I got this good-condition hardcover from Better World Books. It's about the history of the discovery and attempt to decipher Linear B, found in ancient ruins in Crete, an endeavor long thought impossible - but the contributions of several people led to its deciphering, though not without much tribulation for those involved.

The book includes detailed explanations of how one might go about analyzing an unknown script in an unknown language, with extensive charts and graphs to show simplified versions of the process used by Alice Kober, an American scholar who put in amazing work in graphing the known inscriptions - and whose untimely death prevented her from the recognition she deserved. (I adored the excerpts of her letters, both professional and personal; she sounds a lot like Harriet Vane, from Dorothy Sayers' "Lord Peter" novels - or perhaps like Sayers herself, of whom Harriet was an obvious expy. A brilliant scholar, often at odds with societal expectations, and with a wonderfully tart way of expressing herself...)

Her work laid a foundation for a brilliant young architect, Michael Ventris, to make the final leap to the correct interpretation of the script - though he had his own issues and also died far too young, after finding that his passion for deciphering the script cost him his original career.

Fascinating in many respects, for the science, the history, and the biographies of the main players!

I left this little book in the Little Free Library on this bright but chilly day; hope someone enjoys it!

[See other recent releases in NH here.]

*** Released for the 2018 The The release challenge. ***