How did the scholars know that the inscription was the
same in all three languages on the Rosetta Stone?
The last sentence explained that the inscription was
the same.
But what did the passages in Egyptian mean? Did they
contain exactly the same message as the Greek passage?
The last sentence of the Greek text said, "This decree
shall be inscribed on a stela (slab) of hard stone in sacred
[hieroglyphic] and native (demotic) and Greek
characters," so it seemed clear that the inscription was
the same in all three languages. That way, the priests'
statement could be read by Egyptians who understood
Greek, as well as by those who knew only one or both of
the Egyptian languages. But the scholars were still far
from being able to decipher either the hieroglyphs or the
demotic writing.
-The Riddle of the Rosetta Stone,
James Cross Giblin
They deciphered the hieroglyphs on the stone,
which told them the inscription was the same.
The British scholars explained that the inscription
was the same.
They deciphered the demotic writing, which told
them the inscription was the same.