Decoding the Rosetta Stone
Carved over 2,000 years ago, the Rosetta Stone is one of our most tangible links to ancient Egypt.
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News •
4-billion-year-old 'Rosetta Stone' found in Sahara Desert could unlock the secret history of water on Mars
• Nov. 6, 2026, 6:00 AM ET (Space)
Transcript
[MUSIC PLAYING] SPEAKER: The Rosetta Stone is one of the most famous ancient artifacts in the world. Carved over 2,000 years ago and rediscovered in 1799, the stone is one of the modern world's most tangible links to ancient Egypt. The writing on the stone appears in both Greek and Egyptian in three different scripts. This parallel text helped modern scholars to unlock the secrets of Egyptian hieroglyphics.
The earliest Egyptian hieroglyphics were developed over 5,000 years ago. And they became the sacred script used by priests and scribes. Their use flourished in the time of the pharaohs and survived Egypt's rule by the Persians, the Greeks, and the Romans until the Christianization of Rome led to the closing of Egypt's remaining pagan temples in the sixth century CE.
The ability to read hieroglyphics was lost for centuries until members of an expedition to Egypt, ordered by Napoleon, discovered the granite block covered in writing in the town of Rashid, called Rosetta in the West. The Rosetta Stone proved the key to a mystery some 1,400 years old. But what other secrets does it contain?
The stone was carved for Ptolemy V Epiphanes in 196 BCE. Ptolemy V was part of the Greek speaking Ptolemaic dynasty that was begun after Alexander the Great wrested control of Egypt from Persia in 332 BCE. The first Ptolemy, Ptolemy I Soter, declared himself king in 305 BCE and began a dynasty of many men named Ptolemy and women named Cleopatra who are often married to each other despite the fact that they were blood relatives.
Somehow that dynasty lasted until the last and most famous Cleopatra. Cleopatra VII and her Roman lover and general named Mark Antony lost control of the empire to Mark Antony's rivals in Rome and committed suicide in 30 BCE. You may recognize them from Shakespeare's famous play.
But judging by the contents of the Rosetta Stone, there's a reason Shakespeare never wrote a play about Ptolemy the V. If you were hoping for the lost wisdom of the ancient world, a scrap of archaic poetry, or dramatic revelations about historical mysteries, I've got some bad news. The Rosetta Stone is something else. It's political propaganda.
The stone was a decree issued by a council of Ptolemy V Epiphanes' priests to commemorate the anniversary of his reign. It starts by cataloging the king's accomplishments-- giving gifts to the temple, lowering some taxes, and ending a rebellion that had started under the previous Ptolemy.
After listing these great deeds, the message declares that the council of priests will take actions to honor the king, construct some statues, celebrate his birthday, fix up some shrines, basically remind people of his grandeur. The decree ends by stating that it should be inscribed in stone in Egyptian hieroglyphics, another Egyptian script called the demotic script, and in Greek. That decision, at least, was hugely important, as it was this parallel text that allowed scholars to eventually decipher Egyptian hieroglyphics.
Now none of this may be wisdom from the ancient world or lost art by forgotten masters, but, in a way, the contents of the Rosetta Stone do serve as another link between the modern world and the past. 2,200 years ago, just like today, politicians love to brag.
[MUSIC PLAYING]
The earliest Egyptian hieroglyphics were developed over 5,000 years ago. And they became the sacred script used by priests and scribes. Their use flourished in the time of the pharaohs and survived Egypt's rule by the Persians, the Greeks, and the Romans until the Christianization of Rome led to the closing of Egypt's remaining pagan temples in the sixth century CE.
The ability to read hieroglyphics was lost for centuries until members of an expedition to Egypt, ordered by Napoleon, discovered the granite block covered in writing in the town of Rashid, called Rosetta in the West. The Rosetta Stone proved the key to a mystery some 1,400 years old. But what other secrets does it contain?
The stone was carved for Ptolemy V Epiphanes in 196 BCE. Ptolemy V was part of the Greek speaking Ptolemaic dynasty that was begun after Alexander the Great wrested control of Egypt from Persia in 332 BCE. The first Ptolemy, Ptolemy I Soter, declared himself king in 305 BCE and began a dynasty of many men named Ptolemy and women named Cleopatra who are often married to each other despite the fact that they were blood relatives.
Somehow that dynasty lasted until the last and most famous Cleopatra. Cleopatra VII and her Roman lover and general named Mark Antony lost control of the empire to Mark Antony's rivals in Rome and committed suicide in 30 BCE. You may recognize them from Shakespeare's famous play.
But judging by the contents of the Rosetta Stone, there's a reason Shakespeare never wrote a play about Ptolemy the V. If you were hoping for the lost wisdom of the ancient world, a scrap of archaic poetry, or dramatic revelations about historical mysteries, I've got some bad news. The Rosetta Stone is something else. It's political propaganda.
The stone was a decree issued by a council of Ptolemy V Epiphanes' priests to commemorate the anniversary of his reign. It starts by cataloging the king's accomplishments-- giving gifts to the temple, lowering some taxes, and ending a rebellion that had started under the previous Ptolemy.
After listing these great deeds, the message declares that the council of priests will take actions to honor the king, construct some statues, celebrate his birthday, fix up some shrines, basically remind people of his grandeur. The decree ends by stating that it should be inscribed in stone in Egyptian hieroglyphics, another Egyptian script called the demotic script, and in Greek. That decision, at least, was hugely important, as it was this parallel text that allowed scholars to eventually decipher Egyptian hieroglyphics.
Now none of this may be wisdom from the ancient world or lost art by forgotten masters, but, in a way, the contents of the Rosetta Stone do serve as another link between the modern world and the past. 2,200 years ago, just like today, politicians love to brag.
[MUSIC PLAYING]
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