Greek inscription commemorating the construction of an unspecified martyr shrine (martyrion). Found at Riḥāb, between Bostra and Gerasa/Jerash (Jordan/the Roman province of Arabia). Dated 457/458.
Evidence ID
E02041
Type of Evidence
Inscriptions - Formal inscriptions (stone, mosaic, etc.)
ἐκτίσθη
τὸ μαρ-
τύρει-
ον ἔτο-
υς τνβ΄
'The martyr shrine (martyrion) was founded in the year 352.'
Text: Gatier 1998, 394, no. 86.
Cult PlacesCult building - unspecified
Non Liturgical Activity
Cult building - unspecified
Martyr shrine (martyrion, bet sāhedwātā, etc.)
Cult building - independent (church)
Cult building - dependent (chapel, baptistery, etc.)
Non Liturgical ActivityConstruction of cult buildings
Source
Limestone block. When recorded it was reused in the north enclosure wall of a mosque. H. 0.40 m; W. 0.34 m. Letter height 0.04-0.05 m.Reportedly seen at Riḥāb. Published in 1998 by Pierre-Louis Gatier from a drawing.
Discussion
The inscription commemorates the construction of a martyr shrine where some unspecified martyrs (or a martyr) were venerated. It is not clear whether this was an independent building or just a chapel. Gatier hypothesised that this could be the martyr shrine of a martyr *Basilios, whose construction (or rather, he says, restoration) in AD 594 is attested by a mosaic (see: E02045).The date is probably computed according to the era of the province of Arabia. If so, its year 352 corresponds to AD 457/458. Gatier notes that, given this date, we can consider our inscription as one of the earliest Christian monuments in the region.
Bibliography
Edition:Gatier, P.-L., "Les inscriptions grecques et latines de Samra et Rihab", Humbert, J.-B., Desreumaux, A., Bauzou, Th. (eds.), Fouilles de Khirbet es-Samra en Jordanie, vol. 1: La voie romaine, le cimetière, les documents épigraphiques (Turnhout: Brepols, 1998), 390-394, no. 86.
Reference works:
Chroniques d'épigraphie byzantine, 864.
Supplementum Epigraphicum Graecum 48, 1925.
Images
)
Drawing. From: Khirbet es-Samra 1, 394.
Record Created By
Paweł Nowakowski
Date of Entry
23/11/2016
| 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, Cult of Saints, E02041 - http://csla.history.ox.ac.uk/record.php?recid=E02041