Egyptian Hieroglyphs

Hello. I am a hieroglyph, a little picture-word. I was born a very, very long time ago, around the year 3200 BCE. My home was the sunny land of Egypt. Sometimes I looked like a little bird with wings. Sometimes I was a bright, round sun. Other times, I was a wavy line that meant water. I loved helping people write down their big ideas. I helped them tell all their amazing stories so they would never be forgotten. It was a very important job for a little picture like me.

My most important job was to decorate big, tall buildings. I was painted on the walls of temples and inside the secret rooms of pyramids. I told stories about brave kings called pharaohs and powerful queens. I wanted everyone to know about them. I had a special friend named papyrus. Papyrus was a kind of paper made from green plants that grew by the river. Smart people called scribes would use tiny brushes and paint me carefully onto the papyrus. My job was to make sure all the wonderful stories of Egypt were saved forever. I felt so proud to hold such important memories for everyone to see.

After many, many years, people started to use new kinds of letters. They forgot what my little pictures meant. It was like I fell into a long, quiet sleep. I was quiet for a very long time. Then one day, on July 15th, 1799, some people found a special black stone. It was called the Rosetta Stone. The stone was like a secret key. A very clever man named Jean-François Champollion saw the stone. He worked hard for many years to understand me. Finally, in the year 1822, he figured out my secrets. He woke me up from my long nap so I could talk again.

I was so happy. Now people could read my stories again. I was not forgotten anymore. Today, I get to share the magical tales of ancient Egypt with children just like you. You can see me in big museums and in the colorful pages of books. I love telling you about the amazing world from long ago. Even though I am very, very old, my stories are alive and will be here forever. And it is all because wonderful people like you still want to listen to what I have to say.