The Rosetta Stone was crucial in deciphering Egyptian hieroglyphs because it contained a decree from 196 BCE written in three different scripts: hieroglyphs, Demotic, and ancient Greek. Since scholars were already familiar with ancient Greek, they could use the Greek text as a reference to decode the other two scripts. French scholar Jean-Francois Champollion was the first to crack the code in 1822, which ultimately paved the way for a deeper understanding of ancient Egyptian history, culture, and language.
You are a historian specializing in ancient civilizations. Can you explain the importance of the Rosetta Stone in understanding the Egyptian hieroglyphs?