"What is it?"
"A bag."
"I think it's sack cloth," Daniel corrected, looking at his hand with interest. It was covered with whatever slimy material was inside this section of the wall, although it was a solid enough substance that it didn't come pouring out of the dog head size hole Jaffer had made in the wall.
"Whatever."
The bag was about four feet long, and made of such tattered cloth – or whatever – that Jack was amazed Jaffer hadn't ripped it open with his teeth when he'd pulled it out. The cloth (it looked like cloth to Jack) was dark, but he couldn't tell if it had started out that color, or it was dark because it was wet with goo. Jack was also faintly aware of some kind of odor coming from the cloth – or the goo – he wasn't sure. It wasn't anything foul, and it was barely noticeable, but it smelled kind of... good.
Jaffer sneezed, shaking his head to try and clear the stuff that was clinging to his fur.
"What is this stuff?" Jack asked, pulling out a handkerchief and calling Jaffer over to him. The lab came over and O'Neill wiped the slimy stuff from his face, as Daniel examined the bag and the goo on it.
"I don't know."
"You know, Daniel... you're using that phrase a lot today."
Daniel scowled at Jack, but Sam smiled.
"It might be some kind of preserving substance," the archeologist said. "This bag looks like it's ancient, but it's still in one piece."
"You think it's dangerous?" Jaffer was covered in it, after all.
"I doubt it." Daniel reached over and touched Jaffer's fur, and the lab turned his head and licked Daniel's hand. "He doesn't seem to be in any distress."
Actually, he seemed to like the stuff, since he was still licking it off Daniel's hand. Of course, Jaffer liked lots of things that weren't so good for him, and Jack knew it.
"Don't let him do that."
"It smells." Sam said.
"Yes." Teal'c agreed. "It smells of fig."
"What's in the bag?" Jack asked.
"Should we open it?" Sam asked. She had visions of a dead body or something like that rolling out once they cut the bag open, although the sack wasn't really big enough for that.
"Why not?" Jack asked, clearing the goo from around Jaffer's eyes.
Daniel pulled out his knife and slit open the top of the bag carefully, then extended the cut lengthwise a couple of feet. A small, square piece of bark – or something – fell out, and Daniel picked it up. It was light, about the same size as a large potato chip, and it had glyphs engraved onto it.
"Wow..."
"What is it?" Sam asked, before Jack or Teal'c could.
Jaffer reached out and sniffed the object in Daniel's hand – probably to see if it was something to eat – and sneezed again. Daniel pulled his hand away, wiping it absently off on his pants.
"It's a glyph." Daniel said, looking from the chip to Sam and the others, and seeing that they had no idea what that meant. "A picture," He explained."
"The walls are covered in pictures, Daniel," Jack told him.
"Yes, Jack, I know." Daniel said, impatiently. "But those pictures I don't understand. This one is Mayan. It's the glyph that means corn." He pointed at the little picture that was engraved – or carved – into the chip.
"What is the other symbol?" Sam asked, pointing. There was more than one picture on the chip.
"I don't know..." Daniel said. "It matches one of the ones on the wall, though." He pointed at the closest wall.
"Maybe it means 'corn', too," Jack guessed.
"Are there more of these, Daniel Jackson?" Teal'c asked.
Daniel used the blade of the knife to pull the cloth of the bag back, and exposed that there were, indeed, more of the little chips. Hundreds of them.
"It's a Rosetta stone type thing..." Daniel murmured, picking up another one as Jaffer sneezed again.
"Whatever it is, it's playing havoc with Jaffer's nose," Jack said, standing up.
"A Rosetta stone thing?" Sam asked, far more interested than Jack was.
"You know... one language translated by using another, more common language..."
"Are you sure it's Mayan?"
"Not from just looking at one or two of these," Daniel said, shrugging. "But I'll look them over and see if there's more that I recognize, and then compare them to the ones on the walls. Then I might be able to understand this place a little better."
"Why would someone – or someones – put these things in a sack and stuff them into a wall?" Jack asked. "Why not just put it all out for you to find?"
Daniel shrugged. He didn't really care. He'd spent the afternoon frustrated by his inability to understand the pictures that were taunting him, and now he might have a way to translate them.
"I don't know, Jack." He looked at another chip, recognizing the symbol for king. "This is great. I need my paper to take notes..." He looked around and then stood up, obviously enraptured by the find.
Jack and the others watched as he went over and retrieved his clipboard and notebook, then came back and sat down next to the hole Jaffer had dug into the wall, and the bag the black lab had yanked from it. Obviously he had no intention of going anywhere.
"Yeah..." O'Neill pretended to look indecisive, "Well, Daniel... I'd love to stand here and watch you... um... take notes... But I'm not going to."
Jaffer sneezed again.
"And neither are you, little man." Jack wondered if it were the chip things themselves that had Jaffer's nose going crazy, or if it was something else in the air, although the sneezes were more frequent than they'd been earlier.
"What?" Daniel looked up for just a moment, before returning to the chip in his hand and making a note on the paper in his lap.
"Carter..."
Sam looked up.
"I'm going to go get this stuff off Jaffer. Make sure Daniel doesn't spontaneously combust with excitement, will you?"
She smiled, and Jack walked off, Jaffer at his side.
"A bag."
"I think it's sack cloth," Daniel corrected, looking at his hand with interest. It was covered with whatever slimy material was inside this section of the wall, although it was a solid enough substance that it didn't come pouring out of the dog head size hole Jaffer had made in the wall.
"Whatever."
The bag was about four feet long, and made of such tattered cloth – or whatever – that Jack was amazed Jaffer hadn't ripped it open with his teeth when he'd pulled it out. The cloth (it looked like cloth to Jack) was dark, but he couldn't tell if it had started out that color, or it was dark because it was wet with goo. Jack was also faintly aware of some kind of odor coming from the cloth – or the goo – he wasn't sure. It wasn't anything foul, and it was barely noticeable, but it smelled kind of... good.
Jaffer sneezed, shaking his head to try and clear the stuff that was clinging to his fur.
"What is this stuff?" Jack asked, pulling out a handkerchief and calling Jaffer over to him. The lab came over and O'Neill wiped the slimy stuff from his face, as Daniel examined the bag and the goo on it.
"I don't know."
"You know, Daniel... you're using that phrase a lot today."
Daniel scowled at Jack, but Sam smiled.
"It might be some kind of preserving substance," the archeologist said. "This bag looks like it's ancient, but it's still in one piece."
"You think it's dangerous?" Jaffer was covered in it, after all.
"I doubt it." Daniel reached over and touched Jaffer's fur, and the lab turned his head and licked Daniel's hand. "He doesn't seem to be in any distress."
Actually, he seemed to like the stuff, since he was still licking it off Daniel's hand. Of course, Jaffer liked lots of things that weren't so good for him, and Jack knew it.
"Don't let him do that."
"It smells." Sam said.
"Yes." Teal'c agreed. "It smells of fig."
"What's in the bag?" Jack asked.
"Should we open it?" Sam asked. She had visions of a dead body or something like that rolling out once they cut the bag open, although the sack wasn't really big enough for that.
"Why not?" Jack asked, clearing the goo from around Jaffer's eyes.
Daniel pulled out his knife and slit open the top of the bag carefully, then extended the cut lengthwise a couple of feet. A small, square piece of bark – or something – fell out, and Daniel picked it up. It was light, about the same size as a large potato chip, and it had glyphs engraved onto it.
"Wow..."
"What is it?" Sam asked, before Jack or Teal'c could.
Jaffer reached out and sniffed the object in Daniel's hand – probably to see if it was something to eat – and sneezed again. Daniel pulled his hand away, wiping it absently off on his pants.
"It's a glyph." Daniel said, looking from the chip to Sam and the others, and seeing that they had no idea what that meant. "A picture," He explained."
"The walls are covered in pictures, Daniel," Jack told him.
"Yes, Jack, I know." Daniel said, impatiently. "But those pictures I don't understand. This one is Mayan. It's the glyph that means corn." He pointed at the little picture that was engraved – or carved – into the chip.
"What is the other symbol?" Sam asked, pointing. There was more than one picture on the chip.
"I don't know..." Daniel said. "It matches one of the ones on the wall, though." He pointed at the closest wall.
"Maybe it means 'corn', too," Jack guessed.
"Are there more of these, Daniel Jackson?" Teal'c asked.
Daniel used the blade of the knife to pull the cloth of the bag back, and exposed that there were, indeed, more of the little chips. Hundreds of them.
"It's a Rosetta stone type thing..." Daniel murmured, picking up another one as Jaffer sneezed again.
"Whatever it is, it's playing havoc with Jaffer's nose," Jack said, standing up.
"A Rosetta stone thing?" Sam asked, far more interested than Jack was.
"You know... one language translated by using another, more common language..."
"Are you sure it's Mayan?"
"Not from just looking at one or two of these," Daniel said, shrugging. "But I'll look them over and see if there's more that I recognize, and then compare them to the ones on the walls. Then I might be able to understand this place a little better."
"Why would someone – or someones – put these things in a sack and stuff them into a wall?" Jack asked. "Why not just put it all out for you to find?"
Daniel shrugged. He didn't really care. He'd spent the afternoon frustrated by his inability to understand the pictures that were taunting him, and now he might have a way to translate them.
"I don't know, Jack." He looked at another chip, recognizing the symbol for king. "This is great. I need my paper to take notes..." He looked around and then stood up, obviously enraptured by the find.
Jack and the others watched as he went over and retrieved his clipboard and notebook, then came back and sat down next to the hole Jaffer had dug into the wall, and the bag the black lab had yanked from it. Obviously he had no intention of going anywhere.
"Yeah..." O'Neill pretended to look indecisive, "Well, Daniel... I'd love to stand here and watch you... um... take notes... But I'm not going to."
Jaffer sneezed again.
"And neither are you, little man." Jack wondered if it were the chip things themselves that had Jaffer's nose going crazy, or if it was something else in the air, although the sneezes were more frequent than they'd been earlier.
"What?" Daniel looked up for just a moment, before returning to the chip in his hand and making a note on the paper in his lap.
"Carter..."
Sam looked up.
"I'm going to go get this stuff off Jaffer. Make sure Daniel doesn't spontaneously combust with excitement, will you?"
She smiled, and Jack walked off, Jaffer at his side.