Why was the Rosetta Stone so important? - Franziska Naether

Dig into how scholars decoded the writing on the Rosetta Stone, and how this helped them understand ancient hieroglyphs.

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For centuries, scholars puzzled over the hieroglyphs they found carved onto ancient Egyptian ruins, tablets, and papyri. But in 1799, a unique discovery would finally help unlock their meaning. It was a stone inscribed with three different texts: Egyptian Hieroglyphs, Demotic Egyptian, and Ancient Greek. Franziska Naether shares how scholars decoded the ancient message of the Rosetta Stone.

Lesson by Franziska Naether, directed by Tim Rauch.

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[ThePikachufan]

This is still one of the coolest historical discoveries. The fact that ancient Egyptians kept just detailed record keeping combined with the fact that they wrote a text in multiple languages helped is learn so much about the history of Egyptian civilizations to the point that we have basically it's entire lineage mapped from start to end.

[kailengray]

How decoders decoding lost language still never cease to amaze me

[BertWithoutErnie]

It will tell us where the last island in the grand line is

[AshVXmc]

The rosetta stone is like that one key item from a video game that unlocks knowledge of an ancient script lost to time

[kcrowther]

The Rosetta Stone was being used to hold up a wall before the French found it. It wasn't "pillaged" it was saved and humanity is better for it.

[TheAdammantium]

I appreciate the stone carving sound effects during the animations :)

[asdfoifhvjbkaos]

0:12 today i learned the plural of papyrus is papyri

[tardlyfe]

You didn't mention that ancient greek was never forgotten

[kaze]

It is truly an incredible feeling to walk into the British Museum, and this the FIRST thing you see. Incredible

[gnoscyde]

When I was a kid we used to pay 25cents for every day we neglect to return the borrowed book from our library. The Rosetta Stone reminds me of a dictionary borrowed from a library.

[refigee]

I really want to believe that if the British had the sense of mind to consult the then locals, they could have had a much better chance of deciphering the stone. Entire cultures and customs dont just vanish into thin air, oral history keeps them alive, often in small nuclear families or closely knit communities.

[andrewreynolds]

Now i know where the name of my language app's from.

[macmedia]

Great as always i really hope you continue History vs

[darlinsebastian.]

It was amazing when she said "The troops took the stone to the Britih Museum", what a nice surprise.

[.]

🎉 The Rosetta Stone was discovered by the French army in Rosetta (modern-day Rashid), Egypt, in July 1799. 2024 marks the 225th anniversary of its unearthing.

[DAngelChavezM]

Rosetta Stone is the pioneer of translation in Human History. Cleverly!

[arctistarfox]

TIL why the language program I used to (unsuccessfully) learn Spanish in grade school was named after the Rosetta Stone

[justinehercthehuman]

I love that even back then, some instructions are "printed" with translations below them. And it even had multiple copies. It's like reading the label of my medicine haha.

[MrsJudithWright]

Fascinating. You cover so much in this.

[itacom]

There is a missing piece in this story: Champollion was probably the first European to guess that the liturgical language of Coptic is a descendent of Ancient Egyptian, and he took lessons of Coptic from a Coptic priest in Paris, Father John (Abuna Yuhanna).