Macalister — The Inscription on the Phaestos Disc, 343 



symbol, for convenience of reference and typography, and that no attempt is 

 made to determine the actual sound which the characters conveyed to those 

 whom the tablet originally concerned. To one character, a head with a 

 plumed head-dress, I give the special distinguishing mark of a capital M 

 (the initial of "man"). The others are called by ordinary small letters 

 till the alphabet is exhausted; then by such Greek letters as possess 

 individuality. The following is a list of the characters, with the letters 

 assigned to them : — 



Hitman Figures and their Parts. 



1. Head with plumed head-dress, M (19)' 



2. Man wearing loin-cloth, running, left arm raised, .... a (11) 



3. Man walking, nude, arms bound behind hack, . . . . b (1) 



4. Small figure clad in shirt reaching to waist, c (1) 



5. Woman with long hair, in skirt and bodice, d (4) 



6. Head, shaved, with ear-ring (?) on the side, . . . . . e (2) 



7. Hand clasped holding a ces^jfs (?), t (b) 



8. Hand open (?) or a vase (?), g (2) 



9. A breast (?) (or a skull-cap with button) h (IS) 



10. A dotted triangle, . . i (1) 



Ariimal Figures and their Parts. 



11. Bird with wings closed, j (3) 



12. Bird with wings open k (5) 



13. Fish, 1 (6) 



14. Insect, m (3) 



15. Cat's head n (11) 



16. Eam's head, o (1) 



17. Cow's hoof, p (2) 



18. Horn q (6) 



19. Bone, r (2) 



20. Hide, expanded, s (15) 



Plants and their Parts. 



21. Cypress tree, conventionalized, ....... t (6) 



22. Branch with expanding flower at end and leaves at sides, . . u (4) 



23. Trunk with two branches, v (4) 



24. Branch with five leaves, w (11) 



25. Flower with triple petal, ^ (■*) 



26. Eosette with eight petals, . . y (4) 



Geographical Symbols. 



27. Two mountains (more probably fetter or handcuff), . . . z (2) 



28. Water (?) P (6) 



' These numoera denote the frequency with which the various characters occur. 



