Search

[German version] is the name given to the merging of the individual letters of a word to ‘one’ ( móno(n)) ‘character’ ( grámma), involving a change of their original order. Sometimes the individual elements of the monogram need to be read more than once, sometimes only in part. Hence many monograms are ambiguous or indecipherable (g). Monograms are found more frequently in Greek than in Latin texts. The basic forms used are squares (a; b; e) and (from the 6th cent. AD onwards) crosses (c; d; f), less often triangles …

I. Ancient Orient [German version] A. General In the more restricted sense, inscriptions are texts - usually of monumental character - that, because of their function, are intended to last, as well as texts that are written on other-than-usual writing materials, e.g. clay tablets,  papyrus,  ostraka, etc. Inscriptions are closely tied to other texts by commonalities of writing, form and content. Therefore, despite specific research efforts, ancient oriental epigraphy has not developed as an independent…