BM 132932
Simpson 2002: 174, cat.223
- Simpson 2002: 174, cat.223
- By kind permission of British Museum
- By kind permission of British Museum
- By kind permission of British Museum
INSCRIPTION INFORMATION
| Language | Ancient South Arabian » Sabaic » Southern Middle Sabaic | ||
| Alphabet | Ancient South Arabian | ||
| Script typology | Monumental writing | ||
| Writing technique | Incision | ||
| Chronology |
| ||
| Textual typology | Dedicatory text |
GENERAL NOTES
| The statuette is surely from the plateau, see a typical QAT linguistic trait: l-ḏtm. The text is undoubtedly in monumental script and not in minuscule as was reported in Simpson 2002: 174. The inscription appears to hve been cast rather than added later, as similar surface dendrites are present in the deeper portions of the inscription (Simpson 2002: 174). The date in the second century AD, although given as certain in Simpson 2002: 174 and ʿAlī ʿAqīl and Antonini 2007: 173, is, of course hypothetical. BM 132932 and JRy Plaquette Beeston were produced at the same time. |
TEXT
1 Y(hṣ)bḥ bn S²trm→ ḏ-(H)ṣnʿm hqny →l-mrʾt-hw ʾm ʾltm bʿlt Ḥwdn Y—
2 [..]m tṣrytn w-wl→d-hw ḏy ḏhbm l-ḏtm→ thws²ʿn-hmw
3 ʾl→wdm bn ʾmṣwr
| 1-2 | the reading is uncertain; there may be a double epithet for the goddess. |
| 3 | ʾlwdm could also be the plural of wld, but what follows leads me to think that it is a proper name, perhaps the name of the sculptor of the statuette. |
TRANSLATIONS
| English | |
1 Yhṣbḥ, son of S²trm, he of Hṣnʿm, dedicated to his mistress, the Mother of Goddesses, the lady of Ḥwdn Y- 2 [...]m this offer and his son both in bronze in order that She might grant favour to them. 3 ʾlwdm son of ʾmṣwr. |
| 2 | tṣrytn can be clearly read; the substantive has not been documented elsewhere, and regarding its meaning the root ṢRY suggests an "object requested by the god in his oracle". The objects demanded were probably a horse and its colt, both in bronze. There is an intersting linguistic contact in the expression: l-ḏtm thws²ʿn-hmw; l-ḏtm is typically QAT, but the verb has the SAB -n suffix. |
OBJECT INFORMATION
| Deposit | London, The British Museum, BM 132932=1961,1016.1 |
| Support type | Artefact » Sculpture in the round » Animal figure |
| Material | Bronze |
| Measures | h. 7, w. 7, th. 1.8, wt. 128g |
| Link to object record |
ORIGIN AND PROVENANCE
| Modern site | Unknown |
| Ancient site | Unknown |
| Geographical area | Unknown |
| Country | Unknown |
| Link to site record |
CULTURAL NOTES
J.Ry plaquette and this inscription are dedicated to "the mother of the goddesses". The divinities called with a kinship's name (cf. "the daughters of ʾl") are an interesting ASA cultural trait.
BIBLIOGRAPHY
| Simpson 2002: 174, cat. 223 | Simpson, St John (ed.) 2002. Queen of Sheba. Treasures from the ancient Yemen. London: British Museum Press. [Catalogue of an exhibition held at the British Museum, London] |
| ʿAlī ʿAqīl and Antonini 2007: 173 | ʿAlī ʿAqīl,ʿAzza and Antonini, Sabina 2007. Bronzi sudarabici di periodo preislamico. Repertorio iconografico sudarabico. 3. Paris: de Boccard / Rome: IsIAO. [Académie des Inscriptions et Belles-lettres; Istituto Italiano per l'Africa e l'Oriente] |