Rosetta Stone replica 34 x 28 cm — wall relief of the trilingual inscription for school and museum education
In brief
The Rosetta Stone is a granodiorite stele bearing the Memphis Decree of 196 BC, with its text set side by side in hieroglyphs, Demotic and Ancient Greek. This replica transfers the trilingual inscription onto a wall relief at 34 x 28 cm in a fine alabaster and natural gypsum mix, making the original British Museum EA24 tangible as a source object for secondary education and museum work.
The Rosetta Stone replica at a glance
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Authenticity level: Entry-level reenactment model (level 1) — alabaster and gypsum instead of granodiorite, scaled-down educational replica with modern wall fitting
- Material: fine alabaster and natural gypsum mix, dyed black, surface with a stone-like finish
- Dimensions and weight: approx. 34 x 28 x 1 cm, approx. 1.58 kg, ready-to-hang fitting on the back
- Date of the original: Ptolemaic Egypt, Memphis Decree of 27 March 196 BC
- Best-known prototype: Rosetta Stone in the British Museum, London, granodiorite stele with 14 lines of hieroglyphs, 32 lines of Demotic and 54 lines of Ancient Greek
- Ancient source: synodal priestly decree at Memphis in honour of Ptolemy V Epiphanes, dated "4 Xandikos / 18 Mekhir"
- Suitable educational context: Lower Secondary (writing media and source genres), Upper Secondary (parallel-text method, history of scholarship in the 19th century), museum hands-on station, teacher training
What does the Memphis Decree of 196 BC show, and why does it matter for source-based teaching?
The original is a granodiorite stele from Ptolemaic Egypt, on display at the British Museum, London, under inventory number EA24. It carries a synodal decree of the Egyptian priesthood from 27 March 196 BC in favour of the young king Ptolemy V Epiphanes, and was only rediscovered in 1799, reused in masonry at Fort Saint Julien near Rashid.
For history and Latin teaching, what matters is not the political content alone but the formal peculiarity: one text, three scripts, one stone. This constellation can be shown cleanly on the replica without learners having to start by deciphering anything.
Which scripts appear on the original, and in what order?
- Top: 14 surviving lines of Egyptian hieroglyphs (sacred script, fragmentary)
- Middle: 32 lines of Demotic (administrative and everyday script, best preserved)
- Bottom: 54 lines of Ancient Greek (language of Ptolemaic administration, with a diagonal break at the lower right)
- Surviving original measurements approx. 112.3 x 75.7 x 28.4 cm, weight approx. 760 kg
- Material granodiorite, most likely from the Gebel Tingar quarry near Aswan
Why is the stone considered the key to deciphering the hieroglyphs, and what is often oversimplified?
Schoolbook accounts often suggest that Jean-Francois Champollion "cracked the stone". That is shorthand at best. Champollion presented the method publicly in 1822 in his Lettre a M. Dacier and developed it in the Precis du systeme hieroglyphique of 1824. The Rosetta Stele was one key document among several; cartouches from Philae played a decisive role in proving the phonetic principle. The English physician Thomas Young had previously contributed work on the Demotic.
Friedhelm Hoffmann and Stefan Pfeiffer (2021) show in their German full translation of the decree that even the hieroglyphic and Greek sections give an internal date that does not match the Demotic line. Such inconsistencies make a sound entry point into genuine source criticism for Upper Secondary classes.
Which other copies of the Memphis Decree survive, and why are they relevant for teaching?
| Prototype / replica |
Material and dimensions |
Date and findspot |
Holding institution |
Suitability for educational use |
| Rosetta Stone (original) |
Granodiorite, approx. 112 x 76 x 28 cm, approx. 760 kg |
196 BC, Fort Saint Julien (Rashid), 1799 |
British Museum, London, inv. EA24 |
Reference object, accessible only via photographs and facsimile |
| Nubayrah Stele |
Limestone, approx. 127 x 51 cm, rounded top |
Memphis Decree, found in the 1880s near Damanhur |
Egyptian Museum, Cairo, JE 5576 / CG 22188 |
Used to complete the missing hieroglyphic lines on the London stone, source-criticism project for Upper Secondary |
| Philensis temple-wall inscriptions |
Sandstone, carved into the temple wall |
Late Ptolemaic, partly overwritten |
Temple of Philae, preserved in situ |
Example of multiple displays of decrees in temples, parallel-text method |
| Forum Traiani replica (this product) |
Alabaster and natural gypsum mix, approx. 34 x 28 x 1 cm, approx. 1.58 kg |
Prototype 196 BC, manufactured in Egypt |
Classroom, museum station, staff room |
Hands-on object for Lower and Upper Secondary, station-based learning, teacher training |
The Rosetta Stone replica in classroom and museum work
The wall relief works very well in the classroom: the block structure is recognisable from 5 m away, the weight of approx. 1.58 kg can be securely mounted on a properly fitted wall hook, and the cool, slightly textured surface genuinely invites learners to touch it. That is the point: a writing carrier, not just a written page.
Suitable educational use: Lower Secondary (years 5 to 7) for writing-media studies, Upper Secondary for the parallel-text method, museum hands-on station and teacher training in source work | Operating range: wall object in the classroom and hands-on station, suitable for repeated handling by school groups, not impact-resistant, not suitable for outdoor or coach-based travelling exhibitions | Operating time: permanent as a wall object, full-day use on table or desk during station-based learning
- Observation station for years 5 to 7: learners first describe only the three script blocks without reading the content, locating them spatially as top / middle / bottom
- Methods training for Upper Secondary: comparison of the replica with a photograph of the original EA24 and with the Nubayrah Stele in Cairo, asking "which lines are missing and why?"
- Hands-on station in the museum: a blindfolded touch task, followed by a return to the function of the stele as a writing carrier inside a temple courtyard
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Known limitations of the reconstruction: The inscription surfaces are rendered as relief and are not philologically legible. Anyone wanting to work with the actual script needs the facsimile by Stephen Quirke and Carol Andrews (British Museum Press 1988). The material differs from the original. Reducing the scale to 34 x 28 cm distorts the impact of the stele as a temple monument, which originally stood well over a metre tall.
For which teaching and educational situations is the relief worthwhile?
- If you want source work to become concrete rather than slide-deck knowledge, a permanently mounted inscription representation in the room is more useful than a textbook photograph
- If a department is planning a project week on "writing and power", the relief carries the link between decree (196 BC, Ptolemaic Egypt) and museum reference (British Museum EA24)
- For strictly find-based reenactment displays the piece is not suitable as a showcase replica next to an original. In educationally oriented contexts of school, museum-pedagogical workshops and teacher training it plays to its strengths
For secondary audiences: facilitators in archaeological open-air sites use the piece as a teaching object on reading and writing history; history-interested parents hang it at home as a starting point for homework and presentations.
Frequently asked questions about the Rosetta Stone replica
How age-appropriate and safe is the wall relief in school use?
The recommendation starts from year 7 (twelve years), and from year 5 onwards under teacher supervision. The edges are soft, and the weight of approx. 1.58 kg requires proper wall mounting with suitable plugs (hollow-wall plugs for plasterboard, universal plugs for masonry).
Which curriculum content does the replica directly support in Lower and Upper Secondary?
In Lower Secondary it serves modules on the high cultures of Egypt, the history of writing and source genres (inscription, stele, decree). In Upper Secondary it fits "scholarship and method" in history teaching, the history of 19th-century scholarship and, in Latin teaching, the Hellenistic language contact with Ancient Greek as the language of administration.
Which content can be drawn from the object, and which cannot?
Accessible at the object: writing carriers, the arrangement of script blocks, the function of a priestly decree, multilingualism as a political tool of the Ptolemaic period. Not accessible: a philological full-text study, because the inscription is rendered as relief; for that you need the facsimile by Quirke and Andrews or the translation by Hoffmann and Pfeiffer.
How do we look after the relief after use by school groups and across several school years?
Dust dry with a soft cotton or microfibre cloth, no water, no cleaning agents, no abrasive sponges. Fingerprint deposits can usually be removed with a slightly damp cloth followed by immediate drying. Store dry at room temperature, not in a cellar, since gypsum draws moisture.
How close to the original British Museum EA24 is this piece in fact?
It is designed as an entry-level educational model: material (alabaster and gypsum mix instead of granodiorite), scale (34 x 28 cm instead of approx. 112 x 76 cm) and inscription surface deliberately differ from the original. Anyone looking for a showcase replica at original size is better served by museum plaster casts such as the Cornell cast or by a facsimile print.
Can we use the replica in teacher training and in open museum operation at the same time?
Yes, it is designed for both. In open museum operation we recommend wall-firm mounting at eye level with a short context card (findspot Fort Saint Julien, holding institution British Museum EA24, date 196 BC). For training it can be lifted off the hook and passed around on a table.
External sources and literature on the Rosetta Stone
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Wikipedia: Stein von Rosette — overview of the decree, dating and history of scholarship
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British Museum: The Rosetta Stone, inv. EA24 — online catalogue entry of the original object with findspot and material data
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Deutsche Digitale Bibliothek — context on the script blocks and condition of the trilingual inscription
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Wikidata: Nubayrah Stele Q17012834 — core data on the parallel copy in the Egyptian Museum, Cairo
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Hoffmann, Friedhelm / Pfeiffer, Stefan (2021): Der Stein von Rosetta. Stuttgart: Reclam, Universal-Bibliothek 14200 — first complete German translation with reconstruction and commentary on the three textual versions
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Quirke, Stephen / Andrews, Carol (1988): The Rosetta Stone. Facsimile Drawing with an Introduction and Translations. London: British Museum Press — philological facsimile for full-text work
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Parkinson, Richard B. (2005): The Rosetta Stone. London: British Museum Press — compact research monograph for teachers
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Champollion, Jean-Francois (1822): Lettre a M. Dacier relative a l'alphabet des hieroglyphes phonetiques. Paris: Firmin Didot — historical primary source on the deciphering of the hieroglyphs, Gallica BnF digitisation
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Updated on: 04/05/2026
