366 ANTIQUITY OP WRITING. 



to remember the power of the symbolic mark : whereas before, the 

 properties of the thing or animal delineated were to be learnt. 

 Tliis, together with their oiher marks by institution to design men- 

 tal conceptions, would reduce the characters to (he present state of 

 the Chinese*; and these were properly what the ancients call 

 hierographic-al. Dr. Robert Huntington, in his account of the 

 Porphyry Pillars tells us, that there are yel some ancient monu- 

 nn n(s of this kind of writing remaining in Egypt t. 



Apuleius | describes the sacred book, or ritual of the Egyptians 

 (as partly written in symbolic, and partly in these liierographic cha- 

 racters of arbitrary institution, resembling the Chinese) in the fol- 

 lowing manner. '* He (the hierophant) drew out certain books 

 from the secret repositories of the sanctuary, written in unknown 

 characters, which contained the words of the sacred formula com- 

 pendiously expressed, partly by figures of animals, and partly by 

 certain marks or notes intricately knotted, revolving in the manner 

 of a wheel, and crowded together, and curled inward like the ten. 

 drils of a vine, so as to hide the meaning from the curiosity of the 

 profane." These hierographic characters are mixed with the sym- 

 bolic in the ritual of Apuleius, and in the Bembine tables, as like- 

 wise on several of the obelisks, where they are found mixed both 

 with the proper hieroglyphic and with the symbolic. 



That letters were of great antiquity among the Egyptians, may 

 reasonably be supposed, because we have indubitable proofs of their 

 civilization ; but there is strong evidence to induce us to believe 

 they were not the first inventors of an alphabet. Mr. Jackson , 

 with great learning endeavours to shew, that letters were not in. 

 vented or carried into Egypt by Taaut, or Thoth, the first Hermes 

 and son of Misraim, who lived about five hundred years after the 

 delude : but that they were introduced into that country by the 

 second Hermes, who lived about four hundred years after the 

 former. The second Hermes is by Plato called Theuth, who also 

 styles him Counsellor and Sacred Scribe to King Tliamus. Dio. 



These arbitrary marks, or marks by institution, srem to have led (he war 

 to what is railed Nolae, or Short-hand. The notes of thnrt-hand are marks for 

 words, nod the notes of hieroglyphics are mnrks for things. 



t See his Account of the Porphyry Pillars, Philosoph. Transact. No. clii. 

 p. 624. 



J Mr tamorphoM s lib. ii. where he speaks of his initiation into the mysteries 

 of Isis. 



^ See Chronological Antiquities, vol. iii. p. 9395. 



