Some discoveries only became meaningful after historians learned how to read an unfamiliar script, connect scattered evidence, or uncover the context behind an ancient message.
1. The Rosetta Stone
The Rosetta Stone was discovered in Egypt in 1799 and contained the same decree in three scripts.
Because scholars could already read Greek, the stone provided the crucial comparison needed to decipher Egyptian hieroglyphs, opening an entirely new window into ancient Egypt.
2. The Dead Sea Scrolls
Beginning in the 1940s, ancient scrolls were discovered in caves near the Dead Sea.
Their texts included biblical manuscripts and other writings that transformed scholars’ understanding of Jewish life and religious traditions during the Second Temple period.
3. Linear B
For decades, scholars could see that Linear B represented an ancient writing system but could not understand it.
In 1952, Michael Ventris deciphered the script and demonstrated that it recorded an early form of Greek, revealing information about Mycenaean civilization.
4. The Behistun Inscription
Carved into a cliff in modern Iran, the Behistun Inscription recorded the achievements of Persian king Darius I in several languages.
Its parallel texts played a crucial role in allowing scholars to decipher cuneiform, much as the Rosetta Stone helped unlock Egyptian writing.
5. The Maya Script
For centuries, many Maya inscriptions remained unreadable to outsiders.
Progress accelerated during the 20th century as scholars identified the writing system’s phonetic elements. Today, much of Maya writing can be read, revealing details about rulers, wars, rituals, and daily life.
6. The Voynich Manuscript
The Voynich Manuscript has been studied for more than a century, but its unusual writing remains largely undeciphered.
The manuscript contains strange illustrations and hundreds of pages of text. Its language, purpose, and authorship remain subjects of intense debate.