15 Solid Facts About the Rosetta Stone

(via mental_floss) Discovered by French soldiers during their occupation of Egypt on July 15, 1799, the Rosetta Stone is a most fortunate find. Weighing nearly one ton and covered in three columns of alternating script, the stone provided the key to deciphering hieroglyphics, the ancient Egyptian script that had puzzled scholars for centuries. But while many know its value as a translation tool, few know the turbulent history surrounding its discovery and translation—or what it actually says.