Four clay cylinders inscribed with what might be the oldest known evidence of alphabetic writing are 500 years older than other early alphabets, according to new research.

For nearly 2,000 years, Mayan languages had their own writing system, known as Classic Maya. Composed of hieroglyphs, it was only used by those at the top of the social pyramid.

Archaeologists say they have uncovered evidence of what may be the world's oldest known alphabet. The alphabetic writing system was identified on finger-length clay cylinders excavated from a tomb ...

Researchers may have deciphered the oldest known scrap of alphabetic writing yet discovered, and it may be a nearly 4,500-year-old gift tag. A clay cylinder found in a tomb holding six skeletons ...

Before the alphabet, humans relied on hieroglyphics, according to Professor Schwartz, who found the cylinders in 2004. 'Alphabetic writing changed the way people lived, how they thought, how they ...

Archaeologists unearth oldest alphabet from ancient tomb. Alphabetic writing found etched on clay cylinders unearthed from tomb in Syria. Vishwam Sankaran. Thursday 21 November 2024 05:48 GMT.

Long before the “A, B, C Song” — built upon the Latin alphabet — and the alphas, betas and gammas of Ancient Greek, cultures around the world were communicating with one another. The ...

"Without a means to translate the writing, we can only speculate." Using carbon-14 dating techniques, researchers confirmed the ages of the tombs, the artifacts, and the writing. "Previously, scholars ...

For nearly 2,000 years, Mayan languages had their own writing system, known as Classic Maya. Composed of hieroglyphs, it was only used by those at the top of the social pyramid.