Until the year 1799, it was impossible for the scholars of modern
nations to read this strange language. In that year, however, a stone
tablet was discovered by a French engineer, containing an inscription
written in three languages.
One of these was in the characters of the ancient Egyptian and another
in those of the Greek. Upon translating the Greek writing, it was
discovered to be a copy of the inscription in the Egyptian language.
By comparing the words of these inscriptions with many others, the
formation of this peculiar language was ascertained. It was then learned
that the inscriptions on these obelisks were the records of memorable
events, and the heroic deeds of their kings and heroes.
Many of these obelisks have been taken from their positions in Egypt and
transported with great labor to other countries. Nearly two thousand
years ago the Roman emperors began to carry them to the city of Rome.
Altogether, nearly fifty of these remarkable monuments were taken away
and set up in that city. They were then, as now, regarded as curious
examples of the ingenuity of the ancients who first made them.
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