Introduction
In the current world, where there is a need for a proper understanding of ancient concepts, evaluating these artifacts, and getting a better understanding of their biographies in detail, each object carries a massive wealth of information. For this particular essay, I chose to dig deeper into the British Museum based in London to get more details about my chosen object of choice: the Rosetta Stone (Regulski et al., 2020). In the British Museum in London, the object of interest takes visitors on an exclusive journey of exploring ancient times based on the specific object’s role during those old days. More details will be discussed below as we continue analyzing this phenomenon. The British Museum itself is a place where history is preserved. The museum was founded in 1753, and ever since then, it has held a massive collection of human history. It keeps the old objects and promotes keeping the stories alive (Classen, 2020). Different items in the British Museum tell a different story of our precious history. The Rosetta Stone, not just a stone being our chosen object for this essay, holds a special place in history, and hence, with the ability of modern-day technological advances, historical awareness and study of ancient objects are vital to understanding our present-day responsibilities. All that will be attained through the main focus of the essay, which is understanding the biography of the iconic object, analyzing its material and tracing back on the journey of how it ended up in the British Museum, properly exploring the multifaceted functions of the object and lastly uncovering the individuals and civilization connection in regards to its creation.
Analysis of Material and Form
This part of the essay answers the question of what the object is. The nature of the object and its material and what it tells us. Using a general description, the Rosetta Stone can be defined as a slab of black basalt that measures approximately 114cm in height and has a width of 72 cm (Regulski et al., 2020). This particular stone is unique and not just like any other for its role in the ancient days and its ideal characteristics of having three carved writings on it in different ways, the languages being Greek, Demotic, and hieroglyphics. According to various scholars, the Rosetta Stone is a secret code that played and still is pivotal in making people understand the old Egyptian writings (Milton, 2020). Additionally, based on the material it is made of, it is a vital source of information communicating how the Egyptian people lived in those old days of the Ptolemais.
Further, based on its appearance th, the Rosetta Stone possesses three different writings: ancient Greek, which was the language of the government; the Hieroglyphics, also known to be the language that the priests used; and the Demotic language, which was the everyday people’s language; all this leads to the Rosetta Stone being viewed as a giant puzzle pieces. The stone can be termed a big puzzle piece because of its role as the key to understanding or unlocking the meaning of ancient texts (Milton, 2020). Additionally, from the physical aspects of the Rosetta Stone, we learn about the tools that ancient people used for communication. We also learn how the ancient people viewed various things, such as using a stone to pass information to their intended audience. Additionally, studying the Rosetta Stone concerning time is a unique piece of history that acts like a time machine, for it effortlessly takes us back in time when different cultures existed in Egypt based on the ability to have the three other languages (Milton, 2020). The carvings on the stone further paint a vivid picture of how people in Egypt lived during the time of King Ptolemy V. In summary, by profoundly exploring the Rosetta Stone, the message is based on the material and its physical form; it is not just a study of an ordinary stone. Still, it is an opportunity to explore the incredible world of ancient Egypt.
Current Location and how it got there
Before diving deeper into the current location of the Rosetta Stone, it is essential to understand its origin. Initially, the stone was curved around 196 BCE (Regulski et al., 2020). The curving was in three different languages whose purpose was particular as per the guidance of the ruler of the time. From when it was curved up to when it was lost, according to scholars such as Blakeley, it is believed to have served its initial purpose (Gagnon, 2021). Approximately two hundred years later, the stone was rediscovered by Napoleon Bonaparte’s army in Egypt. The army in the military then excavated it near the town of Rashid, also referred to as Rosetta. In 1801, the British took possession of the particular Rosetta Stone after winning a battle against the French forces. The stone, which was precious for possessing three different languages, in 1802 when it again found a new home in the British Museum, having been included as a gift based on the Treaty of Alexandria, which was an agreement between the people.
Scholars state that the stone, despite holding a significant value, remained something of a mystery for several years before the complete translation of the writing was obtained, and it marked the beginning of Egyptology, a significant study area for researchers were now able to translate and read hieroglyphics on other ancient Egyptian artifacts (Dolnick, 2021). Since the stone was given to the British Museum as a gift, it has stayed in the institution, telling the ancient Egyptian story to the world. It not only shows the history of Egypt but also how people from different origins and times played various roles in making the Rosetta Stone act as a bridge connecting diverse cultures.
The Object’s Functions
The Rosetta Stone initially had one primary role per the King: to pass a message from him to as many people as possible, informing them of the good things he was doing (Mairs, 2020). The King who wanted this information passed to the people was King Ptolemy V, who thought it would be the best idea to inform his people. As time passed, the Rosetta Stone served various functions, such as making it hard for people such as Jean Francois Champollion to understand its then-strange writings. With the help of other individuals and as years passed by, Champollion and others could comprehend the writings on the stone, which unlocked the complexity of understanding the ancient Egyptian language and the culture of Egyptian people (Mairs, 2020). Based on that particular role of facilitating the ease of understanding of ancient languages, the stone can be termed as promoting proper knowledge of the ancient world. It symbolizes how intelligent and productive people can be when they combine efforts towards obtaining relevant information from new and strange encounters.
Who Made, Owned, and Used the Objects
The Rosetta Stone, first made in 196 BCE, was entirely under the rule of King Ptolemy V; this was during the ancient times when the Greeks were the rulers. Based on various scholars, it was discovered that ancient priests made the stone in honor of the then King (AbdelRahman, 2022). As time passed, the Rosetta Stone, through the hands of the French and British armies, was passed on through their exploration, demonstrating how ownership of the stone changed during that ancient exploration period. It was initially used to disseminate vital messages to the Egyptian people, per the King. Further, it was also used as a point of reference in understanding other ancient Egyptian artifacts regarding the language (AbdelRahman, 2022). Currently, the British Museum, in its current location, is used as an old object where people from all across the world can visit and learn about the history of Egypt and ancient cultures.
Conclusion
In conclusion, the Rosetta Stone at the British Museum can be termed as an object that possesses critical value based on its role of being an outstanding link to ancient times, outlining the past Egyptian history (Regulski et al., 2020). From its origin in the Nile Delta in Egypt to its current location in London, the Rosetta Stone demonstrated the incredible world of exploration and cultural exchange (AbdelRahman, 2022). Additionally, despite the Stoke being used to disseminate information from the King to the people, it served as a reference point for decoding other ancient writings or texts, hence demonstrating people’s ability to overcome linguistic difficulties caused by the different ancient languages (Mairs, 2020). What we can attain from the Rosetta Stone is the aspect of collaboration and determination towards specific objectives. In the present day, as people visit to see the Rosetta Stone in the British Museum, it not only shows the historical aspect but also facilitates them to connect with the incredible levels of human curiosity and the ever-growing people’s quest for comprehending our past shared perspectives.
Reference
AbdelRahman, H. (2022). The Story of Egypt’s Multilingual Amir Akhor Stone, 1800-1830s. Minia Journal of Tourism and Hospitality Research MJTHR, 14(3), 30-60. https://mjthr.journals.ekb.eg/article_269343.html
Classen, C. (2020). Touch in the Museum. In The Book of Touch (pp. 275–288). Routledge. https://www.taylorfrancis.com/chapters/edit/10.4324/9781003135463-37/touch-museum-constance-classen
Dolnick, E. (2021). The Writing of the Gods: The Race to Decode the Rosetta Stone. Simon and Schuster. https://books.google.co.ke/books?hl=en&lr=&id=DyxEEAAAQBAJ&oi=fnd&pg=PP13&dq=was+the+Rosetta+stone+translated+immediately%3F&ots=jGN9PgcvgF&sig=fD3Kx2e1CFblLRNO_XQ7F_zvHXE&redir_esc=y#v=onepage&q=was%20the%20Rosetta%20stone%20translated%20immediately%3F&f=false
Gagnon, A. (2021). The Rosetta Stone. https://roam.macewan.ca/items/8cacbd71-13f1-41e1-ae5d-da4c012f51e8
Mairs, R. (2020). Beyond Rosetta. The Epigraphy of Ptolemaic Egypt, p. 20. https://books.google.co.ke/books?hl=en&lr=&id=c5r9DwAAQBAJ&oi=fnd&pg=PA20&dq=The+Functions+of+the+Egyptian+Rosetta+stone&ots=gx7Y42kUA4&sig=hCg5p2_MZVM8gqeBw_3l-Ekx5n8&redir_esc=y#v=onepage&q&f=false
Milton, D. K. (2020). A Rosetta Stone for understanding infectious drops and aerosols. Journal of the Pediatric Infectious Diseases Society, 9(4), 413–415. https://academic.oup.com/jpids/article/9/4/413/5875939
Regulski, I., Davies, V., & Laboury, D. (2020). The Rosetta Stone. Copying an ancient copy. [“”]. https://books.google.co.ke/books?hl=en&lr=&id=M93QDwAAQBAJ&oi=fnd&pg=PA215&dq=The+Egyptian+Rosetta+Stone&ots=dir4qEimuG&sig=FjglqN1DmjKoOiz0-xuUc7yJ4bg&redir_esc=y#v=onepage&q=The%20Egyptian%20Rosetta%20Stone&f=false
write