Fragmentary Greek building inscription for a church just possibly dedicated to a certain *Andrew (possibly the Apostle, S00288). Found at Dreyb al-Wawi (Khirbet al-Wawi), near Chalkis and Beroia/Aleppo (north Syria). Dated 539.
Evidence ID
E01692
Type of Evidence
Inscriptions - Formal inscriptions (stone, mosaic, etc.)
[+ εὐκτήρ(ιον) (?)] εκτέθ- κου δ κ' ἰνδ(ικτιῶνος) β΄ το[ῦ]
[η τὸ ε]ὐρὺ (?) ἔτους νω΄. ἐ<γ>ρά-
[τοῦ ἁγί]ου Ἀν- φι χιρ<ὶ> Ἰωάνν(ου)
[δρέα (?) μη(νὶ)] Ξανθί- Ἰακοῦ[β]ος (καὶ) Τιμω[- - -]
1. [+ εὐκτήρ(ιον)] or [+ πρόθυρ(ον)] or [+ μαρτύρ(ιον)] Mouterde || 1-2. perhaps ἐκτίσθ|[η]
'[This] spacious (?) [oratory (?)] of Saint Andrew (?) was completed on the 24th (day) [of the month] of Xanthikos, 2nd indiction, the year 850. (The inscription) was carved by the hand of Ioannes. Iakoubos and Timo[- - -].'
Text: Mouterde & Poidebard 1945, 206, no. 36.
Liturgical ActivitiesMerchants and artisans
Ceremony of dedication
FestivalsAnniversary of church/altar dedication
Cult PlacesCult building - independent (church)
Non Liturgical ActivityConstruction of cult buildings
Protagonists in Cult and NarrativesMerchants and artisans
Other lay individuals/ people
Source
Two fragments of a basalt lintel. Fragment A: H. 0.53 m; W. 1.12 m. Fragment B: H. 0.54 m; W. 0.57 m.Found before 1945 at the north gate of the main church at Dreyb al-Wawi (Khirbet al-Wawi) by René Mouterde.
Discussion
The inscription is very fragmentarily preserved, especially its left-hand side, presumably containing the name of the holy patron of the sanctuary. Therefore, the completions by Mouterde can be taken only as exemplary ones. In his comments, Mouterde admitted that the first word of the inscription, which should be the designation of the shrine, need not be 'oratory' (eukterion), as reconstructed in the text. His other suggestions: 'martyrion' and 'portico' are, however, equally hypothetical.Likewise, the restoration of the name of the patron saint, Andrew, is based only on a very ambiguous sequence of letters ΟΥΑΝ. The inscription can, therefore, hardly be accepted as a reliable attestation of the cult of saints in north Syria. Probably the reconstruction of the whole left-hand fragment of the inscription is erroneous and needs a new edition.
Dating: the month of Xanthikos of the 850th year of the Seleucid era corresponds to April AD 539. This contradicts the dating by the indictional year, as the 2nd indiction, mentioned in line 1, ended on 31st August AD 538.
Bibliography
Edition:Mouterde, R., Poidebard, A., Le limes de Chalcis: organisation de la steppe en haute Syrie romaine: documents aériens et épigraphiques (Paris: P. Geuthner 1945), 206, no. 36.
Reference works:
Bulletin épigraphique (1946-1947), 204.
Record Created By
Paweł Nowakowski
Date of Entry
05/07/2016
| ID | Name | Name in Source | Identity | S00288 | Andrew, the Apostle | Uncertain | S00763 | Andreas Stratelates, martyr under Maximian | Uncertain |
|---|
Please quote this record referring to its author, database name, number, and, if possible, stable URL:
Paweł Nowakowski, Cult of Saints, E01692 - http://csla.history.ox.ac.uk/record.php?recid=E01692