But not everyone is convinced by the discovery, and maintain that proto-Sinaitic script is the oldest known alphabet, which is a specific kind of writing system. "I think [the Umm el-Marra ...

The Greek alphabet, believed to have emerged in the eighth century BC, is undergoing reevaluation by Leiden University.

yet they were simpler than the beautiful pictorial Egyptian script on the temple walls. The Petries recognized the signs as an alphabet, though decoding the letters would take another decade ...