Scribes and the Rosetta Stone

CONCEPTUAL

History›Ancient Egypt|Ages 7—9|ID: mt_V_kAitNbLN

Know that scribes were specially trained people who could read and write hieroglyphs, that the Rosetta Stone — a slab with the same text in three scripts — was the key to cracking the hieroglyphic code, and that Jean-François Champollion used it to decipher hieroglyphs in 1822 after centuries of mystery

Mastery Evidence

Explain the importance of scribes as the only people who could read and write
Describe the Rosetta Stone as having the same message in three different scripts
Name Champollion as the person who decoded hieroglyphs using the Rosetta Stone

Assessment Prompt

“If [child] sees the Rosetta Stone in a museum (or a picture of it), can they explain why it was so important and how it helped us read hieroglyphs?”

Prerequisites3

Egyptian Social Hierarchy
softAges 7—9
Knowing all letters
softAges 4—6
Hieroglyphs and Papyrus
hardAges 5—7

Show full prerequisite tree

Egyptian Social Hierarchy soft
Scribes' elite status benefits from understanding the social hierarchy
- Pharaohs and Tutankhamun hard
  Social hierarchy builds on knowing pharaohs existed as rulers
  - Vocabulary: ancient egypt hard
    Knowing about pharaohs requires the term 'pharaoh' and associated vocabulary
- Everyday Life in Ancient Egypt hard
  Social pyramid builds on knowing daily life of ordinary Egyptians
  - Egypt, the Nile, and the Desert soft
    Daily life context benefits from knowing Egypt is on the Nile in a desert
- Vocabulary: ancient egypt hard
  Describing Egyptian social hierarchy requires 'scribe', 'vizier', 'pharaoh', and related terms
Knowing all letters soft
Knowing how the English alphabet maps symbols to sounds enriches the study of Champollion's decipherment of the hieroglyphic code on the Rosetta Stone
- Understanding print hard
  Must understand print direction before letter identification matters
Hieroglyphs and Papyrus hard
Rosetta Stone and Champollion builds on basic hieroglyphs and scribes
- Knowing all letters soft
  Understanding that letters are symbols representing sounds provides a framework for grasping how hieroglyphs encode language differently
  - Understanding print hard
    Must understand print direction before letter identification matters
- Everyday Life in Ancient Egypt soft
  Scribes are a special job — helps to know about daily life first
  - Egypt, the Nile, and the Desert soft
    Daily life context benefits from knowing Egypt is on the Nile in a desert
- Vocabulary: ancient egypt hard
  Understanding hieroglyphs and papyrus requires these exact terms

Unlocks2

Egyptian Trade and Economy
softAges 9—11
Historical Sources on Ancient Egypt
hardAges 11—13