The following Communication has been received from Professor Sayce : MORE GREEK OSTRAKA FROM KARNAK. While in Egypt last winter I secured a few more ostraka from Karnak, though the supply has now nearly come to an end. The houses of the village where they have been found have been pretty thoroughly explored by the fellahin, and little more is to be discovered in them in the way either of sebahh for the fields, or ostraka for the khowâgah. The first I will give is written in debased capitals. I presented it to M. Maspero : 1. Ισορνηλως Ισορνήλιος "Isornêlôs, the Σενπτομνιος καιπναπ(?) . . . (το) L ιη Τιβειρου (sic) καισαρος σεβαστου φαωφι γ son of Isornêlis the Senptomnian (?) .... the tax for the month Tybi. The 18th year of Tiberius Cæsar Augustus, the 3rd of Paopi.” "Papseukhios son of Phaêsis has acquitted on behalf of Pekysis for the workmen's tax. I have registered six argentei.... The sixth year of Trajan Cæsar the lord." A signature follows which I cannot read. been omitted, and m stands for πρὸ. Π The of Pekysis has Καισαρος του κυρίου “Pakhynios Ph . . . has acquitted on behalf of the workmen's tax. I have registered six triobols. The eighth year of Tra(jan) Cæsar the lord. Paopi the 29th . . ." 4. Μετρ— θης καμ' πενή μαι . . . Τραιανου του κυριου Παυνι ἔ (ονο) και ον Χαταβους Παναμεω . δωδεκα τα μ ιβή = Ωρου Ευγε μ. "Metrês, the measurer, the tax-collector of the poor (?)... (the ... th year) of Trajan the lord, the fifth of Payni, in the name of Khatabôs 24 ardebs of wheat . . . . ., .., and in the name of Khatabôs son of Panameôn 12 ardebs. Of Oros Eugenês..." Perhaps the final is for μισθωτής. μ.. Metrês appears as treasurer in the 12th year of Trajan on an ostrakon (No. 25) given in my first paper on the Karnak Ostraka (Proceedings, Nov. 4, 1884, p. 21). As money was paid to him that year in the name of Petekhons son of Khatabos, it seems probable that the ostrakon now before us belongs to the first few years of Trajan's reign. The spelling kap shows that I was right in explaining the title by kadaμnypapos, but I was wrong in reading the next word γεν. It is plainly ev here. It may be a contraction of πενήτων or some compound of πέντε. "Hermias, the collector of money (Tрáктшp áруvpins), in the name of Papso.. Paupis . . ., I have registered half (?). The month Pharmuthi (?) ... the 20th year of Trajan Cæsar the lord, the 12th day of Paopi." Besides being badly written, this ostrakon is mutilated and nearly illegible. In the second line uov may possibly be intended, and in the third line we perhaps have ὑπὲρ μερισμοῦ γῆς “ for the assessment of the land." Trajan reigned a little over 19 years and a half. 6. Μεθης μι] πε] κα L Κομμοδου Αντωνίνου καισαρος του κυρίου Ανουρίωνος . Φαμίνιος . 66 ου "Methês, the tax collector of the poor (?), of the 21st (= the 11th) year of Commodus Antoninus, the 19th of Payni, on behalf of the workmen's tax, in the name of . . . . Anuriôn Phaminios . . . . The latter part of the ostrakon has been broken off. As Commodus only reigned alone 13 years, 21 must be a mistake for 11. Methês appears on ostraka 33 and 26 of my former paper (where I have wrongly assigned the date of 26 to the time of Trajan). We now find that he continued in his office from the 11th year of Commodus (A.D. 191) to the first year of Pescennius Niger (A.D. 193). 7. Μεσχις με μια η Αυρηλιανου αυτοκρα)τορος) και al. Κλαυδιου καισαρων σι) αντι Meskhis, collector of taxes for the eighth year of the Emperor Aurelian, and the first year of Claudius, the Cæsars and lords, receives 18 ardebs of wheat in the name of Oros: two measures of wheat from... he owes to the State . . . . . 6 drachmæ. . .” This is an important ostrakon, as it is by far the latest yet found, the first year of M. Claudius Tacitus being A.D. 275. The regnal year of Aurelian, however, causes a difficulty. The only clearlywritten letter in the whole ostrakon is the 7 of the first line, which is a large capital. Nevertheless Aurelian's reign did not last more than six years, and he was murdered in March, six months before the succession of Claudius. In the fourth and sixth lines â, â, and ô, stand (as elsewhere) for λαμβάνει, ἀπὸ and δεῖ,* and δμιου seems to represent δημίου. The amount of wheat owing is the same as that mentioned in Ostrakon 25 of my former paper. 8. Ωριωνις . ... Συρος Σαραπ(ιωνος) . . . Αβωρινο(ς) . . . Διοσκορ(ιδης) . .. Λολους . Παπα(ς) . This is a mere fragment, containing the names of certain tax payers. * Unless â is apyúpia as in my Ostrakon 34. According to M. Revillout 3 denotes a quarter-obol (Rev. Egyptologique, III, 3 pp., 118 sq.). The name in the second line is Petemon, that in sixth, Imouthês* (where r is γίγνεται, and χι χειρωναξίου), that in the eighth Teos or Takhos. His name is followed by v κ, i.ε., ὑπὲρ καλαμηφορίας. In one of the quarries at Turrah I found the following name carved twice in he rock, on the left of the entrance, ΕΜΟΥΘΗΣ. On the right was a group of lions, also incised in the rock. १ Κ Ιασων १ This is a complete list of tax-payers, in two, or rather three columns, and is written in a large clear hand. The numbers are high, and must be compared with those given in Ostrakon 45 of my former Paper. The numeral attached to the name of Hermodôros is go. Three of the tax-payers are called after their fathers, the first of them being "the son of Krokodeilos." One of the Greek graffiti I have copied at Der el-Bahari is Αμμώνιος Νειλέως Κροκοδειλος (misprinted in a former contribution of mine to this Society). Matiêlos is a Semitic name. I add here two more ostraka, purchased at Karnak last winter by M. Golénishef. 66 11. Πετεμοστους ῖν τα ξῖβπϊδ π (ιθ) ν εκ ο εκβ ξ κγ ν .... ωμ Very doubtfully I suggest the following explanation of this curious ostrakon : “ Petemostous receives (ἔχει, line 4) on the roth day 5o, on the 11th 60, on the 12th 80, on the 14th 80, on the 15th 100, on the 16th 80, on the 17th 70, on the 18th 80, on the 19th 50, on the 20th 70, on the 22nd 60, on the 23rd 50..." Αγαθοδαιμον Απολλοδ ν(?)νεχ° αμ(?) σ(?) . . ηδια(?) . . ευθρα ονο Σαραπίωνος ονο Ταχρα . . . ιδ φιλο . . ονο - η π αμ Ερ... τολ κ ο dn = Πετεμε κρος αδλ και Τεσωτο αλ αδλ η ψ η σλο γιν(?)ο |