A team of archaeologists has discovered in Knossos, on the Greek island of Crete, the longest Linear A inscription found to date. The script appears on a circular ivory object with an attached handle, discovered in a context of clear religious significance within a Neopalatial building. Besides providing the longest inscription in this yet-to-be-deciphered system, […]
Scripts
Posted inIron Age Archaeology
One of the Oldest Examples of Writing in the Northern Iberian Peninsula Discovered at an Iron Age Archaeological Site in Spain
Archaeological research carried out at the La Peña del Castro site, located in the municipality of La Ercina, in the province of León (Spain), has revealed a discovery of great significance for the study of writing in the Iberian Peninsula. Researchers from the University of León have identified an inscription belonging to the Celtiberian alphabet, […]
Posted inIron Age Archaeology
Fragments of the Oldest Rune Stone in the World, Created Between the 1st and 3rd Centuries AD, Discovered Scattered Among Several Graves in Norway
A team of researchers has found fragments of the oldest rune stone in the world in the Svingerud burial field, Norway. These pieces, which have been assembled like a puzzle, offer a unique insight into the early uses of runic writing on stone and its possible ceremonial and practical meanings. Runes were the writing system […]
Posted inBronze Age Archaeology
An ancient inscription from the Late Bronze Age in an unknown language found in Georgia in the Caucasus
Recent archaeological excavations have uncovered a basalt tablet with inscriptions in an unknown language near Lake Bashplemi, in the Dmanisi region of Georgia. The discovery is significant not only because of the rarity of the material found but also because it could reveal unknown aspects of the ancient civilizations that inhabited the Caucasus. The finding, […]
Posted inAncient Rome
The Strict Education of Stenographers in Antiquity, a Profession Reserved for Slaves
A recently published study by Ella Kirsh from Brown University analyzes shorthand manuals from antiquity preserved in papyri and wax tablets, revealing the complexity and diversity of stenographers’ training, who were mostly individuals from non-elite backgrounds, often slaves. The study focuses primarily on a manual known as the Commentary, widely used for teaching shorthand in […]
Posted inCulture
The Byblos Syllabary, a 3800-year-old Writing System whose Inscriptions Have yet to Be Deciphered
In 1928 French archaeologist Maurice Dunand began excavating the ancient coastal city of Byblos, located in what is now Lebanon. Byblos was an important Phoenician city whose origin dates back to around 5000 BC and had a long history of trade and cultural exchanges with neighboring civilizations such as Egypt and Mesopotamia. During four excavation […]
