Interview with a Sphinx: Deciphering Lost’s Hieroglyphs
johncabrera Hey folks! Glad u stopped by. As promised we’ll B crackin the Lost temple glyphs 2day! Resdent egyptologyst @edrafalko‘s w/us. Ed how R u?
about now from the Sahara Desert
edrafalko Fine thanks.
about now from the Sahara Desert in reply to johncabrera- johncabrera And it looks like this post may have to be in 2 parts because Ed is still working on some of the glyphs. Right, Ed?
about now from the Sahara Desert in reply to edrafalko - edrafalko It’s a very tricky process.
about now from the Sahara Desert in reply to johncabrera - johncabrera I bet it is. And it’s been a crazy couple weeks for you, too. That big guitar show you had.
about now from the Sahara Desert in reply to edrafalko - edrafalko Yeah, big show.
about now from the Sahara Desert in reply to johncabrera - johncabrera And the subsequent sinus infection.
about now from the Sahara Desert in reply to edrafalko - edrafalko It rocked me. Could barely think.
about now from the Sahara Desert in reply to johncabrera - johncabrera And then did I read something on Twitter about a food experiment gone awry?
about now from the Sahara Desert in reply to edrafalko - edrafalko Yeah, still recovering from that.
about now from the Sahara Desert in reply to johncabrera - johncabrera And then of course your Pyramid Texts.
about now from the Sahara Desert in reply to edrafalko - edrafalko They’re at a friend’s house till Tuesday. They could really help.
about now from the Sahara Desert in reply to johncabrera - johncabrera And finally the C# test you had to start studying for at the last minute.
about now from the Sahara Desert in reply to edrafalko - edrafalko Gotta pass that test man.
about now from the Sahara Desert in reply to johncabrera - johncabrera Uh huh. *sigh* Well, thanks for doing this regardless.
about now from the Sahara Desert in reply to edrafalko - edrafalko I’d be thrilled to do this for you any time.
about now from the Sahara Desert in reply to johncabrera - johncabrera To give this some real authenticity, Ed and I R Tweetin from t/Sahara & both of us R dressed in standard 19th century British explorer garb.
about now from the Sahara Desert in reply to edrafalko - edrafalko um…
about now from the Sahara Desert in reply to johncabrera - johncabrera Now, I’ve only ever known U by UR avatar, Ed, which is typically a sphinx, or a yeti.
about now from the Sahara Desert in reply to edrafalko - edrafalko or a celtic power rune.
about now from the Sahara Desert in reply to johncabrera - johncabrera yes but this is the first time I’m actually seeing you in person. Wow, you look… how to describe it… his head looks kind of like…
about now from the Sahara Desert in reply to edrafalko - edrafalko Teh Chupacabra.
about now from the Sahara Desert in reply to johncabrera - johncabrera … The Chupacabra.
about now from the Sahara Desert in reply to edrafalko - edrafalko Only until teh end of June.
about now from the Sahara Desert in reply to johncabrera - johncabrera ……… you are a very odd, dude.
about now from the Sahara Desert in reply to edrafalko - edrafalko For the second half of the year, I’ll be disguised as a crop circle.
about now from the Sahara Desert in reply to johncabrera - johncabrera A crop..? How are you gonna…? Nevermind. Let’s just dive in. So, you’ve taken a look at the pictures?
about now from the Sahara Desert in reply to edrafalko - edrafalko I have.
about now from the Sahara Desert in reply to johncabrera - johncabrera btw, 4 everyone who doesn’t know, Ed dove in2 this w/ very little context. He knows nothing about Lost. Never seen a single episode. Have u?
about now from the Sahara Desert in reply to edrafalko - edrafalko God no.
about now from the Sahara Desert in reply to johncabrera - johncabrera Careful.
about now from the Sahara Desert in reply to edrafalko 
- johncabrera So 2 images here. top is a wide of the chamber, pillar in the backgrnd. Bottom is t/ next shot of the pillar facing it that Ben reads.
about now from the Sahara Desert in reply to edrafalko - edrafalko And they actually appear to be teh exact same text.
about now from the Sahara Desert in reply to johncabrera - johncabrera Well then break it down for us. What exactly are we looking at here? Or actually 1st, which way do you read this?
about now from the Sahara Desert in reply to edrafalko - edrafalko Well, you read teh glyphs from top to bottom, left to right. These pillars display three columns.
about now from the Sahara Desert in reply to johncabrera - johncabrera okay.
about now from the Sahara Desert in reply to edrafalko - edrafalko and it seems to be an offering prayer, but I can’t make out who to. Teh exact phrase is ‘the ones of the west’.
about now from the Sahara Desert in reply to johncabrera - johncabrera Ones of the west? The ones maybe who came from the west? Like the west coast. Part of the story takes place in LA.
about now from the Sahara Desert in reply to edrafalko - edrafalko No no, to an old Egyptian that means someone who has died, who now lives in the realm of teh sunset- sun setting in teh west, and all that.
about now from the Sahara Desert in reply to johncabrera - johncabrera That’s a great image.
about now from the Sahara Desert in reply to edrafalko - edrafalko Anyway, lot of these glyphs R hard 2 read, meaning I can’t make out enuff detail 2 see what it is.
about now from the Sahara Desert in reply to johncabrera - johncabrera just give it a shot. I’m sure there’s something in there.
about now from the Sahara Desert in reply to edrafalko - edrafalko Okay, well left column says something like “carrying to that which is given to the leader(s) of the ones of the west [can't read].”
about now from the Sahara Desert in reply to johncabrera - johncabrera So the leader of the dead. Ooooooooo, I like it.
about now from the Sahara Desert in reply to edrafalko - edrafalko I actually think it’s referring to past leaders, dead now. An offering.
about now from the Sahara Desert in reply to johncabrera - johncabrera Ahh, okay. Still pretty cool.
about now from the Sahara Desert in reply to edrafalko - edrafalko middle column reads “which (or who) is in front (usually means the leader) seek shelter for entourage from [can't read].”
about now from the Sahara Desert in reply to johncabrera - johncabrera That’s gotta be The Others! They’re seeking shelter in the temple!
about now from the Sahara Desert in reply to edrafalko - edrafalko …
about now from the Sahara Desert in reply to johncabrera - johncabrera Characters on the show. They’re kinda like pirates only they seem 2 know jujitsu. Anyway, they’re totally an entourage. They’re Ben’s posse.
about now from the Sahara Desert in reply to edrafalko - edrafalko ………right column says “leader(s) in the cemetery above.” Hmm… that’s strange.
about now from the Sahara Desert in reply to johncabrera - johncabrera What is?
about now from the Sahara Desert in reply to edrafalko - edrafalko Is this place suppose to be a tomb or something? it’s talking about teh stuff in the cemetery above. I thought you said this was a temple.
about now from the Sahara Desert in reply to johncabrera - johncabrera I did. I mean, it is….. I think.
about now from the Sahara Desert in reply to edrafalko - edrafalko Well if this is a temple 2 a soldier or political officer then they got it right. If it’s a tomb, not really. This is worship language.
about now from the Sahara Desert in reply to johncabrera - johncabrera Maybe it’s both? The show has been talking about “leaders” like crazy lately.
about now from the Sahara Desert in reply to edrafalko - edrafalko Hmm. Tell me more.
about now from the Sahara Desert in reply to johncabrera - johncabrera Well usually Jacob is referred 2 as the leader. Sometimes Ben, sometimes Richard… but now it’s becoming clear that it’s actually Locke.
about now from the Sahara Desert in reply to edrafalko - edrafalko Who’s Locke?
about now from the Sahara Desert in reply to johncabrera - johncabrera John Locke.
about now from the Sahara Desert in reply to edrafalko - edrafalko Teh British philosopher?
about now from the Sahara Desert in reply to johncabrera - johncabrera No the… box company worker…… you know, you sure do that ‘teh’ thing a lot.
about now from the Sahara Desert in reply to edrafalko - edrafalko What thing?
about now from the Sahara Desert in reply to johncabrera 
- johncabrera Okay, so this is a piece from the right side of the pillar Ben’s reading. I’m thinking it’s significant because they lit it so well.
about now from the Sahara Desert in reply to edrafalko - edrafalko Well there’s not much here, but yeah what I can see looks interesting. This is Demotic which is usually only written on paper.
about now from the Sahara Desert in reply to johncabrera - johncabrera Does that mean something?
about now from the Sahara Desert in reply to edrafalko - edrafalko Probably that they were using a paper source written in Demotic and didn’t realize it’s rarely on walls.
about now from the Sahara Desert in reply to johncabrera - johncabrera HA! We got you, Lost! We nailed ur ass!
about now from the Sahara Desert in reply to edrafalko - edrafalko That big glyph there looks like teh Tahuti glyph, cept teh top has been replaced w/ a falcon. Tehuti is teh Lord of Time among other things.
about now from the Sahara Desert in reply to johncabrera - johncabrera Bingoooooo!!!! Baaaango!!! Oingo boingo!!! This show is all about Father Time, yo!
about now from the Sahara Desert in reply to edrafalko - edrafalko In the Book of the Dead he sits on Scales of Judgment weighing teh dead mans heart. He records whether it weighs more than Maat’s Feather.
about now from the Sahara Desert in reply to johncabrera - johncabrera Okay… so… what would happen if it did?
about now from the Sahara Desert in reply to edrafalko - edrafalko Ammit was teh Devourer of teh Heart and he ate it if it weighed more than teh feather of Maat.
about now from the Sahara Desert in reply to johncabrera - johncabrera ……… You really have no idea what I’m talking about with the ‘teh’s?
about now from the Sahara Desert in reply to edrafalko - GO TO PART 2 >>
- johncabrera UPDATE: Please check the comments below for a crazy, amazing new theory by JR Tschopp, based on Ed’s interpretation of “Ones of the West”.
about now from the Sahara Desert
itzel on 28 Apr 2009 at 4:17 am #
LOL I loved this! and it made me laugh too! Ok so a couple of interesting things here, you guys rock! I’m really curious about the thing that maybe it’s a cemetery, maybe there’s where all the Others that have died are buried? maybe even the crew from the Black Rock? And wow!!! about Tehuti, the Lord of Time? yep this has to have some significance with the time travel and all, but also that thing about eating the heart, I don’t know it kinda sounds like Smokey to me… I mean, what if it literally eats the heart of those that have come to life? Lock anyone? Christian? And then, those theories that state that guys that came back to life are somehow “infected” like the french men, and now Locke, maybe could be viable.
This was awesome John! There’s just so more things that we need to know about this complicated show… and I love it!!! Thx edrafalko as well, you’re teh awesome 2! lolz.
Pauline on 28 Apr 2009 at 9:05 am #
So… Smokie is Ammit? It is interesting… I think we always just assumed that smokie was the JUDGE and the executioner. Nice to finally know we were wrong.
Egyptology is so confusing because depending on what you read, different gods have weighed the heart against the feather. Something I read said that Anibus weighed it, Thoth (AKA: Tehuti) recorded it and then Ammit ate if it was heavy. There is a chance that the set design folks used Tehuti’s text because it said what they needed it to say. So if that is the case, we still have a grab bag of gods it could be.
The cemetery above could be a literal cemetery within the walls where the temple is. John, I’m curious why you didn’t tell Ed that the photos were taken from tunnels and rooms UNDER the temple. Time constraints? Yeah, Ed seems like a busy guy.
So… the dead leader stuff. Jacob is what I’m thinking. Or could the text have been referring to the island as more of a figurative cemetery? There are a bunch of dead people running around on it. Past leaders included.
Man this stuff is so subjective.
Great stuff guys! Thanks for doing this Ed. And pardon if my ramblings are uneducated. I’m just a dabbler in this stuff since my Archeology classes in college.
Johnny Hugel on 28 Apr 2009 at 9:20 am #
Very interesting, good job you two.
John Cabrera on 28 Apr 2009 at 8:58 pm #
P, actually, the area that Ben and Locke are traveling through isn’t the Temple at all. It’s the wall around the Temple. That includes the level that Richard took little Ben into, the lower level that Locke and Ben were walking through before the floor fell, and the even lower level Ben fell into. If you remember, before they even entered, Ben told Locke and Sun that the Temple itself was over a mile past that wall. And I did tell Ed that. We actually discussed a bit about whether this might be a labyrinth style protective barrier. I’m still unclear whether Ben meant that the Temple was over a mile away once they cleared the barrier, or if the barrier itself was over a mile thick.
Regardless, I think the cemetery above refers to the island more than an actual cemetery. More of a metaphor. But the image of there being a cemetery is pretty cool.
Anyway, there was a lot from our correspondence that I left out of this post. Some of it I hope to include in a part 2 if it gels with anymore of Ed’s findings. But that, of course, hinges on whether Ed finds anything else… or if Ed ends up having a dentist appointment this week.
Ed R on 28 Apr 2009 at 9:23 pm #
No dental appointment- no insurance;)
Pauline on 28 Apr 2009 at 10:18 pm #
My bad… by “under the temple” I meant under the temple including the grounds. I’m more familiar with Chinese temples which include the whole area within the walls. In Ukiah, up here in Mendo County, is one of the first Chinese Zen Buddhist temples in the United States with one of the largest Buddhist communities in this Hemisphere. It’s called “The City of 10,000 Buddhas” and it’s grounds used to be a county metal hospital. It’s over 400 acres and people around here just refer to it as “The Temple.”
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/City_of_Ten_Thousand_Buddhas
It has a great vegan restaurant but is super creepy. Weird energy left over from the mental hospital IMO.
But anyway… through your post it just looks like you told him that they were in a temple. I didn’t know there was much discussion on where they actually were and the context on the show.
Also, I assumed that they were not on the same level that Richard took Ben into but below that level. *shrugs*
Looking forward to more!
John Cabrera on 28 Apr 2009 at 10:27 pm #
Yeah, exactly. That’s what I meant. 3 levels. Richard and little Ben on the top level. Ben and Locke on the middle level. And Ben fell through to the lower level. But who knows… maybe there are even more levels. This is fascinating on so many levels.
Pauline on 28 Apr 2009 at 10:42 pm #
Levels! HA!
I like your idea of a labyrinth though. Didn’t Ben actually use the world “within” when he said that the temple was a half mile away… “a half mile within the wall”?
Maybe Richard took Ben literally inside the wall that is like a corridor that makes up a big labyrinth and he walked the whole half mile to get Ben to the temple to heal him?
But now I’m just talking crazy.
John Cabrera on 28 Apr 2009 at 10:52 pm #
Itz, I also really love your observation that a bunch of characters we’ve met (Frenchmen, Christian) seem cold… almost heartless. Like their hearts are gone. Maybe even Locke too.
Kelli on 29 Apr 2009 at 12:39 pm #
Is it possible that Richard never healed Ben and when he said he’d be different he actually meant that his heart might be eaten? Maybe Ben has always been “dead,” or as dead as one can be on Lost. Also, I wonder how any of this ties into the healing powers of the island, for example John’s legs, John being shot and left for dead, Rose’s cancer, etc. Could this be the hearts that are lighter than the feather being “saved” and therefore given new life, rather than being eaten? Were they waiting for a leader who’s heart was not too heavy and that is why John was the best candidate? I always enjoy your posts and discussions on Lost. There are so many details to the show and it’s fun to try to really break them down. Finally, luvs teh lolz!
JR Tschopp on 29 Apr 2009 at 12:54 pm #
I find it interesting that one of the glyphs mentioned “the ones from the west.” I know that is typically a reference to the land of the dead, but I’ve read a couple articles by Fortean authors that posit that its initial meaning was for Atlantis and that over time as the memory of Atlantis faded in Egyptian memory, it began symbolizing the dead. Not saying I buy it, but it’s the kind of idea I’d draw from if I was the writer of a paranormal/sci-fi drama.
John Cabrera on 29 Apr 2009 at 1:19 pm #
JR, HOLY!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Have you read the second part of my first Lost post here at my blog?
JR Tschopp on 29 Apr 2009 at 1:59 pm #
I’d read a bunch of your posts, but hadn’t made it that far yet. I definitely like the idea of the Island as Atlantis and started thinking along those lines as soon as I saw the giant statue earlier this season (wrote up a piece on it here: http://jrtschopp.com/index/?p=392 ) It just seems to fit and I definitely think you’re on to something with your theories. Definitely good stuff.
Dominy on 29 Apr 2009 at 2:16 pm #
Well, thanks to Ed, I think I’ll have to start watching the show again. I think you’ve piqued my interest. After the polar bear thing I was a bit put off.
Bennu on 29 Apr 2009 at 3:33 pm #
Hmmm…interesting.
John Cabrera on 29 Apr 2009 at 6:21 pm #
Bennu! I’m glad you stopped by. Ur name is legendary round these parts. And by that I mean Ed mentioned your Egyptological prowess during our correspondence. What do you make of some of these glyphers?
who’s john cabrera? » I Gott… I don’t know… Lost? on 30 Apr 2009 at 11:41 pm #
[...] and Part 2 of my Deciphering Lost’s Hieroglyphs series is coming [...]
who’s john cabrera? » Interview with a Sphinx: Deciphering Lost’s Hieroglyphs Pt. 2 on 06 May 2009 at 11:36 pm #
[...] Hey Folks, welcome back. If you missed Part 1, here it is – http://johncabrera.com/?p=1435about now from the Sahara [...]
who’s john cabrera? » Follow a Compass When You’re Lost on 08 May 2009 at 9:47 pm #
[...] archaic stuff in the underground tunnels; more hieroglyphics . If you’ve had a chance to read my two part post on deciphering the Lost hieroglyphs, you know that all the pillars down there have the same 4 sets [...]
who’s john cabrera? » Sketchy Temple Glyphs on 12 May 2009 at 7:54 pm #
[...] new set was actually our second grouping from Part 1. But that’s still good news, because all we really got from that pillar side was the big [...]