Page:Discovery and Decipherment of the Trilingual Cuneiform Inscriptions.djvu/199

 'Magasin Encyclopédique' of Millin. It was subsequently reported in the well-known Vienna periodical, the 'Fundgruben des Orients'; and in 1815 Grotefend had the opportunity of explaining the matter in his own words in an appendix to Heeren's 'Historical Researches.'

The careful investigations of Münter were found of great service by his more successful follower. Műnter had already pointed out that the inscriptions belonged without doubt to the period of the Achaemenian dvnasty; that the words were separated from each other by a diagonal wedge, and that the writing ran from left to right. He had directed special attention to the word of seven letters, and to the fact that it preceded in many cases another identical to it but terminating with some unknown grammatical inflexion. He had suggested that the former probably signified some such title as 'king of kings' and that the royal name must be looked for in the word that precedes it, an opinion he only abandoned in view of the difficulties already explained.