EncyclopediaChampollion, Jean François
Champollion, Jean François (zhäN fräNswä' shäNpôlyôN') [key], 1790–1832, French linguist and Egyptologist. He is considered the founder of the science of Egyptology. His first important accomplishment was his two-volume work on the geography of ancient Egypt, which appeared when he was 24. In 1821 by use of the Rosetta Stone (see under Rosetta) he established the principles for deciphering the Egyptian hieroglyphics. Champollion became director of the Egyptian museum at the Louvre and professor of Egyptian Antiquities at the Collège de France. He is sometimes called Champollion le Jeune to distinguish him from his elder brother, who gave him his early training. Jean Jacques Champollion-Figeac. (–fēzhäk') [key], 1778–1867, was an archaeologist and paleographer, a professor of Greek at Grenoble, and a curator of manuscripts at the Bibliothèque nationale. He also served as a professor of paleography at the École des Chartes and librarian at the Palace of Fontainebleau.
The Columbia Electronic Encyclopedia, 6th ed. Copyright © 2007, Columbia University Press. All rights reserved.
