Greek inscription commemorating the construction of a building dedicated to *Mary (Mother of Christ, S00033) as the God-Bearer, probably a village church. Found near Flaviopolis (Cilicia, south-east Asia Minor). Very probably 590.
Evidence ID
E01080
Type of Evidence
Inscriptions - Formal inscriptions (stone, mosaic, etc.)
+ ἐπληρώθη τ-
ὸ ἔργον τῆς Θε-
οτόκου ἐπὶ Στεφ-
άνου ἐργολάβου ὑ-
πουργήσι τῆς κώ-
μης Σιφῶν, ἔτους θχ'
1-2. τ|ὸ Dagron and Feissel (after a photograph), τοῦτο <τὸ> Dagron & Marcillet-Jaubert, τοῦτο SEG
'+ The building of the God-Bearer (Theotokos) was completed under the contractor Stephanos with the assistance of the village Siphoi, in the year 609.'
Text: I. Cilicia, no. 113.
Cult PlacesCult building - unspecified
Non Liturgical ActivityMerchants and artisans
Cult building - unspecified
Cult building - independent (church)
Non Liturgical ActivityConstruction of cult buildings
Protagonists in Cult and NarrativesMerchants and artisans
Peasants
Source
A limestone block found at Çemkale-Farnas near ancient Flaviopolis. H. 0.31 m; W. 0.61 m; letter height 0.04 m. When recorded, it had been reused in the wall of a medieval fortress, in a section adjacent to the road leading to the main gate. The text is contained within a frame.Discussion
The inscription commemorates the completion of a building, probably a church or a monastery, dedicated to Mary as the God-Bearer (Θεοτόκος). Stephanos, a contractor (ἐργολάβος) mentioned in lines 3-4, was the founder or entrepreneur rather than a common worker or architect. The phrase 'with the assistance of the village of Siphoi' suggests this was a village church.Dating: 590 (if the date, the year 609, is given according to the era of nearby Anazarbos, which began in 19 BC).
Bibliography
Edition:I. Cilicia - Dagron, G., Feissel, D. (eds.), Inscriptions de Cilicie (Paris: De Boccard, 1987), no. 113.
Dagron, G., Marcillet-Jaubert, J., "Inscriptions de Cilicie et d'Isaurie", Belleten Türk Tarih Kurumu 42 (1978), no. 23.
Reference works:
Bulletin épigraphique (1979), 600.
Supplementum Epigraphicum Graecum 28, 1260.
Record Created By
Pawel Nowakowski
Date of Entry
15/01/2016
| ID | Name | Name in Source | Identity | S00033 | Mary, Mother of Christ | Θεοτόκος | Certain |
|---|
Please quote this record referring to its author, database name, number, and, if possible, stable URL:
Pawel Nowakowski, Cult of Saints, E01080 - http://csla.history.ox.ac.uk/record.php?recid=E01080