Question 1

True or false: The Rosetta Stone contains the same decree written in hieroglyphic, demotic, and Greek scripts.

Accepted Answer

True. The stone is a Ptolemaic decree from 196 BC, repeating the same text in three scripts, which allowed scholars to decipher Egyptian hieroglyphs.

Question 2

True or false: The Rosetta Stone was kept in the Louvre Museum in Paris after its discovery.

Accepted Answer

False. After its capture by the British in 1801, the stone was taken to the British Museum in London, where it has been displayed since 1802.

Question 3

True or false: The Rosetta Stone was discovered by French soldiers in 1799 during Napoleon's Egyptian campaign.

Accepted Answer

True. French engineers found the stone while building fortifications near the town of Rosetta (Rashid) in July 1799, during Napoleon's invasion of Egypt.

Question 4

True or false: The Rosetta Stone's inscription appears in four languages: hieroglyphic, demotic, Greek, and Latin.

Accepted Answer

False. Only three scripts are present: Egyptian hieroglyphs, demotic script, and ancient Greek. No Latin appears on the stone.

Question 5

True or false: The Rosetta Stone was discovered by British soldiers in 1801.

Accepted Answer

False. French soldiers discovered the stone in 1799. It was later captured by the British in 1801 under the Treaty of Alexandria and shipped to England.

Question 6

True or false: The Rosetta Stone was carved in 196 BC under King Ptolemy V.

Accepted Answer

True. The decree on the stone honors Ptolemy V and was issued on the anniversary of his coronation. The date is confirmed by the Greek text.

Question 7

True or false: The Rosetta Stone originally stood over ten feet tall and was found completely intact.

Accepted Answer

False. The stone is a fragment of a larger stele, measuring about 3 feet 9 inches tall. It was broken and incomplete when discovered.

Question 8

True or false: The Rosetta Stone is made of granodiorite, not basalt as many people think.

Accepted Answer

True. Modern geological analysis identified the stone as granodiorite, a type of igneous rock. Early reports mistakenly called it basalt.

The Rosetta Stone Trivia Questions