonian calendar den "18 Mekhir" insyd de Egyptian calendar, wich dey correspond to 27 March 196 BC. Na dem state de year as de ninth year of Ptolemy V ein reign (dem equate plus 197/196 BC), wich dem confirm by dem name four priests wey officiate insyd dat year: na Aetos son of Aetos be priest of de divine cults of Alexander the Great den de five Ptolemies down to Ptolemy V einself;  de oda three priests dem name in turn insyd de inscription be those wey lead de worship of Berenice Euergetis (wifey of Ptolemy III), Arsinoe Philadelphos (wifey den sisto of Ptolemy II), den Arsinoe Philopator, mommie of Ptolemy V.Clarysse and Van der Veken (1983) pp. 20–21 However, na dem sanso give a second date insyd de Greek den hieroglyphic texts, wey dey correspond to 27 November 197 BC, de official anniversary of Ptolemy ein coronation.Parkinson et al. (1999) p. 29 De demotic text dey conflict plus dis, wey dey list consecutive days insyd March for de decree den de anniversary. E be uncertain why dis discrepancy dey exist, buh ebe clear say na dem issue de decree insyd 196 BC den dat na dem design am make e re-establish de rule of de Ptolemaic kings over Egypt.Shaw & Nicholson (1995) p. 247

Na de decree be issued during a turbulent period insyd Egyptian history. Na Ptolemy V Epiphanes, de son of Ptolemy IV Philopator den ein wifey den sisto Arsinoe, reign from 204 to 181 BC. Na he cam turn ruler for de age of five after de sudden death of both of ein parents, wey na dem murder dem insyd a conspiracy wey involve Ptolemy IV ein mistress Agathoclea, according to contemporary sources. Na de conspirators effectively rule Egypt as Ptolemy V ein guardiansTyldesley (2006) p. 194Clayton (2006) p. 211 til na a revolt break out two years later under general Tlepolemus, wen na dem lynch Agathoclea den ein family by a mob insyd Alexandria. Na dem replace Tlepolemus, in turn, as guardian insyd 201 BC by Aristomenes of Alyzia, wey na be chief minister for de time of de Memphis decree.Bevan (1927) pp. 252–262

alt="A small, roughly square piece of light-grey stone containing hieroglyphic inscriptions from the time of the Old Kingdom pharaoh Pepi II"|thumb|Anoda fragmentary example of a "donation stele", insyd na wich de Old Kingdom pharaoh Pepi II dey grant tax immunity to de priests of de temple of Min

Na stelae of dis kind, wich na dem establish on de initiative of de temples rada dan dat of de king, be unique to Ptolemaic Egypt. Insyd de preceding Pharaonic period na e go be unheard of for anybro buh de divine rulers demaselves make dem make national decisions: by contrast, na dis way of honouring a king be a feature of Greek cities. Rada dan make he make ein eulogy einself, na de king make dem glorify den deify am einself by ein subjects anaa representative groups of ein subjects.Clarysse (1999) p. 51, with references there to Quirke and Andrews (1989) Na de decree dey record wey Ptolemy V give a gift of silver den grain to de temples.Bevan (1927) pp. 264–265 Na e sanso record say na der be particularly high flooding of de Nile insyd de eighth year of ein reign, wey na he make de excess waters dammed for de benefit of de farmers. In return na de priesthood pledge say de na dem go celebrate de king ein birthday den coronation days annually den dat all de priests of Egypt go serve am alongside de oda gods. De decree dey conclude plus de instruction say dem for place a copy insyd every temple, dem inscribe insyd de "language of de gods" (Egyptian hieroglyphs), de "language of documents" (Demotic), den de "language of de Greeks" as dem use by de Ptolemaic government.Ray (2007) p. 136Parkinson et al. (1999) p. 30

Na dem find three oda inscriptions wey be relevant to de same Memphis decree since de discovery of de Rosetta Stone: de Nubayrah Stele, a stele dem find insyd Elephantine den Noub Taha, den an inscription dem find for de Temple of Philae (on de Philae obelisk).Clarysse (1999) p. 42; Nespoulous-Phalippou (2015) pp. 283–285 Unlike de Rosetta Stone, na de hieroglyphic texts of dese inscriptions be relatively intact. Na dem decipher de Rosetta Stone long before na dem find dem, buh na later Egyptologists use dem make dem refine de reconstruction of de hieroglyphs wey na dem use insyd de lost portions of de hieroglyphic text for de Rosetta Stone top.

Make de priests dey happy na dat be why de Ptolemies need well-well if dem wan control Egypt proper. De High Priest for Memphis where dem crown king na de big pass, because dem get power for all de land.Shaw (2000) p. 407 Since dem write dis decree for Memphis (de old capital) instead of Alexanderia (where government dey), e show say de young king wan make sure de priest s support am strong.Walker and Higgs (editors, 2001) p. 19 So even though government dey speak Greek since Alexander conquer Egypt, dis Memphis decree, like de three before am, still write for Egypt language (Hieroglyphics and Demotic) so de priest dem fit read am tell de people. Dis one na to make sure everybody know say de king still follow tradition.Bagnall and Derow (2004) (no. 137 in online version)

No fit get one correct English translation for dis decree, because as we dey learn more about de old languages, our understanding dey change. plus, de three original texts no dey exactly di same small-small differences dey. De old translations wey E.A. Wallis Budge do for 1904 and 1913Budge (1904); Budge (1913) and Edwyn R. Beavan own for 1927Bevan (1927) pp. 263–268 dey easy to find, but dem don expire finish. Na true talk, if you compare dem with de new translation wey R.S. Simpson doSimpson (n. d.); a revised version of Simpson (1996) pp. 258–271 wey follow dedemotic text well-well (you fit even see am online) you go see clear say de old ones don old. Even better, check de modern translations wey Quirke and Andrews publish for 1989.Quirke and Andrews (1989) Dem translate all de three texts, put introduction, and even draw facsmile join. Dat one na de correct one wey scholars dey use now.

Dem say e no fit be say dem put di stele for Rashid (Rosetta) wey dem find am, e fit come from some temple wey dey far inside, maybe na di royal town of Sais.Parkinson (2005) p. 14 Di temple wey e come from fit don close around AD 392 when Roman emperor Theodosius I talk say make dem close all di temples wey no be Christian worship.Parkinson (2005) p. 17 Di original stele don break one time, di biggest part wey remain na di Rosetta Stone wey we sabi now. Di ancient Egyptian temples later use am for quarry to build new houses, and di Rosetta Stone fit don dey reused like dat. Later on, e join for di foundation of one fortress wey Mameluke Sultan Qaitbay build (c. 1416/18–1496) to protect di Bolbitine branch of di Nile for Rashid. E dey there for like three more centuries before dem find am again.Parkinson (2005) p. 20

Three other writings wey dey important for de Memphis decree don show since dem find de Rosetta Stone: de Nubayrah Stele, one stele wey dem find for Elephantine and Noub Taha, plus one writing wey dem find for de Temple of Philae (for the Philae obelisk).Clarysse (1999) p. 42; Nespoulous-Phalippou (2015) pp. 283–285 Unlike de Rosetta Stone, the hieroglyphs dem for these writings dey mostly okay. Dem don decode de Rosetta Stone long before dem find these ones, but later Egyptologists don use dem to better de way wey dem fit understand the hieroglyphs wey dey lost for the Rosetta Stone text.

 Rediscovery 
link=https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Rosetta_news.jpg|alt=A newspaper column of approximately three column inches. See image description page for a full transcript.|thumb|Report of the arrival of the Rosetta Stone in England in The Gentleman's Magazine, 1802French forces wey Napoleon Bonaparte lead invade Egypt for 1798, dem carry along 151 technical experts (savants), dem dey call am Commission des Sciences et des Arts. For 15 July 1799, French soldiers under Colonel d'Hautpoul dey reinforce Fort Julien wey dey couple miles north-east of Rosetta (wey dem dey call Rashid now). Lieutenant Pierre-François Bouchard see one slab wey get inscriptions for one side, wey di soldiers dig out as dem dey break wall for di fort. Him and d'Hautpoul sabi say e fit important and dem tell General Jacques-François Menou wey just dey Rosetta then. Dem announce di find to Napoleon new scientific group wey dey for Cairo, di Institut d'Égypte, for report wey Commission member Michel Ange Lancret write. E talk say di thing get three inscriptions, di first one get hieroglyphs and di third one dey Greek, and e suggest say all di three na versions of di same text. Lancret report, wey dem write on 19 July 1799, dem read am for meeting of di Institute soon after 25 July. Bouchard, in di meantime, carry di stone go Cairo make scholars fit examine am.Parkinson et al. (1999) pp. 17–20

Dem find wey dem report for September for Courrier de l'Égypte, di official newspaper wey be for di French trip. Di anonymous reporter talk say e hope say di stone go fit be di key to decode hieroglyphs one day. For 1800, three technical experts from di commission find way to copy di text from di stone. One of dem be Jean-Joseph Marcel, printer and sharp linguist, wey sabi say di middle text dey in Egyptian demotic script, wey dem no dey use much for stone inscriptions plus scholars no dey see am for dat time, no be Syriac wey dem think say e be before. Na artist and inventor wey be Nicolas-Jacques Conté, e find way to use di stone itself as printing block to copy di inscription.Adkins (2000) p. 38 Antoine Galland come use small different method. Di prints wey come out, General Charles Dugua carry am go Paris. Scholars for Europe fit now see di inscriptions plus try read dem.Gillispie (1987) pp. 1–38

After Napoleon don waka, French soldiers hold British and Ottoman attacks for 18 months. For March 1801, British people land for Aboukir Bay. Menou dey in charge of French soldiers now. Him and him guys, plus some commissioners, dey waka north go meet dem enemies wey dey for Mediterranean side, carry stone and plenty other old things. Him lose for battle, and wetin remain for him army run go Alexandria wey dem surround and besiege, with the stone don enter the city. Menou surrender on 30 August.Parkinson et al. (1999) p. 21

 From French to British possession 
link=https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:RosettaStone-LeftAndRightSides-BritishMuseum-August21-08.jpg|alt="Combined photo depicting the left and right sides of the Rosetta Stone, which have much-faded inscriptions in English relating to its capture by British forces from the French, and its donation by George III to the British Museum"|thumb|Left and right sides of the Rosetta Stone, with inscriptions: (Left) "Captured in Egypt by the British Army in 1801" (Right) "Presented by King George III".
After dem surrender, gbege come over wetin go happen to di French archaeological and scientific findings for Egypt, wey include di artefacts, biological samples, notes, plans, and drawings wey di commission people gather. Menou no gree give am up, e talk say dem be di institute property. British General John Hely-Hutchinson no go end di siege until Menou gree. Scholars Edward Daniel Clarke and William Richard Hamilton, wey just land from England, agree make dem check the things wey dey for Alexandria, and dem talk say dem don find plenty artefacts wey the French no show. For letter wey Clarke write go home, e talk say 'we find plenty more for dem side than wetin dem talk or people imagine'.Burleigh (2007) p. 212

Hutchinson talk say all materials na property of British Crown, but French scholar Étienne Geoffroy Saint-Hilaire yarn give Clarke and Hamilton say dem go rather burn all dia discoveries than hand am over, refer to the way Library of Alexandria take spoil. Clarke and Hamilton dey beg Hutchinson make e consider de French scholars' side, plus at last e gree say items like natural history specimens go fit be dem private property.Burleigh (2007) p. 214 Menou sharp-sharp grab de stone, as him private property.Budge (1913) p. 2 Hutchinson too sabi de stone get value well well, so e no fit accept Menou claim. Later, dem come agree, plus dem put de stone transfer matter for de Capitulation of Alexandria wey dem sign with British, French, plus Ottoman forces.

E no clear how dem fit carry di stone go British hands, as wetin pipo talk no dey agree. Colonel Tomkyns Hilgrove Turner, wey suppose escort am go England, talk later say he don grab am from Menou den carry am for gun-carriage. For beta detail, Edward Daniel Clarke talk say one French officer wey dey for Institute take am, him student John Cripps, enter Hamilton secretly enter backstreets for Menou residence, show dem di stone wey dem hide under protective carpets among Menou bags. Clarke talk say di informant dey fear say if French soldiers see di stone, dem go steal am. Hutchinson hear am sharp sharp plus dem carry di stone go—maybe na Turner plus him gun-carriage wey carry am.Parkinson et al. (1999) pp. 21–22

Turner carry di stone come England for di French frigate wey dem dash am, HMS Égyptienne, land for Portsmouth for February 1802.Andrews (1985) p. 12 Him get order to show am plus di other antiquities  to King George III. Di King, wey War Secretary Lord Hobart represent, talk make dem put am for di British Museum. According to wetin Turner talk, him plus Hobart gree say di stone go first reach di scholars for di Society of Antiquaries of London, wey Turner dey belong, before dem go finally keep am for di museum. Dem first see den talk about am for one meeting wey happen on 11 March 1802.
link=https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Rosetta_Stone_International_Congress_of_Orientalists_ILN_1874.jpg|alt="Lithograph image depicting a group of scholars (mostly male, with the occasional female also in attendance), dressed in Victorian garb, inspecting the Rosetta Stone in a large room with other antiquities visible in the background"|thumb|Experts inspecting the Rosetta Stone during the Second International Congress of Orientalists, 1874
For 1802, di Society don create four plaster casts of di inscriptions, wey dem give to di universities of Oxford, Cambridge den Edinburgh plus Trinity College Dublin. After some time, dem make prints of di inscriptions den share am with European scholars. Before 1802 fit finish, di stone don move go British Museum, wey e dey today. New inscriptions wey dem paint white for di left den right side of di slab talk say e be 'Captured insdey Egypt by di British Army for 1801' den 'Presented by King George III'.

Di stone don dey show for British Museum since June 1802. For di middle of 19th century, dem give am inventory number wey be "EA 24", "EA" mean say "Egyptian Antiquities". E be part of collection of ancient Egyptian things wey dem capture from di French guys, wey include sarcophagus of Nectanebo II (EA 10), statue of high priest of Amun (EA 81), plus big granite fist (EA 9).Parkinson (2005) pp. 30–31 Dem soon find out say di things dey too heavy for di floor of Montagu House (di original place of di British Museum), so dem carry am go one new place wey dem add to di mansion. Rosetta Stone dey move go sculpture gallery for 1834, right after dem bring down Montagu House den build di place wey we sabi as British Museum now.Parkinson (2005) p. 31 According to di museum records, Rosetta Stone na di most visited single object for di place,Parkinson (2005) p. 7 plus di simple picture of am be di best selling postcard wey dem sell for decades,Parkinson (2005) p. 47 Plus plenty merchandise wey get di writing from di Rosetta Stone or shape wey dey like am dey sell for di museum shops too.
link=https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Tourist_watching_Rosetta_Stone_at_British_Museum.JPG|thumb|A crowd of visitors examining the Rosetta Stone at the British Museum in 2014, now behind glass
Rosetta Stone dey show small angle from the ground, plus e dey rest for metal cradle wey dem make for am, wey involve cutting small parts from e sides to make sure say de cradle fit well well. Originally, e no get any cover, but by 1847, dem see say e go better if dem put am for protective frame, even though dem get people wey dey watch make visitors no touch am.Parkinson (2005) p. 32 Since 2004, dem don put di conserved stone for one special case for di middle of di Egyptian Sculpture Gallery. Now, dem get one replica of di Rosetta Stone for di King's Library of di British Museum, without a case, den you fit touch am freely, like how e go don show for di early 19th-century visitors.Parkinson (2005) p. 50

Di museum dey worry say dem go bomb London plenty for di end of di First World War for 1917, so dem carry di Rosetta Stone go hide, plus other valuable things. Di stone rest for two years 15 m (50 ft) below ground for one Postal Tube Railway station for Mount Pleasant near Holborn."Everything you ever wanted to know about the Rosetta Stone" (British Museum, 14 July 2017) Apart from di war time, di Rosetta Stone don comot from British Museum only once: for one month for October 1972, make dem show am with Champollion's Lettre for Louvre for Paris; na di 150th anniversary of di letter publication. Even when dem dey do conservation for di Rosetta Stone for 1999, dem still dey do am for di gallery so people go fit see am.Parkinson (2005) pp. 50–51

 Reading de Rosetta Stone 
Before dem find Rosetta Stone den its eventual decipherment, De ancient Egyptian language and script don dey hard to understand since Roman Empire fall. Hieroglyphs don become specialized, even for later Pharaoh time; by 4th century AD, small-small Egyptians fit read am. Big use of hieroglyphs stop when temple priests waka go, and Egypt waka enter Christianity; last inscription wey dem sabi na 24 August 394, dem find am for Philae and dem dey call am Graffito of Esmet-Akhom.Ray (2007) p. 11 De Last demotic text wey also come from Philae, na 452 dem write am.Iversen (1993) p. 30

Hieroglyphs still dey show dem picture style, and classic authors really talk about am, e be strong contrast to Greek and Roman alphabets. For 5th century, priest Horapollo write Hieroglyphica, wey explain almost 200 glyphs. People think say im work dey authoritative, but e mislead plenty times, and dis plus other works make understanding Egyptian writing dey hard.Parkinson et al. (1999) pp. 15–16 Later, Arab historians try decipher am for medieval Egypt during 9th and 10th centuries. Dhul-Nun al-Misri and Ibn Wahshiyya be the first historians wey study hieroglyphs, compare am with Coptic language wey Coptic priests dey use for demma time.El Daly (2005) pp. 65–75Ray (2007) pp. 15–18 Dem dey study hieroglyphs but e no dey bring any wahala as European scholars dey try decode am. Pierius Valerianus try am for 16th centuryIversen (1993) pp. 70–72 plus Athanasius Kircher try am for 17th too.Ray (2007) pp. 20–24 Then insyde 1799, dem find Rosetta Stone wey bring de important gist wey some scholars dey reveal small small. Finally, Jean-François Champollion fit solve de puzzle wey Kircher call de riddle of de Sphinx.

 Greek text 
link=https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Porson_13_Jan_1803.jpg|alt="Illustration depicting the rounded-off lower-right edge of the Rosetta Stone, showing Richard Porson's suggested reconstruction of the missing Greek text"|thumb|Richard Porson's suggested reconstruction of the missing Greek text (1803)
Di Greek text wey dey insyde Rosetta Stone na di starting point. Dem sabi Ancient Greek well well but dem no too sabi how dem dey use am for Hellenistic period as government language for Ptolemaic Egypt; big discoveries of Greek papyri still dey far. So, di first translations of di Greek text from di stone show say di translators dey fight with di history plus all di administration wahala. Stephen Weston tok di English translation of di Greek text for Society of Antiquaries meeting for April 1802.Budge (1913) p. 1Andrews (1985) p. 13

As e dey go, two litho copies wey dem make for Egypt don reach Institut de France for Paris for 1801. There, librarian and antiquarian Gabriel de La Porte du Theil begin work on translation for the Greek, but Napoleon tell am make e go another place sharp-sharp. So, e leave the work wey no finish for hin colleague, Hubert-Pascal Ameilhon. Ameilhon come produce the first translations for the Greek text for 1803, for both Latin plus French to make sure e go spread well well. For Cambridge, Richard Porson dey work on the corner wey dey miss for de Greek text. E come show skill for reconstruction, wey Society of Antiquaries dey spread along with dem prints of de inscription. Same time, Christian Gottlob Heyne for Göttingen dey do new Latin translation of Greek text wey better pass Ameilhon own, wey dem first publish for 1803. Dem reprint am again for Society of Antiquaries special journal Archaeologia for 1811, with Weston's never-before-seen English translation, Colonel Turner's story, plus other documents. Budge (1904) pp. 27–28Parkinson et al. (1999) p. 22

 Demotic text 
When dem discover di stone, Swedish diplomat and scholar Johan David Åkerblad dey work on some rare script wey some people just find for Egypt, wey dem go call Demotic. E call am 'cursive Coptic' because e believe say na for record some kind Coptic language (di direct pikin of Ancient Egyptian), but e no get plenty similarities with di later Coptic script. French Orientalist Antoine-Isaac Silvestre de Sacy dey discuss di work with Åkerblad when, for 1801, e get one of di early lithographic prints of di Rosetta Stone from Jean-Antoine Chaptal, di French minister of di interior. E come sabi say di middle text dey for dat same script. Em den Åkerblad don start work, both dey focus on the middle text and dem believe say the script be alphabetical. Dem try find where Greek names suppose show for this wahala text, by comparing am with the Greek. For 1802, Silvestre de Sacy tell Chaptal say e don successfully find five names ('Alexandros', 'Alexandreia', 'Ptolemaios', 'Arsinoe', plus Ptolemy title 'Epiphanes'), while Åkerblad release one alphabet wey get 29 letters (more than half correct) wey e find from Greek names insyde de Demotic text. But dem no fit find de remaining characters for de Demotic text, wey, as we sabi now, get ideographic plus other symbols plus de phonetic ones.Robinson (2009) pp. 59–61

 Hieroglyphic text 
link=https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Champollion_table.jpg|alt=A page containing three columns of characters, the first column depicting characters in Greek and the second and third columns showing their equivalents in demotic and in hieroglyphs respectively|thumb|Champollion's table of hieroglyphic phonetic characters with their demotic plus Coptic equivalents (1822)
Silvestre de Sacy later tire from di stone work, but e still get beta idea wey go help. For 1811, after e dey talk with one Chinese student about dem Chinese writing, Silvestre come remember wetin Georg Zoëga talk for 1797, say foreign names for Egyptian hieroglyphs fit dey write for phonetic way; e also recall say as far back as 1761, Jean-Jacques Barthélemy don talk say di characters wey dey inside cartouches for hieroglyphs inscriptions na proper names. So, when Thomas Young, wey be foreign secretary for Royal Society of London, write to am about di stone for 1814, Silvestre de Sacy suggest say make Young try find di cartouches wey suppose get Greek names plus see if he fit recognize di phonetic characters wey dey insyde dem.Robinson (2009) p. 61

Young try am, plus e bring two things wey go help dem for the final decoding. For di hieroglyphic text, e find phonetic characters like "p t o l m e s" (now wey dem dey call am "p t w l m y s") wey dem use write Greek name "Ptolemaios". E still notice sey di characters dey look like di ones for demotic script, e fit see like 80 similarities between di hieroglyphic plus demotic texts for di stone, na big discovery sekof dem don dey think sey di two scripts be totally different. This one make am sabi sey demotic script no be fully phonetic, e get some ideographic characters wey come from hieroglyphs. Young's new findings na wetin make headlines inside di long article "Egypt" wey e contribute to di Encyclopædia Britannica for 1819. But after dat, e no fit move forward again, however.Robinson (2009) pp. 61–64

For 1814, Young first start dey chat about di stone with Jean-François Champollion, wey be teacher for Grenoble wey don publish some serious work on ancient Egypt. Champollion see copies of di small hieroglyphic plus Greek writings of di Philae obelisk for 1822, wey William John Bankes don jolt di names 'Ptolemaios' plus 'Kleopatra' for both languages.Parkinson et al. (1999) p. 32 From dat, Champollion figure out di phonetic characters k l e o p a t r a (we go fit talk am as q l i҆ w p 3 d r 3.t).Budge (1913) pp. 3–6 On de basis of this plus di foreign names for di Rosetta Stone, e quick build one alphabet of phonetic hieroglyphic characters, finish im work on 14 September plus announce am publicly on 27 September for one lecture wey him give for di Académie royale des Inscriptions et Belles-Lettres. On di same day, him write di popular 'Lettre à M. Dacier' to Bon-Joseph Dacier, di secretary of di Académie, wey carry di details of him discovery. For di postscript, Champollion notice say some phonetic characters dey show for Greek den Egyptian names, plus e don confirmed am for 1823, when e see di names of pharaohs Ramesses and Thutmose wey dem write for cartouches for Abu Simbel. Dem old hieroglyphs wey dem copy from Bankes go give Champollion by Jean-Nicolas Huyot. From this point, di story of di Rosetta Stone plus di wahala wey dem use to decipher Egyptian hieroglyphs go different, as Champollion don gather plenty other texts to create Ancient Egyptian grammar plus hieroglyphic dictionary wey dem publish after em die for 1832.Dewachter (1990) p. 45

 Later work 
link=https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Copy_of_Rosetta_Stone.jpg|alt="Replica of the Rosetta Stone in the King's Library of the British Museum as it would have appeared to 19th century visitors, open to the air, held in a cradle that is at a slight angle from the horizontal and available to touch"|thumb|Dem get replica of Rosetta Stone, dey show am like di original be, you fit touch am, for di place wey dem call di King's Library King's Library of di British Museum, now na di Enlightenment Gallery. 
Make dem work on di stone now, wey dem dey focus on how to understand di texts and wetin dem mean by comparing di three versions with one another. For 1824, classical scholar Antoine-Jean Letronne promise say e go prepare new translation for di Greek text for Champollion. Champollion too promise to analyze all di places wey di three texts dey differ. But after Champollion die suddenly for 1832, dem no fit find di draft of dis analysis, and Letronne work come jam. François Salvolini, wey be Champollion former student and assistant, die for 1838, and dem find di analysis plus other missing drafts insyde de papers. Dis discovery incidentally demonstrate say Salvolini own paper wey he publish for 1837 no be original, e be plagiarism. Letronne fit finally finish him commentary for di Greek text and him new French translation wey come out for 1841. For di early 1850s, German Egyptologists Heinrich Brugsch and Max Uhlemann come do revised Latin translations based on di demotic and hieroglyphic texts. Di first English translation come out for 1858, na work of three guys wey dey for Philomathean Society for University of Pennsylvania.

E be question whether one of di three texts na di standard version wey di other two carry come from. Letronne try show for 1841 say di Greek version wey di Egyptian government under di Macedonian Ptolemies make, na di original. Recent authors like John Ray talk say 'di hieroglyphs na di most important scripts wey dey for di stone: dem dey there make di gods fit read am, plus de more learned of their priesthood". Philippe Derchain and Heinz Josef Thissen dey argue say di three versions come together at di same time, while Stephen Quirke dey see di decree as 'one complex mix of three important textual traditions'.Quirke and Andrews (1989) p. 10 Richard Parkinson dey talk say di hieroglyphic way no dey follow di old school vibes well well, e dey sometimes use language wey dey closer to di one wey di priests go dey use for everyday life matter.Parkinson (2005) p. 13 Di way di three versions no fit match word for word, na dat one dey make di decipherment more difficult pass wetin dem originally expect, especially for di original scholars wey dey hope say dem go fit get correct bilingual key to Egyptian hieroglyphs.Parkinson et al. (1999) pp. 30–31

 Rivalries 
link=https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Place_des_ecritures_Figeac.jpg|alt=Photo depicting a large copy of the Rosetta Stone filling an interior courtyard of a building in Figeac, France|thumb|A giant copy of the Rosetta Stone by Joseph Kosuth in Figeac, France, de birthplace of Jean-François Champollion
Even before de Salvolini affair, plenty argument dey over who get right and who copy who for how people dey decode stories. Dem sabi sey Thomas Young work dey recognised for Champollion's 1822 Lettre à M. Dacier, but British critics no gree gree full: like James Browne wey be sub-editor for Encyclopædia Britannica (wey don publish Young's 1819 article), he drop some review articles for Edinburgh Review for 1823, wey dey hail Young work well well plus talk sey de "no-joke" Champollion copy am.Parkinson et al. (1999) pp. 35–38Robinson (2009) pp. 65–68 Dem translate those articles to French by Julius Klaproth and publish am for book form insyde 1827. Young own publication for 1823 talk am well, show how e contribute. De way Young die (1829) plus Champollion (1832) no stop de disputes wey dey. For im work on the stone for 1904, E. A. Wallis Budge put eye for Young contribution, make comparison with Champollion.Budge (1904) vol. 1 pp. 59–134 For early 1970s, French visitors dey vex say Champollion picture small pass Young wey dey for nearby information panel; English visitors dey complain say de opposite  be true. De portraits were in fact De same size.

 Requests for repatriation to Egypt 
For July 2003, Zahi Hawass, wey be Secretary-General for Egypt’s Supreme Council of Antiquities, don dey shout say make dem return Rosetta Stone back to Egypt. Him talk am well well for Egyptian and international media, say the stone na di "icon of our Egyptian identity".Edwardes and Milner (2003) Two years later for Paris, him bring di proposal again, put di stone for one list wey get plenty important things wey belong to Egypt culture, wey include: Nefertiti bust for Egyptian Museum for Berlin; statue of Hemiunu wey design di Great Pyramid in Roemer-und-Pelizaeus-Museum for Hildesheim, Germany; di Dendera Temple Zodiac for Louvre for Paris; plus de bust of Ankhhaf insyde de Museum of Fine Arts insyde Boston. For August 2022, Zahi Hawass still dey talk di same demands again.

For 2005, British Museum give Egypt full-size fibreglass replica of de stele wey match color well well. Dem show am for newly renovated Rashid National Museum, wey be Ottoman house for Rashid (Rosetta), di nearest city closer to de site wey dem find di stone."Rose of the Nile" (2005) For November 2005, Hawass talk say make dem loan dem di Rosetta Stone for three months, still dey talk say dem wan permanent return insyde de future.Huttinger (2005) Then for December 2009, e suggest say if British Museum fit loan di stone give Egypt for three months, make dem no hold am back again, especially for di Grand Egyptian Museum wey go open for Giza insyde 2013."Antiquities wish list" (2005)

As John Ray observe am: "E fit happen say one day, the stone go dey for British Museum longer pass how e dey for Rosetta. "Ray (2007) p. 4

National museums no dey wan gree make dem return important cultural things like Rosetta Stone. When Greece dey ask say make dem give back Elgin Marbles wey dem take from Parthenon plus other museums wey dey everywhere, for 2002, over 30 top museums like British Museum, Louvre, Pergamon Museum for Berlin, plus deMetropolitan Museum for New York City join hand talk say:

 Idiomatic use 
Plenty ancient documents wey get two or even three languages inside dem dey call am 'Rosetta stones', because dem dey help people fit understand old writings. Like that bilingual Greek-Brahmi coins wey king Agathocles get, dem fit call am 'small Rosetta stones', wey help Christian Lassen start dey decode Brahmi script, make e fit unlock ancient Indian epigraphy. De Behistun Inscription for Iran too dey compared to Rosetta stone, because e link three ancient languages wey dey Middle-East: Old Persian, Elamite, plus Akkadian. De Sardis bilingual too dem dey call am Rosetta stone for Lydian language.Fred Woudhuizen, The Lydian-Aramaic Bilingual Inscription from Sardis Reconsidered, p. 119

De term Rosetta stone dey also used for pidgin way to talk about di first important key wey go help decrypt code wey no dey clear, especially if small sample fit show wetin be di main gist.Oxford English dictionary (1989) s.v. "Rosetta stone" Archived June 20, 2011, at archive.today As Oxford English Dictionary talk, di first time dem use di term in dis way na for 1902 edition of di Encyclopædia Britannica, wey relate to chemical analysis of glucose. Another way dem use di phrase dey for H. G. Wells's 1933 novel The Shape of Things to Come, where di main character find manuscript wey dem write for shorthand, plus e go help am fit understand more scattered materials wey dey both longhand plus typewriter style.

Since den, people dey use di term for plenty other things. For example, Nobel winner Theodor W. Hänsch talk for one 1979 Scientific American article say, "di spectrum of hydrogen atoms be di Rosetta Stone of modern physics: once dem decode dis pattern of lines, plenty other things fit make sense." Fully understanding di key set of genes wey dey control di human leucocyte antigen dem describe am as "di Rosetta Stone of immunology.""International Team" Di flowering plant Arabidopsis thaliana people dey call am "di Rosetta Stone of flowering time."Simpson and Dean (2002) One gamma-ray burst (GRB) wey dem find with supernova don dey call am Rosetta Stone for understanding di origin of GRBs.Cooper (2010) De technique of Doppler echocardiography dem dey call am Rosetta Stone for clinicians wey de try to understand de complex process by which de left ventricle of de human heart can be filled during various forms of diastolic dysfunction.Nishimura and Tajik (1998) Di European Space Agency get Rosetta spacecraft wey dem launch to study comet 67P/Churyumov–Gerasimenko, dem hope say if dem fit know wetin dey inside am, e go help dem understand de origin of de Solar System.

Di name dem use am for plenty translation software plus services. "Rosetta Stone" na brand wey dey publish language-learning software by Rosetta Stone Inc., dem dey for Arlington County, US. Plus, "Rosetta", wey Canonical (di Ubuntu Linux company) develop as part of di Launchpad project, na online language translation tool wey go help with software localisation. One program wey dem dey call "lightweight dynamic translator" wey fit make applications for PowerPC processors run for x86 processor Apple Inc. systems, dem name am "Rosetta". Di Rosetta@home project na distributed computing project wey dey predict protein structures from amino acid sequences (like translating sequence into structure). Rosetta Code na wiki-based chrestomathy website wey get algorithm implementations for plenty programming languages. Di Rosetta Project dey bring language specialists plus native speakers together to create meaningful survey plus near-permanent archive of 1,500 languages, for physical den digital form, so e go still dey useful from AD 2000 go reach 12,000.

 Check am too 

 Egypt–United Kingdom relations
 Garshunography use of the script of one language to write utterances of another language which already has a script associated with it.
 List of individual rocks
 Multilingual inscription
 Transliteration of Ancient Egyptian
 Rosetta (spacecraft)

 References  

Timeline of early publications about de Rosetta Stone
 1799: Courrier de l'Égypte no. 37 (29 Fructidor year 7, i.e. 1799) p. 3 Retrieved July 15, 2018
 1802: "Domestic Occurrences: March 31st, 1802" in The Gentleman's Magazine vol. 72 part 1 p. 270 Retrieved July 14, 2010
 1802: Silvestre de Sacy, Lettre au Citoyen Chaptal, Ministre de l'intérieur, Membre de l'Institut national des sciences et arts, etc: au sujet de l'inscription Égyptienne du monument trouvé à Rosette. Paris, 1802 Retrieved July 14, 2010
 1802: Johan David Åkerblad, Lettre sur l'inscription Égyptienne de Rosette: adressée au citoyen Silvestre de Sacy, Professeur de langue arabe à l'École spéciale des langues orientales vivantes, etc.; Réponse du citoyen Silvestre de Sacy. Paris: L'imprimerie de la République, 1802
 1803: "Has tabulas inscriptionem ... ad formam et modulum exemplaris inter spolia ex bello Aegyptiaco nuper reportati et in Museo Britannico asservati suo sumptu incidendas curavit Soc. Antiquar. Londin. A.D. MDCCCIII" in Vetusta Monumenta vol. 4 plates 5–7
 1803: Hubert-Pascal Ameilhon, Éclaircissemens sur l'inscription grecque du monument trouvé à Rosette, contenant un décret des prêtres de l'Égypte en l'honneur de Ptolémée Épiphane, le cinquième des rois Ptolémées. Paris: Institut National, 1803 Retrieved July 14, 2010
 1803: Chr. G. Heyne, "Commentatio in inscriptionem Graecam monumenti trinis insigniti titulis ex Aegypto Londinum apportati" in Commentationes Societatis Regiae Gottingensis vol. 15 (1800–1803) p. 260 ff.
 1811: Matthew Raper, S. Weston et al., "Rosetta stone, brought to England in 1802: Account of, by Matt. Raper; with three versions: Greek, English translation by S. Weston, Latin translation by Prof. Heyne; with notes by Porson, Taylor, Combe, Weston and Heyne" in Archaeologia vol. 16 (1810–1812) pp. 208–263
 1817: Thomas Young, "Remarks on the Ancient Egyptian Manuscripts with Translation of the Rosetta Inscription" in Archaeologia vol. 18 (1817) Retrieved July 14, 2010 (see pp. 1–15)
 1819: Thomas Young, "Egypt" in Encyclopædia Britannica, supplement vol. 4 part 1 (Edinburgh: Chambers, 1819) Retrieved July 14, 2010 (see pp. 86–195)
 1822: J.-F. Champollion, Lettre à M. Dacier relative à l'alphabet des hiéroglyphes phonétiques (Paris, 1822) At Gallica: Retrieved July 14, 2010 Lettre à M. Dacier relative à l'alphabet des hiéroglyphes phonétiques at French Wikisource
 1823: Thomas Young, An account of some recent discoveries in hieroglyphical literature and Egyptian antiquities: including the author's original alphabet, as extended by Mr. Champollion, with a translation of five unpublished Greek and Egyptian manuscripts (London: John Murray, 1823) Retrieved July 14, 2010
 1824: J.-F. Champollion, Précis du système hiéroglyphique des anciens Égyptiens. Paris, 1824 Online version at archive.org 2nd ed. (1828) At Gallica: Retrieved July 14, 2010
 1827: James Browne, Aperçu sur les hiéroglyphes d'Égypte et les progrès faits jusqu'à présent dans leur déchiffrement (Paris, 1827; based on a series of articles in Edinburgh Review beginning with no. 55 (February 1823) pp. 188–197) Retrieved July 14, 2010
 1837: François Salvolini, "Interprétation des hiéroglyphes: analyse de l'inscription de Rosette" in Revue des deux mondes vol. 10 (1937) Interprétation des Hiéroglyphes - Analyse de l'Inscription de Rosette par M. Salvolini At French Wikisource
 1841: Antoine-Jean Letronne, Inscription grecque de Rosette. Texte et traduction littérale, accompagnée d'un commentaire critique, historique et archéologique. Paris, 1840 (issued in Carolus Müllerus, ed., Fragmenta historicorum Graecorum vol. 1 (Paris: Didot, 1841)) Retrieved July 14, 2010 (see end of volume)
 1851: H. Brugsch, Inscriptio Rosettana hieroglyphica, vel, Interpretatio decreti Rosettani sacra lingua litterisque sacris veterum Aegyptiorum redactae partis ... accedunt glossarium Aegyptiaco-Coptico-Latinum atque IX tabulae lithographicae textum hieroglyphicum atque signa phonetica scripturae hieroglyphicae exhibentes. Berlin: Dümmler, 1851 Retrieved July 14, 2010
 1853: Max Uhlemann, Inscriptionis Rosettanae hieroglyphicae decretum sacerdotale. Leipzig: Libraria Dykiana, 1853 Retrieved July 14, 2010
 1858: Report of the committee appointed by the Philomathean Society of the University of Pennsylvania to translate the inscription on the Rosetta stone. Philadelphia, 1858
 Notes 

Bibliography

 External links 





Category:Stones
Category:196 BC
Category:2nd-century BC steles
Category:1799 archaeological discoveries
Category:Ancient Egyptian stelas
Category:Egyptology
Category:Multilingual texts
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Category:French invasion of Egypt den Syria
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Category:Ptolemaic Greek inscriptions
Category:Metaphors wey dey refer to objects
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