Hieroglyphic Alphabet from Kircher's Turris Babel

Athanasius Kircher was a Jesuit polymath who worked on many ancient languages and specifically on the decipherment of Egyptian hieroglyphs. In this work, the Turris Babel or "Tower of Babel," Kircher recounts the history of language, taking as inspiration the biblical story of the Tower of Babel. The Egyptian language, with its hieroglyphs, fits into Kircher's interpretation as preserving the pre-flood language of Adam through its mystical symbolisms.