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Location

ZOOR0162

Negev. Zoora. November 8, 439 CE. Red sandstone tombstone. Epitaph.

Transcription

Εἷς Θεὸς ὁ πάντων Δεσπότης. ΜνημῖονΜνημεῖον Πέτρου Ἄντυος, ἀποθανόντος μετὰ καλοῦ ὀνόματος καλῆς συνειδήσεως ἐτῶν λγʹ, ἐν ἔτι τλδʹ ἐν μηνὶ Δίου κβʹ, ἐν χρόνοις ηʹ ἰνδικτιῶνος ἡμέρᾳ Κυρίου δʹ. ΘάρσιΘάρσει, οὐδὶςοὐδεὶς ἀθάνατος ἐν κόσμῳ

Translation

One (is) the God, the Lord of all. Monument of Petros, (son) of Antys, who died having a good name and good conscience (at the age) of 33 years, in the year 334, on the 22nd (day) of the month Dios, in the time of the 8th indiction, on the 4th day of (the) Lord (Wednesday). Be of good cheer, no one (is) immortal in (this) world.

Diplomatic

[no diplomatic]

Terminus post quem:
Terminus ante quem:
Notes
The inscription provides the date as the 4th day of the Lord (Thursday), the 22nd day of the month Dios in eighth indiction, in the year 334 according to the Era of the Province of Arabia, that is, November 8, 439 CE. The tombstone is one of about 700 discovered in Byzantine Zoora. The majority of the Greek tombstones from this location have been identified as Christian. The rectangular tombstone is rounded at the top, broken in two pieces, and flaked all around. Written in round script, the text is engraved upon a smoothed surface. Lines two, five, eight, eleven, and fourteen are completely painted red, while lines four, ten, twelve, and sixteen are partially painted red. The text is recorded in the formation of a cross, with lines seven through eleven as the horizontal bar, and is surrounded by a double rectangular frame on the top, right, and left sides. The frame is incised and preserves traces of red paint. A different linear decoration fills the interior of each side of the frame. The upper section of the vertical arm of the cross is flanked by two incised circles, which preserve traces of red paint inside of them. Horizontal bars appears above the age and year numerals in line ten, the month day numeral in line eleven, the indiction numerical figure in line twelve, and the abbreviation of Κυρίου in line thirteen. The conjunction καὶ is omitted in the middle of line eight, while the τῷ in line sixteen may have been omitted for the sake of symmetry. The text contains both spelling and grammatical errors. The editor further notes that the deceased, Petros, may have been the father of Antys, who appears in no. 231, and the brother of Sammaseos, who appears in no. 184.

Languages

Greek

Dimensions

H: 56 cm; W: 32 cm; D: 06 cm

Date

439 CE to 439 CE

Current location

Department of Antiquities of Jordan

Figures

  • Linear decoration filling the frame

  • Cross shape of the text

  • Frame around the text

  • Geometric shape flanking the upper section of the vertical arm of the text

Bibliography

Source of diplomatic

No bibliography available for diplomatic transcription.

Source of transcription

No bibliography available for transcription.

Source of translation

No bibliography available for translation.

Other sources

  • Meimaris, Yiannis, and Kalliope Kritikakou-Nikolaropoulou. Inscriptions from Palaestina Tertia Vol. Ia: The Greek Inscriptions from Ghor Es-Safi (Byzantine Zoora). Athens, Greece: National Hellenic Research Foundation, 2005.
    Zotero
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The project can be cited as:

Satlow, Michael L., ed. 2002 - . “Inscriptions of Israel/Palestine.” Brown University. https://doi.org/10.26300/PZ1D-ST89

This inscription can be cited as:

"Inscriptions of Israel/Palestine," ZOOR0162, 7 February 2025. https:doi.org/10.26300/pz1d-st89