characters had received these small mutations, the old Roman letters might be easily derived from them, for they were thus written :— ANCIENT LATIN. A B C D E F IK L M No G H P Q R S T V X Y Z Another Form. ABG DEFCH 1 K L M N O P Q R S T V X Y Z A ཆ T Another Form In use about the Christian Era: B B C D E F G H K L M N O P Q R S T V x r z The first was in use seven hundred years before CHRIST, except those letters marked with a x, which have been added since. Time, and the improvement of good hands, brought the characters of both languages to a more exact shape, as may be seen by comparing the letters in Scaliger's copy of the Tripods at Thebes, and the Inscription on Herod's pillar, with the common Roman letters. It may perhaps be entertaining to the Reader to see copies of some of the ancient inscriptions: I have therefore taken copies of the Sigean, and of the inscriptions on the base of the Statue of Jupiter Urius, with a fac simile of the Codex Alexandrinus, in which the Reader may see instances of what we have been treating of, if he has not at hand the works of better writers. The Sigean Inscription, from which, according to Dr. Chishull, the ancient Greek alphabet has been taken, which is found p. 229. EYZI: EAMAETIPA2+ In modern characters thus: Φανοδικό : ειμι : το η- αν : ες πρυτανείον : κα Verbal Translation: Phanodici sum, filii Hermocratis Proconesii. Et ego Craterem et Crateris Basin et Colum ad Prytaneum dedi memoriæ ergò Sigeis. Siquid verò patiar curare me jubeo Sigeos. Et fecit me Esopus atque fratres. CHISHULL, p. 4. The preceding is a fac simile of the most ancient part of the Sigean Inscription; the reading of which, in the common small Greek letter, is given below, observing, that every second line of the original is read from right to left; which manner of writing was called Bourgondo, as imitating the turn of the oxen at the end of each furrow. The union of the European and Eastern manner of writing in the same piece was very rarely used after the time of Solon, who probably adopted it to give his laws an air of antiquity. We cannot imitate this manner of writing without types cast on purpose, which appears to be unnecessary, as the original is given. This is that part of the inscription which was copied after Simonides had completed the Greek alphabet, and is as follows, reading every second line from right to left: Φανοδικο εμι τορμοκ ωροκόννη στο κρητηρ αι ήθμον ες τ ευσιν. Phanodici terem vero et Hypocraterium Sigeis. |