Scribes and the Rosetta Stone

History · Ancient Egypt · ages 7-9

Name ______________________ Date ____________

Which three scripts are carved on the Rosetta Stone?
- English, demotic, and Greek
- Hieroglyphs, demotic, and Greek
- Hieroglyphs, Latin, and Greek
Most people in ancient Egypt could read and write.
Circle one: True False
On a museum trip, Ada sees Egyptian picture-writing in two places: cut into a temple wall, and written on a long scroll. What two materials is she looking at?
- Paper books and plastic signs
- Tree bark and chalkboards
- Stone walls and papyrus
Before Champollion studied the stone, he could already read one of its three scripts. Which one?
- Greek
- Demotic
- Hieroglyphs
Why couldn't just anyone in ancient Egypt read a scroll written by a scribe?
- Only pharaohs were allowed to look at scrolls
- Reading and writing hieroglyphs took years of special training
- Scrolls were written in invisible ink
A tour guide says, 'When the last scribes died, children in Egypt quickly learned hieroglyphs from the temple walls, so the writing was never lost.' What is wrong with that?
- Nothing, the guide's story is right
- The walls were washed clean, so there was nothing left to read
- Nobody was left who understood the signs, so the skill died out for centuries
Only pharaohs were allowed to learn how to read in ancient Egypt.
Circle one: True False
Look at the three scripts on the Rosetta Stone. Why did having the Greek script next to the hieroglyphs help crack the code?
- Because one script (Greek) could already be read, so it worked like a key for the others
- Because three scripts made the stone heavier and easier to find
- Because each script told a totally different story
A friend says: 'The Rosetta Stone is important just because it is a very old rock.' What is the better reason?
- Its same message in three scripts gave readers a key to crack hieroglyphs
- It is the biggest stone ever found
- It is important because it is shiny and dark
Omar says: 'Scribes were the kings who ruled ancient Egypt.' What is his mistake?
- Nothing, Omar is right
- Scribes were trained readers and writers; pharaohs were the rulers
- Scribes did not exist in ancient Egypt

Answer key

For grown-ups. Fold this page away before handing over the rest.

Scribes and the Rosetta Stone W1-mt_V_kAitNbLN-s1

Hieroglyphs, demotic, and Greek · The stone carries one message in hieroglyphs, demotic, and Greek. Latin and English are not on it.
False · Almost nobody could. Scribes were some of the only people trained to read and write.
Stone walls and papyrus · Egyptians carved hieroglyphs on stone walls and wrote them on papyrus scrolls. Paper books and printing came much later.
Greek · He already knew Greek. That known script became his key for the other two.
Reading and writing hieroglyphs took years of special training · Learning hundreds of hieroglyph signs took scribes years of training, so most people never learned to read or write at all.
Nobody was left who understood the signs, so the skill died out for centuries · Only trained scribes could read hieroglyphs, so when the last ones died the skill died with them. The temple writing stayed a mystery until 1822.
False · The lesson never mentions a pharaohs-only rule. Reading stayed rare because the training took years, so only scribes did it.
Because one script (Greek) could already be read, so it worked like a key for the others · Champollion could already read the Greek part, so he used it like a key to match up the hieroglyph signs next to it.
Its same message in three scripts gave readers a key to crack hieroglyphs · Age alone does not make it special. One message carved in three scripts is what let Champollion crack the code.
Scribes were trained readers and writers; pharaohs were the rulers · Omar mixed up two jobs. Scribes trained for years to read and write; pharaohs ruled Egypt.