epigraphy
Sign in to savethumb|300px|The Rosetta Stone in the [[British Museum]] thumb|right|300px|Inscription on the pedestal of the statue of Michel Ney from Paris thumb|Tamil inscription on Brihadisvara Temple, Thanjavur|Brihadeshwara temple, Thanjavur, India|301x301px thumbnail|right|300px|Trilingual Xerxes I's inscription at Van|inscription of Xerxes I at Van Fortress in Turkey
AI overview
Epigraphy is the study of inscriptions—writings carved or engraved on hard surfaces like stone or metal monuments—found across different cultures and time periods. It matters because these inscriptions provide direct historical evidence about ancient civilizations, their languages, rulers, and beliefs, helping scholars understand the past.
AI-generated from the Wikipedia summary — may contain errors.
Article
42 sectionsContents
- History
- Form
- Materials and technique
- Content
- Greek inscriptions
- Political and social
- Codes of law and regulations
- Decrees of people and rulers, later of kings and emperors
- Public accounts, treasure lists, building inscriptions
- Ephebic inscriptions
- Treaties and political and commercial agreements; arbitration, etc.
- Proxenia decrees
- Honours and privileges given to individuals
- Signatures of artists
- Historical records
- Tombs and epitaphs
- Boundary stones
- Latin inscriptions
- Religious
- Dedications and foundations of temples, etc.
- Priests and officials
- Regulations as to religion and cult
- Colleges
- Political and social
- Codes of law and regulations
- Laws and plebiscites, senatus consulta, decrees of magistrates or later of emperors
- Records of buildings, etc.
- Military documents
- Treaties and agreements
- Proxeny
- Honorary
- Signatures of artists
- Historical records
- Inscriptions on tombs
- Milestones and boundaries
- Sanskrit inscriptions
- See also
- Related fields of study
- Types of inscription
- Notable inscriptions
- References
- External links
thumb|300px|The Rosetta Stone in the [[British Museum]] thumb|right|300px|Inscription on the pedestal of the statue of Michel Ney from Paris thumb|Tamil inscription on Brihadisvara Temple, Thanjavur|Brihadeshwara temple, Thanjavur, India|301x301px thumbnail|right|300px|Trilingual Xerxes I's inscription at Van|inscription of Xerxes I at Van Fortress in Turkey
Epigraphy () is the study of inscriptions, or epigraphs, as writing; it is the science of identifying graphemes, clarifying their meanings, classifying their uses according to dates and cultural contexts, and drawing conclusions about the writing and the writers.