hieroglyph

noun

1. writing that resembles hieroglyphics (usually by being illegible)

   noun.communication

   Synonyms hieroglyphic

   Source: WordNet 3.0

2. a writing system using picture symbols; used in ancient Egypt

   noun.communication

   Source: WordNet 3.0

3. A sacred character; a character in picture writing, as of the ancient Egyptians, Mexicans, etc. Specifically, in the plural, the picture writing of the ancient Egyptian priests. It is made up of three, or, as some say, four classes of characters: first, the <i>hieroglyphic</i> proper, or figurative, in which the representation of the object conveys the idea of the object itself; second, the <i>ideographic</i>, consisting of symbols representing ideas, not sounds, as an ostrich feather is a symbol of truth; third, the <i>phonetic</i>, consisting of symbols employed as syllables of a word, or as letters of the alphabet, having a certain sound, as a hawk represented the vowel <i>a.</i>

   noun

   Source: webster1913