Greek inscription commemorating the construction of a martyr shrine (martyrion) of unnamed 'holy, gloriously triumphant martyrs'. Found at Qerqania near Antioch on the Orontes (north Syria). Perhaps 7th c., although once dated to the 4th c.
E01673
Inscriptions - Formal inscriptions (stone, mosaic, etc.)
[ἐν ὀνόματι] τῆς ἁγίας ὁμο[ο]υσίου Τριάδος, ἐτ-
[ελειώθη τ]ὸ μαρτύριον το͂ν ἁγίον καλινίκο-
[ν μαρτύρ]ον. ἐλέει θεοῦ λέμψοντε μισθ-
[ὸν αἰώνι]ον ετ̣ινες ἐκαρποφόρεεσαν κὲ
[εἰσέτι κ]αρποφοροῦσιν. ἐτελεόθε κ(αὶ)
[ἡγιάσθ]η ἐν μενὶ Πανέμο ἰνδ. δʹ τοῦ vacat?
[ ... ἔ]τους. ἔργον Ἰουλιανοῦ, Ζίβνου
[ - - -]ου καὶ Ἀνδρέου γραμιστοῦ κα Ἀδεα
1-2. perhaps χάριτι τῆς ἁγίας ὁμοουσίου Τριάδος, cf. SEG 38, 1660 (Khirbet el-Kursi, Arabia) or or εἰς δόξαν || 2. ἔτ[- - -] Jarry || 3-4. καλινίκο[ν - - -]|ον Jarry || 4-8. ονετ̣ινες ἐκαρποφορέεσαν κε[- - - | κ]αρποφόρου σινετελεόθε κ[- - -]|η ἐν μενὶ Πανέμο ἰνδ. δʹ τοῦ [- - -]| ἔτους ἔργον Ἰουλιανοῦ Ζίβνου[- - -]|ου καὶ Ἀνδρέου γραμιστοῦ κα Ἀδεα [- - -] Jarry || 8. - - -]ου perhaps a personal name or a professions, e.g. τεχνίτ]ου or ἐργολάβ]ου
'[In the name] of the Holy and Consubstantial Trinity. The shrine (martyrion) of the holy and gloriously triumphant martyrs was completed. By the mercy of God those who offered and offer in this place will receive the eternal reward. It was completed and consecrated in the month of Panemos, during the 4th indiction, in the [- - -] year. The work of Ioulianos, Zivnos (?), [- - -] and Andreas, draughtsman, and Addeas.'
Text: Jarry 1967, no. 116, altered and translated by E. Rizos and P. Nowakowski.
Cult building - independent (church)
Cult building - dependent (chapel, baptistery, etc.)
Martyr shrine (martyrion, bet sāhedwātā, etc.)
Non Liturgical ActivityBequests, donations, gifts and offerings
Construction of cult buildings
Protagonists in Cult and NarrativesOther lay individuals/ people
Merchants and artisans
Officials
Source
A hollowed stone block. Reused in a modern house as a basin for the storage of olive oil. W. 1.40 m; L. 0.6 m; letter height 0.05 m. The inscription is framed and the right-hand edge is completely preserved.Found by Georges Tchalenko in 1963 (copy, photograph, squeeze) at Qerqania. First published by Jacques Jarry in 1967, with permission of the Institut français de Beyrouth. Jarry edited the text with extensive lacunas at the right-hand margin and did not properly divide words. The squeeze clearly shows that the framed right-hand edge of the inscription is fully preserved, and that restorations should be made at the opposite end. A new edition, which we offer here, is based on a photograph of the squeeze from the Tchalenko Archive (University of Oxford, School of Archaeology).
Discussion
The inscription commemorates the construction of a martyr shrine (martyrion) of some unnamed, perhaps local, martyrs. The identity of these figures is not clear, and it seems that their names were not mentioned in the text, as the lacunas are very short. The inscription states that the contributors will receive their a reward for this pious deed.Dating: Unfortunately, the era date in line 7 is lost. The editor implausibly dated the inscription to the 4th c., based on the contents of line 1. He argued that the reference to the 'Holy and Consubstantial Trinity' echoed the doctrinal quarrels that followed the council of Nicaea in 325. However, in our opinion the beginning of the inscription contains a slightly altered version of the Trinitarian formula: ἐν ὀνόματι τῆς ἁγίας καὶ ζωοποιοῦ καὶ ὁμοουσίου Τριάδος πατρὸς καὶ υἱοῦ καὶ ἁγίου πνεύματος / 'In the name of the Holy and Life-giving, and Consubstantial Trinity, Father, and Son, and Holy Spirit', introduced in documents by the emperor Phokas, and then frequently used in the 7th c. See the comments in E01006.
Bibliography
Edition:Jarry, J., "Inscriptions arabes, syriaques et grecques du massif du Bélus en Syrie du nord [avec 42 planches]", Annales islamologiques 7 (1967), no. 116.
Images
)
From: Jarry 1967, no. 88.
Paweł Nowakowski, Efthymios Rizos
22/05/2017
| ID | Name | Name in Source | Identity | S00060 | Martyrs, unnamed or name lost | Certain |
|---|
Please quote this record referring to its author, database name, number, and, if possible, stable URL:
Paweł Nowakowski, Efthymios Rizos, Cult of Saints, E01673 - http://csla.history.ox.ac.uk/record.php?recid=E01673