Ir 49
Robin 1987 c: Pl. 10
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- Robin 1987 c: Pl. 10
Image free from copyright - Robin and Vogt 1997: 189 (photo)
INSCRIPTION INFORMATION
| Language | Ancient South Arabian » Sabaic » Southern Middle Sabaic | ||
| Alphabet | Ancient South Arabian | ||
| Script typology | Monumental writing | ||
| Writing technique | Relief | ||
| Chronology |
| ||
| Textual typology | Construction text |
GENERAL NOTES
| The text was edited by Robin as Ir 40. |
TEXT
1 S²rḥʿṯt Yʾm(n) bn Ḏ(rnḥ) ʾbʿl bytn ʾḥrm ʾqwl s²ʿbn Ḏmr ʾ—
2 rbʿw Qs²mm brʾ w-hwṯr w-hqs²bn w-hs²qrn w-ṯwbn mṣnʿt-h—
3 mw Tʿrmn kl ʾbyt-hw w-mḥf(d)t-hw w-gnʾ-hw w-kryf(y)-hw b—
4 ʿd-n ḏt dhr-hw (w)-ḫdʿn ʾls²rḥ Yḥḍb mlk S¹bʾ b-ywm kwn ḍrm by—
5 nht ʾmlk S¹bʾ w-bny ḏ-Rydn w-ʾḫms¹-hmy b-qdmy ḏn ywmn w-hs²qrw kl
6 nkl-hw b-qbl ṯny wrḫyn b-ywm kwn mḥkm w-ṯwb-hw b-rdʾ ʿṯtr-S²rqn
7 w-W(l)l w-S¹mydʿ w-ʾly-hmw ʿṯtr-(ʿ)zzm ḏ-Gʾwbm bʿl mḥrmn Ṭrr w-ḏ—
8 t Bʿdnm w-mnḍḥy-hmw Rymn w-S²ms¹m w-b-rdʾ mrʾ-hmw S²mr Yhḥmd
9 mlk S¹bʾ w-ḏ-Rydn w-b-rdʾ w-ʾḫyl s²ʿb-hmw Ḏmr ʾrbʿw Qs²mm
| 1, 9 | Ḏmr: defective writing for Ḏmry. |
| 2-3 | Between the lines, the monogram of Ḏrnḥ and the Ḥimyarite symbol are represented. |
| 3 | kryfy: first certain attestation of the writing kryf in the singular form. |
| 7 | All the readings of the attestations of the theonym Wll/Wgl are uncertain. Robin proposed the reading Wgl; however, we follow the recent suggestion put forward on the basis of a clearer reading of the inscription Quṣayr 1. |
TRANSLATIONS
| English | |
1 S²rḥʿṯt Yʾmn, of the family Ḏrnḥ, masters of the house ʾḥrm, ʾqwl of the tribe Ḏmr, 2 fraction of Qs²mm, built, laid the foundations, constructed, completed and repaired their fortress 3 Tʿrmn, all its houses, its towers, its wall and its two cisterns, 4 after that ʾls²rḥ Yḥḍb, king of Sabaʾ, burned it and damaged when there was a war 5 between the kings of Sabaʾ and ḏu-Raydān and their armies, before this day. They completed all 6 its reconstruction in less than two months, when there was a negotiation; they repaired it with the aid of ʿṯtr S²rqn, 7 of Wgl [or: Wll], of S¹mydʿ, of their two gods ʿṯtr ʿzzm of Gʾwbm, Lord of the temple Ṭrr and ḏt 8 Bʿdnm and their two tutelary deities Rymn and S²ms¹m; with the aid of their lord S²mr Yhḥmd, 9 king of Sabaʾ and ḏu-Raydān, and with the aid and the resources of their tribe Ḏmr, fraction of Qs²mm. |
| Robin 1987 c: 114-115 | Robin, Christian J. 1987. L'inscription Ir 40 de Bayt Ḍabʿân et la tribu Ḏmry. Appendice: Les inscriptions Gl 1192, Gl 1197 et Gr 27. Pages 113-157 in Christian J. Robin and Muḥammad ʿA. Bāfaqīh (eds). Ṣayhadica. Recherches sur les inscriptions de l'Arabie préislamique offertes par ses collègues au professeur A.F. L. Beeston. (Arabie préislamique, 1). Paris: Librairie orientaliste Paul Geuthner. |
OBJECT INFORMATION
| Deposit | Ṣanʿāʾ, The National Museum, YM 2364 |
| Support type | Stone inscription |
| Material | Stone |
| Measures | h. 45, w. 112 |
| Link to object record |
ORIGIN AND PROVENANCE
| Modern site | Bayt as-Ṣaʾidī |
| Ancient site | Unknown |
| Geographical area | Yaklaʾ |
| Country | Yemen |
| Link to site record |
CULTURAL NOTES
The text commemorates the reconstruction of the Ḥimyarite citadel Tʿrmn after the destruction by the king of Saba ʾls²rḥ Yḥḍb. This Sabaean attack is at its turn recorded in the Sabaic inscription Ja 576.
At l.4, the Sabaean king ʾls²rḥ Yḥḍb is defined as "mlk S¹bʾ", though his official title in the Sabaean sources is "mlk S¹bʾ w-ḏ-Rydn". According to Robin, this may be explained because the authors belonged to the Ḥimyarite confederation, which only aknowledge the first title. Inversely, S²mr Yhḥmd, who is called here "mlk S¹bʾ w-ḏ-Rydn", is known by the Sabaean sources as S²mr ḏ-Rydn.
At l.4, the Sabaean king ʾls²rḥ Yḥḍb is defined as "mlk S¹bʾ", though his official title in the Sabaean sources is "mlk S¹bʾ w-ḏ-Rydn". According to Robin, this may be explained because the authors belonged to the Ḥimyarite confederation, which only aknowledge the first title. Inversely, S²mr Yhḥmd, who is called here "mlk S¹bʾ w-ḏ-Rydn", is known by the Sabaean sources as S²mr ḏ-Rydn.
The authors of the inscription belong to the family Ḏrnḥ of the tribe Ḏmr/Ḏmry. Robin discusses the meaning of the word ʾrbʿw in the phrase ʾqwl s²ʿbn Ḏmr ʾrbʿw Qs²mm. He suggests that it is the plural of rbʿ "fourth", indicating a subdivision of the tribe. As rbʿ is used also in contexts where only three parts of a tribe are known, he suggests that the word has switched from the notion of "fourth" to that of "fraction".
According to Robin, S¹mydʿ might be a divinised hero, possibly the founder of the ḥimyarite dynasty or kingdom.
BIBLIOGRAPHY
| Robin 1987 c: 122-126, pl. 10 | Robin, Christian J. 1987. L'inscription Ir 40 de Bayt Ḍabʿân et la tribu Ḏmry. Appendice: Les inscriptions Gl 1192, Gl 1197 et Gr 27. Pages 113-157 in Christian J. Robin and Muḥammad ʿA. Bāfaqīh (eds). Ṣayhadica. Recherches sur les inscriptions de l'Arabie préislamique offertes par ses collègues au professeur A.F. L. Beeston. (Arabie préislamique, 1). Paris: Librairie orientaliste Paul Geuthner. |
| al-Iryānī 1990: 252-280 | al-Iryānī, Muṭahhar 1990. Fī-taʾrīḫ al-Yaman. Nuquš musnadiya wa-taʿliqāt. Ṣanʿāʾ: Markaz al-dirāsāt wa-l-buḥūṯ al-Yamanī. |
| Robin and Vogt 1997: 189 (photo) | Robin, Christian J. and Vogt, Burkhard (eds) 1997. Yémen, au pays de la reine de Saba. Exposition présentée à l'Institut du monde arabe du 25 octobre 1997 au 28 février 1998. Paris: Flammarion, Institut du Monde Arabe. |