The Bashplemi Lake Tablet was found near Lake Bashplemi in the Dmanisi region of Georgia. Made of basalt and thought to date to around the first millennium BCE, it is inscribed with a previously unknown writing system, 60 characters in length.
Discovery
The tablet was found in 2021 by a group of local fishermen.
The tablet's archaeological context suggests it dates back to the Late Bronze Age or Early Iron Age.
Description
The tablet measures 24.1 by 20.1 cm and seems to be made from locally sourced vesicular basalt.
The carving was made with a conical drill and then smoothed.
Symbols
There are 39 unique characters in seven horizontal lines. They show some similarities with other early scripts, particularly the proto-Kartvelian script, but also the Colchian runes, the Grakliani Hill script and Mrgvlovani.
References
- ^ Shegelia, Ramaz; Gordeziani, Levan; et al. (2024). "Discovery Of Unknown Script Characters In Georgia: The Bashplemi Lake Tablet". Journal of Ancient History and Archaeology. 11 (3): 96–113. doi:10.14795/j.v11i3.1035 (inactive 30 December 2024). Retrieved 30 December 2024.
{{cite journal}}: CS1 maint: DOI inactive as of December 2024 (link) - ^ Radley, Dario (4 December 2024). "Mysterious tablet with unknown language unearthed in Georgia". Archaeology News Online Magazine. Retrieved 7 December 2024.
- Carvajal, Guillermo (26 November 2024). "An ancient inscription from the Late Bronze Age in an unknown language found in Georgia in the Caucasus". LBV Magazine English Edition. Retrieved 7 December 2024.
- "Archaeologists Uncover 14,000-Year-Old Tablet With Unknown Language". The Pinnacle Gazette. Retrieved 7 December 2024.
- ^ "Researchers suggest a basalt slab's unknown symbols may be from a lost mythological system". The Jerusalem Post. 5 December 2024. Retrieved 7 December 2024.