Fragmentary Greek inscription naming a church (naos), reportedly monastic, dedicated probably to *Sergios (soldier and martyr of Rusafa, S00023). Found at Jizeh, midway between Bostra and Adraha (north Arabia). Probably 6th c.
Evidence ID
E02020
Type of Evidence
Inscriptions - Formal inscriptions (stone, mosaic, etc.)
Archaeological and architectural - Cult buildings (churches, mausolea)
+ ναοῦ ἁγίου Σ[εργίου - - -]
'+ Of the church (naos) of Sergios (?) [- - -]'
Text: IGLS 13/2, no. 9716.
Cult PlacesCult building - independent (church)
Places Named after Saint
Cult building - independent (church)
Cult building - monastic
Places Named after SaintMonastery
Non Liturgical ActivityConstruction of cult buildings
Source
A stone lintel, fully preserved, but with an inscription only partially preserved. W. 2.00 m. There is no other published description.Seen over a doorway in the ruined monastery at Jizeh by Gottlieb Schumacher in 1894. The stone has never been recorded since. Schumacher published only a drawing without transcription or commentary on the contents. Republished by Maurice Sartre and Annie Sartre-Fauriat in 2011, based on the earlier edition.
Discussion
Maurice Sartre notes that the inscription resembles the beginning of E02014, but the size of the stone block suggests that the now lost right-hand part must have differed from that long commemorative text with its detailed dating formula. The name of the saint is largely lost, but as E02014 proves that Sergios was venerated in Jizeh, one can plausibly restore his name also on our lintel.Dating: the inscription must have been more or less contemporary to other dated lintels from Jizeh: E02009 (AD 538/539) and E02014 (AD 590). Therefore, a date in the 6th c. is plausible.
Bibliography
Edition:Sartre, M., Sartre-Fauriat, A. (eds.), Inscriptions grecques et latines de la Syrie, vol. 13/2: Bostra (Supplément) et la plaine de la Nuqrah (BAH 194, Beirut: Institut français du Proche-Orient, 2011), no. 9716.
Schumacher, G., "Das südliche Basan", Zeitschrift des deutschen Palästina-Vereins 20 (1897), 136.
Further reading:
Clermont-Ganneau, Ch., "Inscriptions grecques de Syrie", Recueil d'archéologie orientale 4 (1901), 161.
Sartre-Fauriat, A., "Georges, Serge, Élie et quelques autres saints connus et inédits de la province d'Arabie", in: Fr. Prévot (ed.), Romanité et cité chrétienne. Permances et mutations. Intégration et exclusion du Ier au VIe siècle. Mélanges en l'honneur d'Yvette Duval (Paris: De Boccard, 2000), 300.
Images
)
Drawing. From: Schumacher 1897, 136.
Record Created By
Paweł Nowakowski
Date of Entry
19/11/2016
| ID | Name | Name in Source | Identity | S00023 | Sergios, soldier and martyr of Rusafa | Σέργιος | Certain |
|---|
Please quote this record referring to its author, database name, number, and, if possible, stable URL:
Paweł Nowakowski, Cult of Saints, E02020 - http://csla.history.ox.ac.uk/record.php?recid=E02020