Greek inscription on a marble slab, probably an altar, dedicated to *Michael (the Archangel, S00181). Found at Pythagorio (Samos, the Aegean Islands). Probably late antique or middle Byzantine.
Evidence ID
E01186
Type of Evidence
Inscriptions - Inscribed architectural elements
Inscriptions - Formal inscriptions (stone, mosaic, etc.)
+ Μ[ι]χαήλ, βοήθη Ἰ[ρ]̣ηνέᾳ δεκανήᾳ + [ἵ]ν̣α ̣καὶ τύχῃ πο[λλῶ]ν ἐτῶν
'+ Michael, help Irena, member of a pious guild/dekania (?), + so that she might enjoy many years!'
Text: IG XII 6,2, no. 951.
Cult PlacesPrayer/supplication/invocation
Protagonists in Cult and Narratives
Altar
Non Liturgical ActivityPrayer/supplication/invocation
Cultic confraternities
Bequests, donations, gifts and offerings
Protagonists in Cult and NarrativesWomen
Source
A white marble square plaque/table (an altar?): 'mensa quadrata e marmore albo'. Width and length 0.77 m. Found in the city of Pythagorio. The inscription runs on the margin of the slab.Klaus Hallof, the editor of Inscriptiones Graecae XII 6,2, was unable to see and examine the object himself and he does not specify his source for the description of the stone.
Discussion
The inscription is an invocation of Michael the Archangel. We may be dealing with an altar, dedicated to the Archangel and inscribed with a request for help for the donor.Hallof placed it among 'Byzantine' inscriptions, though an earlier date is also possible (in case of such invocations any reliable dating must be based on an examination of the script).
Bibliography
Edition:Inscriptiones Graecae XII 6,2, no. 951.
Reference works:
Supplementum Epigraphicum Graecum 53, 877.
Record Created By
Paweł Nowakowski
Date of Entry
12/03/2016
| ID | Name | Name in Source | Identity | S00181 | Michael, the Archangel | Μ[ι]χαήλ | Certain |
|---|
Please quote this record referring to its author, database name, number, and, if possible, stable URL:
Paweł Nowakowski, Cult of Saints, E01186 - http://csla.history.ox.ac.uk/record.php?recid=E01186