History of writing Part 2:

Egyptians hieroglyphs:

The first ever Egyptian hieroglyphs are stated to be in the 3,100, while the last known were carved in 394 CE. Hieroglyphics consisted of pictograms that depicted objects and beings. The Egyptians tried to create the hieroglyphics to denote sounds. The Egyptian scribes were confronted with words that were difficult to express in visual form, they devised a rebus, using pictures for sounds, to write the desired words. They designated a pictorial symbol for every consonant sound and combination in their speech.  Hieroglyphs were used for history, commercial documents, poetry, epics, geography, science, astronomy, medicine, pharmacy, time and other topics. The Egyptian writing style had influenced the Greek culture. The hieroglyphs themselves already started to look more like a language; Egyptians used to write hieroglyphs on either stone or clay.

In 1790-1832 Jean-Francois Champollion had deciphered the Rosetta stones hieroglyphs, he had realized that some of the signs were alphabetic and syllabic . The signs were functioned as phonograms, not just pictographs, Champollion, able to sound out the name of Ptolemy. After sounding out and understanding, the hieroglyphic translations, he went to decipher the cartouche for Alexander the Great. Champollion had gathered all the cartouches he could possibly find from the Grec-Roman era, he managed to translate eighty, building up a large vocabulary of glyphs in the process. Champollion died young at the age of forty-two, his research on the English dictionary and grammar were both published. The progress toward translating the hieroglyphics had enabled nineteenth –century Egyptologist to unlock mysteries of Egyptian history and culture. 

The Rosetta stone showed the key secrets to ancient Egypt

Papyrus:

Papyrus is a paper like substrate for manuscripts.  The Egyptians made extensive use of the Cyprus papyrus plant; the plant became one of Egypt’s major exports. The word paper originates from the word papyrus. The Egyptians crafted the papyrus plant in order to create different things, not just paper, for example: rope, sandals, mats and baskets.

Reference:

Philip B.Meggs, Alston W.Purvis Meggs’ History of graphic design 5^th Edition, New Jersey

Egyptian papyrus u.k. http://www.egyptian-papyrus.co.uk/, 2008 , (visited, 12,10,2013)