[Doe22]

The book "The Riddle of the Labyrinth: The Quest to Crack an Ancient Code" by Margalit Fox is about the deciphering of the Mycenaean Linear B script. One of the striking (to me) things described in the book was how they even figured out how many different characters there were in the script. That image instantly reminded of their description.

Imagine looking at the handwriting of thousands of different people writing a script you don't understand. Some people are sloppy, some precise. Everyone has their own distinctive way of writing and you have to figure out exactly which differences in the characters are actually meaningful. Add in the fact that the writing samples you have span several centuries and changes in writing style and language occurred over that time. Deciphering a script like that is a staggeringly difficult task.

[walterbell]

There's a PBS documentary on deciphering the glyphs of the lost Mayan language. The modern Mayans now teach the lost language in schools, http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=H5ppfC6y-5s. Corresponding book: "Breaking the Maya Code", http://www.amazon.com/Breaking-Maya-Code-Third-Michael/dp/05...