the Rosetta Stone, is to have its little known gay history explored on public tours for the first time by the British Museum.The stone is known for its crucial role in giving the scholars Jean-François Champollion and Thomas Young the key to decipher ancient Egyptian hieroglyphs.
It has been in the museum collection since 1802 and is regularly named as the number one object people want to see.But the museum argues another character deserves his place in the story too: William John Bankes, a charming, adventurous and rich Egyptologist who was forced to flee Britain after he was caught having sex in Green Park with a soldier.Because of Bankes, the Rosetta Stone is being added to LGBTQ+ themed tours of the British Museum which began last year.