I 19. Tyras.Dedication of Priscus, II century C.E.
Monument
Type
Base.
Material
Limestone, marble-like, dense.
Dimensions (cm)
H.15.0, W.60.0, Th.54.7.
Additional description
The front is polished, the left is treated summarily with the use of tooth chisel; the back is also treated summarily. The top is polished, there is a small bowl-shaped depression on it; a significant portion of the top face is chipped and pitted. The right and back are broken off.
Place of Origin
Tyras.
Find place
Belgorod-Dnestrovsky.
Find context
Unknown.
Find circumstances
Unknown. For a long time, it was sitting in front of a private house in Akkerman (Belgorod Dnestrovsky), near the fortress. In 1900, it was transferred to the Odessa Archaeological Museum.
Modern location
Odessa,
Institution and inventory
Odessa Archaeological Museum, 50717.
Autopsy
A.I. Ivantchik, September 2008.
Epigraphic field
Position
On the front. The left part is preserved, broken off on the right. Since Latyshev's autopsy, the stone suffered additional slight damage. Margins: left 3,5; top 1,0; bottom 1,5. H.11.7, W.40.0
Lettering
Neatly, deeply and evenly cut letters. Epsilon with detached middle bar. Average distance between lines: 1,0cm.
Letterheights (cm)
4.8-5.0
Text
Category
Dedicatory inscription.
Date
II century C.E.
Dating criteria
Palaeography.
Editions
L1. Stern1901, 1-2, № 1; 1.1. IOSPE IV, add. n° 453; 1.1.1. IOSPE I2, 7.
<div type="edition" xml:lang="grc">
<ab>
<lb n="1"/>Πρεῖσκος Φ<gap reason="lost" extent="unknown" unit="character"/>
<lb n="2"/><space quantity="2" unit="character"/> ων τὸν
ν<supplied reason="lost" cert="low">αὸν</supplied> <gap reason="lost" extent="unknown" unit="character"/>
</ab>
</div>Apparatus criticus
Πρεῖσκος Φ[λάβιος ἄρχ-]|ων τὸν [δεῖνα]Stern ; τὸν μ[- - -]IOSPE; τὸν ν[αὸν? - - -]IOSPE I2
Translation
Priscus, son of F[- - -] the t[emple? - - -]
Commentary
1. If we consider the name Priscus as one of Latin trinomina, then it could only be a cognomen, for which reason the restoration of von Stern is impossible. There is no doubt that we are dealing with a Greek name of Latin origin, used in a typical Greek way, "personal name + patronymic", so that the name Πρεῖσκος would have been followed by his father's name, beginning with phi.
2. Latyshev supposed that the fist two letters were the ending of a participle, pointing to some office occupied by Priscus (something like ἀρχοντεύων, ἱερεύων and alike). This is only one of possible restorations (we cannot exclude, e.g. ἐξ ἰδίων, or the ending of a plural form of divine names, whose dedicant Priscus may have been). The restoration τὸν ν[αὸν seems most likely. Since the inscription is made on a statue base, we could envision τὸν ν[αὸν καὶ τὸ ἄγαλμα.
Images
© 2017 Askold Ivantchik (edition), Irene Polinskaya (translation)
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