The Phaistos Disc

What is it? This enigmatic fired-clay disc, dating to around 1700-1600 BC, was discovered in the palace of Phaistos on the Greek island of Crete. It is 16.5cm in diameter, 2.1cm thick, and its two faces bear 45 different pictographic signs – a total of 241 symbols – spiralling from the edge to the centre within incised bands. Vertical hand-carved lines group the symbols into sets of two to seven, probably forming single words or syllables. Image: C Messier/Wikimedia Commons. The signs of the Phaistos Disc were impressed with individual stamps, as in modern typography, although in some instances the same symbol was produced multiple times using different stamps. The maker of the