Coptic, Armenian, and Chinese Alphabet

Jan Luyken, 1690

The Jesuits firmly believed that ancient Chinese characters were derived from Egyptian hieroglyphs. In this illustration, Chinese characters are depicted alongside the Coptic and Armenian alphabets. The ‘exotic’ Chinese script was often used in the form of illegible decoration on Delftware.

  • Artwork typeprint, boekillustratie
  • Object numberRP-P-1896-A-19368-821
  • Dimensionsheight 284 mm x width 183 mm
  • Physical characteristicsets