Write and read Middle Egyptian hieroglyphs. By Larry Dalton.
A local Windows studio that turns Egyptian words, English and names into hieroglyphs, and reads hieroglyphs back from SVGs and images.
Download for Windows · How it works · Reader and test results · Credits and licences
| Input | What happens |
|---|---|
Egyptian (nfr, ꜥnḫ wḏꜣ snb) |
Each word is looked up in a list of 4,107 Middle Egyptian words and written with its dictionary spelling, including the silent meaning sign (determinative) at the end. |
Sign codes (nfr-f:r, <-ra-mn:n-xpr->) |
Exact signs in the Manuel de Codage, the standard Egyptological keyboard code: : stacks, * sets side by side, <- -> makes a cartouche. |
English (The king sees the god.) |
Words come from the dictionary; sentences get a rule-based Middle Egyptian draft: verb first, then subject and object (mꜣꜣ nswt nṯr), pronoun endings, adjectives after nouns, jnk sentences, negation. Every draft shows its confidence. |
Names (Larry Dalton) |
Written by sound with the one-consonant signs, in a cartouche or with a seated man or woman. The lion writes l, as in the Ptolemaic cartouches; Cleopatra, Ptolemy and Alexander use their ancient spellings. |
You choose the direction: left to right, right to left, or columns facing either way. Signs are grouped into square blocks, as the scribes did, and always face the start of the line.
Output can be exported as SVG or PNG, copied as sign codes, or copied as Unicode hieroglyphs with the Unicode block controls (U+13430 and U+13431).
- SVG: read exactly from the sign outlines (never from the embedded metadata), including blocks, cartouches and direction.
- PNG and JPEG: each sign is matched against all 1,075 NewGardiner signs, facing both ways; multi-piece signs (plural strokes, water lines, grains) are joined; blocks, lines and words are rebuilt, and close calls are checked against the dictionary.
- Unicode: paste Unicode hieroglyphs to get the sign codes and word readings.
| Test | Result |
|---|---|
| Every dictionary spelling (4,068) in 2,464 SVGs across all four directions | 2,464 / 2,464 same signs in the same places (2,452 with identical code; 12 grids of repeated strokes come back grouped the other way, which draws the same) |
| 150 new random texts as PNG/JPEG, 0.6× to 2×, four colour schemes, all four directions | 119 / 150 exact; 3 more had every sign right with different grouping; 17 of the 31 misses were flagged as uncertain |
| Images that are not hieroglyphs | 7 / 7 refused |
| Built-in self-test, through the PowerShell server, in the studio page | 18 passed, 0 failed |
Image reading is the hardest part: with over a thousand signs, some are near-identical or mirror images of each other. Use SVG for exact results. Details: docs/READER.md.
Option 1: setup program. Download HieroglyphStudio-Setup.exe from the latest release and run it.
- Installs for your Windows account only; no administrator rights needed.
- Runs at http://localhost:8767/ and starts when you sign in. (pIqaD Studio uses 8766 and Heptapod L Studio 8765, so all three can run together.)
- Puts the infographic on your Desktop and adds a Start-menu entry and an uninstaller in Settings → Apps.
The setup program is not code-signed, so SmartScreen may warn: choose More info → Run anyway.
Option 2: ZIP. Download HieroglyphStudio-Package.zip, extract it and double-click Install.cmd.
Both run the same checked install: back up any previous version, free port 8767 only if the previous Hieroglyph Studio holds it, copy the files, start the server, verify the page, engine, sign outlines, word list, sign table, font and folder protection over HTTP, and restore the previous version if anything fails.
Run from source: powershell -ExecutionPolicy Bypass -File src\server.ps1 -Open
Everything runs on your computer. No internet connection, no cloud services, no AI.
- English drafts are rule-based. Single dictionary words are dependable; sentences are a starting point, not fluent translation.
- Egyptian was written without vowels, so names written by sound are approximations and read back as sounds, not spellings.
- The image reader expects the NewGardiner sign shapes used by the studio; it does not read photographs of monuments or handwriting.
- Grammar covers common Middle Egyptian patterns, not the full language.
src/server.ps1 Local web server (Windows PowerShell 5.1), http://localhost:8767/
src/app/ Studio: index.html, engine.js, data/, fonts/, licenses/
installer/ Install.ps1, Uninstall.ps1, NSIS script, ZIP launcher, icon
infographics/ How it works
tools/ Data builders (signs, word list, outlines, pronunciations) and the infographic generator
test/ Node and browser test harnesses
docs/ How it works, reader notes, images
- Signs: NewGardiner font © Mark-Jan Nederhof, SIL Open Font License 1.1.
- Sign data: Unikemet, Unicode Character Database.
- Words: Wiktionary Egyptian entries (via kaikki.org), CC BY-SA 4.0. Word frequencies: Thesaurus Linguae Aegyptiae, Berlin-Brandenburg Academy of Sciences and Humanities, CC BY-SA 4.0.
- Pronunciations: CMU Pronouncing Dictionary, BSD licence.
The word list (src/app/data/lexicon.json) is shared under CC BY-SA 4.0. See NOTICE.md.
Hieroglyph Studio was created by Larry Dalton. Studio software © 2026 Larry Dalton. Third-party components keep their own licences.