Venda History of Writing, 2nd series

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This cover is postmarked on 11-05-1983 in Sibasa. It carries the second set in Venda's History of Writing series, tracing the development of full writing systems from Sumerian cuneiform around 3100 BC through to Chinese script, with stamps depicting the Indus Valley script, Sumerian cuneiform, Egyptian hieroglyphics and a Chinese handscroll. The accompanying text notes that Egyptian and Hittite cursive forms retained a pictorial character right through to the end of their use, unlike other systems that evolved toward purely phonetic representation.

Description of the Cachet

The cachet shows a carved relief figure of a seated Egyptian scribe, chisel and mallet in hand, working on a stone tablet, rendered in warm sandstone tones against a pale background. "THE HISTORY OF WRITING" runs in bold black type beneath the illustration, alongside a small black Venda elephant emblem. The four stamps trace the history of writing across cultures: Indus Valley script, Sumerian cuneiform, Egyptian hieroglyphics and a Chinese handscroll, each illustrated in a style matching the artifact it depicts. Two Sibasa postmarks, each shaped around an ancient Egyptian Eye of Horus motif, mark the release date. This is the second instalment in Venda's History of Writing series, moving from the prehistoric marks and petroglyphs of the first set into the fully developed writing systems of the ancient Mediterranean and Asian world.

Information Card

THE HISTORY OF WRITING SECOND SET OF THE SERIES The first full systems of writing originated in the civilizations that extended from the shores of the Mediterranean Sea to the Pacific, including Egypt and the area surrounding the Aegean Sea. These systems were as follows: Sumerian in Mesopotamia, 3100 BC – 75 AD Proto-Indic in the Indus Valley, 3000 BC – 1500 BC Cretan in Crete and Greece, 2000 BC – present Hittite in Anatolia and Syria, 1500 BC – 700 BC Egyptian in Egypt, 3200 BC – 1200 BC Chinese in China, around 2200 BC Like cuneiform, the Chinese too had a "square script" and its history is too, to have been a result of linguistic forms. The word sign, e.g. a picture of the sun could also stand for "bright", "white" or "day". This principle spread rapidly and led to the expression of all linguistic forms by means of rules, and to the actual learning of the forms and principles of writing. Sumerian, Egyptian, Hittite and Chinese cursive writing systems developed two forms of cursive writing, namely heretic and demotic. It appears to have been a word-syllabic system throughout its history. It also developed public buildings and monuments as well as the more decorative form known as Egyptian hieroglyphics. The Sumerian, Egyptian, Hittite and Chinese writing systems all changed through the use of numerals, objects and personal names, viz. a writing system is not as clear as those of the linear forms into non-pictorial writings. The Egyptian and Hittite cursive forms even retained their pictorial character to the very end. The characteristic wedge shape is due to natural pressure of the stylus in the clay, hence the name cuneiform writing, derived from the Latin word cuneus, meaning wedge. This stage of the expression of numerals, objects and personal names, viz. a writing is known as logography or word signs. This is the expression of materials such as stone and metal. The archaeological discovery of the Sumerian, developed in the early 19th century was well illustrated by the "topography" and the evolution of a secondary association development was the evolution of a secondary association. AURORA 1/82/2/145

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