Why only in 1822 ? Epistemological obstacles to the deciphering of hieroglyphics

Chairman : Vinciane Pirenne-Delforge

Abstract

Jean-François Champollion's deciphering of the hieroglyphs was a thunderclap in the skies of historical studies, and its impact may not be fully appreciated - to the extent that it has become the paradigm par excellence for the deciphering of a dead script. The bicentenary celebrations have put the spotlight on this coup d'éclat, but it should not be forgotten that it is the result of a long process slowed down by a series of obstacles and blockages that were conditioned by the vision that the modern era, following in the footsteps of the Greeks, had of Egypt and its writing, and which in their own way tell the story of philology and archaeology.