Coptic ostracon from Edfu/Apollonopolis (Upper Egypt) with a letter of a bishop Moyses, urging his addressee to gather the (monastic) congregation at the 'place' of Apa *Kyrikos (presumably the child martyr of Tarsus, S00007); datable to the 7th century.
E04141
Documentary texts - Letter
Late antique original manuscripts - Ostracon/Pot-sherd
O.EdfouIFAO (= O. EdfouCopte) 18
Bishop Moyses sending this message to the presbyter Joseph seems to ask for the (monastic?) community to be summoned to the shrine of Kyrikos where he presumably intended to offer a morning sermon for them.
The text makes use of the word ma (‘place’), the Coptic equivalent of the Greek word topos, which can refer to either a monastery or a shrine. The editor of the text suggested that Joseph was to gather all the monks at the monastery (ma). But since this would be the place where they presumably resided, they would be gathered there already, so that any extra requested gathering was most likely to take place at the shrine, the place where the bishop would offer his sermon.
ⲙⲁⲣⲉ ⲧⲉⲕ-
ⲙⲛⲧϣⲏⲣⲉ ⲥⲱ-
ⲟⲩϩ ⲛⲉⲥⲛⲏⲩ ⲧⲏⲣⲟⲩ
ⲉⲡⲙⲁ ⲛⲁⲡⲁ ⲕⲩⲣⲓⲕⲟⲥ
ⲛⲧⲁⲁⲥⲡⲁⲍⲉ ⲙⲙⲟⲟⲩ ⲛ-
[ϣ]ⲟⲣⲡ ⲛⲣⲁⲥⲧⲉ
ⲧⲁⲁⲥ ⲛⲓⲱⲥⲏⲫ ⲡⲡⲣ(ⲉⲥⲃⲩⲧⲉⲣⲟⲥ)
ϩⲓⲧⲛ ⲙⲱⲩⲥⲏⲥ ⲡⲉⲗⲁⲭ(ⲓⲥⲧⲟⲥ)
ⲛⲉⲡⲓⲥⲕ(ⲟⲡⲟⲥ)
‘May your sonship gather all the brothers at the place of Apa Kyrikos, and I may address/greet them tomorrow morning.
Give it (the message) to Joseph, the presbyter, from Moyses, the most humble bishop.’
(Text: S. Bacot; trans.: G. Schenke)
Service for the saint
Sermon/homily
Cult PlacesCult building - monastic
Cult building - unspecified
Source
The ostracon is currently kept at the IFAO in Cairo. Its dating is based on the context, as the ostracon was found together with many others, one of them being a liturgical calendar giving entries for the years 643–648.Bibliography
Text and French translation:Bacot, S., Ostraca grecs et coptes des fouilles franco-polonaises sur le site de Tell Edfou. O. EdfouCopte 1-145 (Bibliothèque d'Études Coptes 19; Cairo, 2009), 40.
Gesa Schenke
12/10/2017
| ID | Name | Name in Source | Identity | S00007 | Kyrikos/Cyricus and Ioulitta/Julitta, child and his mother, martyrs of Tarsus | ⲁⲡⲁ ⲕⲩⲣⲓⲕⲟⲥ | Certain |
|---|
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