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[[File:Athanasius Kircher.jpg|400px|thumb|Engraving of Athanasius Kircher]] | [[File:Athanasius Kircher.jpg|400px|thumb|Engraving of Athanasius Kircher]] | ||
'''Athanasius Kircher''' (2 May 1602 – 27 November 1680) was a German Jesuit scholar and polymath who published around 40 major works, most notably in the fields of comparative religion, geology, and medicine. Kircher has been compared to fellow Jesuit Roger Joseph Boscovich and to Leonardo da Vinci for his enormous range of interests, and has been | '''Athanasius Kircher''' (2 May 1602 – 27 November 1680) was a German Jesuit scholar and polymath who published around 40 major works, most notably in the fields of comparative religion, geology, and medicine. Kircher has been compared to fellow Jesuit Roger Joseph Boscovich and to Leonardo da Vinci for his enormous range of interests, and has been honored with the title "Master of a Hundred Arts." He taught for more than 40 years at the Roman College, where he set up a ''wunderkammer''. | ||
A resurgence of interest in Kircher has occurred within the scholarly community in recent decades. | A resurgence of interest in Kircher has occurred within the scholarly community in recent decades. | ||
==Egyptology== | ==Egyptology== | ||
Kircher claimed to have deciphered the hieroglyphic writing of the ancient Egyptian language, but most of his assumptions and translations in this field were later found to be incorrect. He did, however, correctly establish the link between the ancient Egyptian and the Coptic languages, and some commentators regard him as the founder of Egyptology. Kircher was also fascinated with Sinology and wrote an encyclopedia of China, in which he noted the early presence there of Nestorian Christians while also attempting to establish links with Egypt and Christianity. | Kircher claimed to have deciphered the hieroglyphic writing of the ancient Egyptian language, but most of his assumptions and translations in this field were later found to be incorrect. He did, however, correctly establish the link between the ancient Egyptian and the Coptic languages, and some commentators regard him as the founder of [[Egyptian religion|Egyptology]]. Kircher was also fascinated with Sinology and wrote an encyclopedia of China, in which he noted the early presence there of Nestorian Christians while also attempting to establish links with Egypt and [[Christianity]]. | ||
Kircher's interest in Egyptology began in 1628 when he became intrigued by a collection of hieroglyphs in the library at Speyer. He learned Coptic in 1633 and published the first grammar of that language in 1636, the ''Prodromus coptus sive aegyptiacus''. Kircher then broke with Horapollon's interpretation of the language of the hieroglyphs with his ''Lingua aegyptiaca restituta''. Kircher argued that Coptic preserved the last development of ancient Egyptian. For this Kircher has been considered the true "founder of Egyptology", because his work was conducted "before the discovery of the Rosetta Stone rendered Egyptian hieroglyphics comprehensible to scholars." He also recognized the relationship between hieratic and hieroglyphic scripts. | Kircher's interest in Egyptology began in 1628 when he became intrigued by a collection of hieroglyphs in the library at Speyer. He learned Coptic in 1633 and published the first grammar of that language in 1636, the ''Prodromus coptus sive aegyptiacus''. Kircher then broke with Horapollon's interpretation of the language of the hieroglyphs with his ''Lingua aegyptiaca restituta''. Kircher argued that Coptic preserved the last development of ancient Egyptian. For this Kircher has been considered the true "founder of Egyptology", because his work was conducted "before the discovery of the Rosetta Stone rendered Egyptian hieroglyphics comprehensible to scholars." He also recognized the relationship between hieratic and hieroglyphic scripts. | ||
Between 1650 and 1654, Kircher published four volumes of "translations" of hieroglyphs in the context of his Coptic studies. However, according to Steven Frimmer, "none of them even remotely fitted the original texts". In ''[[Oedipus Aegyptiacus]]'', Kircher argued under the impression of the Hieroglyphica that ancient Egyptian was the language spoken by Adam and Eve, that [[Hermes Trismegistus]] was Moses, and that hieroglyphs were [[occult]] symbols which "cannot be translated by words, but expressed only by marks, characters and figures." This led him to translate simple hieroglyphic texts now known to read as ''ḏd Wsr'' ("[[Osiris]] says") as "The treachery of Typhon ends at the throne of Isis; the moisture of nature is guarded by the vigilance of [[Anubis]]." | Between 1650 and 1654, Kircher published four volumes of "translations" of hieroglyphs in the context of his Coptic studies. However, according to Steven Frimmer, "none of them even remotely fitted the original texts". In ''[[Oedipus Aegyptiacus]]'', Kircher argued under the impression of the ''Hieroglyphica'' that ancient Egyptian was the language spoken by Adam and Eve, that [[Hermes Trismegistus]] was Moses, and that hieroglyphs were [[occult]] symbols which "cannot be translated by words, but expressed only by marks, characters and figures." This led him to translate simple hieroglyphic texts now known to read as ''ḏd Wsr'' ("[[Osiris]] says") as "The treachery of Typhon ends at the throne of Isis; the moisture of nature is guarded by the vigilance of [[Anubis]]." | ||
==Legacy== | ==Legacy== | ||