Egypten 3.7 :: Divine signs
- Object description
The term for hieroglyphics used by the ancient Egyptians was medu netjer or ‘divine signs’. The hieroglyphs represented sounds and meanings but were also believed to have innate magical powers.
The signs epitomised strong conservatism and the Egyptians retained their hieroglyphs for over three thousand years. They wrote on everything; on walls, papyrus and shards of ceramic and stone (ostraca) but also on furniture, coffins and statues.
Parallel to the hieroglyphs, a more cursive form of writing, hieratic, was developed for everyday writing of for example receipts, letters and contracts. The most elaborate hieroglyphs were used for religious inscriptions on tomb and temple walls, texts that were to stand the test of time.
Not all Egyptians were literate, far from it. It is estimated that only around 1% of the population could read and understand simple texts. Only a very small number was able to write longer literary and theological works.
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