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The Cult of Saints in Late Antiquity


from its origins to circa AD 700, across the entire Christian world


Coptic letter from Jeme (Upper Egypt) concerning a donation made to *Michael the Archangel (S00181); datable to the 7th century.

Evidence ID

E05706

Type of Evidence

Late antique original manuscripts - Papyrus sheet

Documentary texts - Letter

O.CrumST 177

The document is addressed to a bishop whose name is lost, but who was presumably in charge of the shrine dedicated to the Archangel Michael. It is written by two men, Georgios and Enoch, who report on the details of the donation made by a craftsman named Souai on his deathbed. A list of the items donated to the shrine seems to have once been attached to the letter.

Lines 2–4 of the document read as follows:

ⲉⲧⲃⲉ ⲫⲱⲃ ⲛⲥⲟⲩⲁⲓ ⲫⲁⲙ ⲡⲣⲟⲥ ⲧⲉ[ⲇⲱⲣⲉⲁ ⲉ]ϩⲟⲩⲛ ⲉⲡϩⲁⲅⲓⲟⲥ ⲙⲓⲭⲁⲏⲗ ⲡⲁⲣⲓⲁⲅⲅⲉⲗⲟⲥ [ⲧⲁⲓ ⲛⲧ]ⲁϥⲥⲙⲛⲧⲥ ⲉϥⲥⲏⲕ ⲉⲡⲙⲟⲩ

‘Concerning the matter of Souai, the craftsman, with respect to the [donation] to saint Michael the Archangel [which] he made as he was approaching death.’


(Text: W. E. Crum/W. C. Till; trans.: G. Schenke)

Cult Places

Cult building - unspecified

Non Liturgical Activity

Bequests, donations, gifts and offerings

Source

The fragmentary papyrus document is kept at Cheltenham Phillipps Library.


Bibliography

Text:
Crum, W.E., Short Texts from Coptic Ostraca and Papyri (Oxford, 1921), 45.

German translation:
Till, W.C.,
Erbrechtliche Untersuchungen auf Grund der koptischen Urkunden (Vienna, 1954), 223–224.


Record Created By

Gesa Schenke

Date of Entry

18/6/2018

Related Saint Records
IDNameName in SourceIdentity
S00181Michael, the Archangelⲙⲓⲭⲁⲏⲗ ⲡⲁⲣⲓⲁⲅⲅⲉⲗⲟⲥCertain


Please quote this record referring to its author, database name, number, and, if possible, stable URL:
Gesa Schenke, Cult of Saints, E05706 - http://csla.history.ox.ac.uk/record.php?recid=E05706