CIH 366 b' Fa 17 + Fa 36 + Fa 19
INSCRIPTION INFORMATION
| Language | Ancient South Arabian » Sabaic » Early Sabaic | ||
| Alphabet | Ancient South Arabian | ||
| Script typology | Monumental writing | ||
| Writing technique | Incision | ||
| Chronology |
| ||
| Textual typology | Construction text - fragmentary | ||
| Royal inscription | Yes |
GENERAL NOTES
| CIH 366 was restored on the basis of fragments of various copies of the same inscription found in situ or reemployed in the wall of ʾlmqh's temple in Ṣirwāḥ. Three main original versions of the text have been recognized: CIH 366 a, CIH 366 b, CIH 366 b'. In the image, on the basis of Wissmann's reconstruction of CIH 366 b': Fakhry 24 (Fakhry 1952, iii: pl. V/2) + Fa 8 (Pirenne 1956: pl. XIII/e; Bron 1981 a: pl. IV/a) + Fa 6 (Fakhry 1952, iii: pls. V/3 and XVII/b; Bron 1981 a, pls III/b and IV/c) + Fa 18 (Fakhry 1952, iii: pl. XVII/b) + Fa 12 (Fakhry 1952, iii: pl. V/5 and XVII/b; Pirenne 1956: pl. XIII/e'; Bron 1981 a, pls III/b and IV/b). Differently, Bron considers Fa 17 (Fakhry 1952, iii: pl. V/4) and Fa 36 as belonging to the same text of Fa 8, Fa 6 and Fa 12 (Bron 1981 a: 29, pls III/b and IV/a-d), and restores: Ydʿʾ Ḏrḥ bn S¹mhʿly mkr[b S¹bʾ ...] gwm ḏ-ʾlm w-s²ymm w-ḏ ḥblm w-ḥmrm b-ʿṯ[tr w-b ]ʾlmqh w-b ḏt Ḥmym. For other fragments related to CIH 366 see the general remarks to CIH 366 a. |
TEXT
1 [Ydʿʾl Ḏrḥ] bn-S¹mhʿly[ mkrb S¹bʾ bny byt ʾlmqh ywm ... ... w-hwṣt kl ]±gwm ḏ-ʾlm w-s²ymm± w-ḏ ḥblm w-ḥmrm b-ʿṯ±tr w-b ʾ±lmqh w-b ḏt-Ḥmym |
| 1 | Wissmann's edition. The lacuna is to be restored on the basis of CIH 366 a or b. |
TRANSLATIONS
| English | |
1 Ydʿʾl Ḏrḥ son of S¹mhʿly, [mukarrib of Sabaʾ, built the temple of ʾlmqh, when ... ... and he founded all] the community, that of the god and Patron and of the territory and people; for ʿṯtr and ʾlmqh and ḏt Ḥmym. |
| For the "pact of alliance" formula, other translations have been proposed: "the god and the patron, the territory and the population", or "the god and the patron, the state and the federation". |
OBJECT INFORMATION
| Support type | Inscription on architectural structure » Walls |
| Material | Stone |
| Link to object record |
ORIGIN AND PROVENANCE
| Modern site | Ṣirwāḥ-Khawlān |
| Ancient site | Ṣrwḥ |
| Geographical area | Ṣirwāḥ |
| Country | Yemen |
| Found | Reemployed. In ancient times |
| Archaeological context | Religious context: Temple of ʾlmqh |
| Link to site record |
BIBLIOGRAPHY
| Fakhry 1952: iii, pls V/2-3 and XVII/b | Fakhry, Ahmed 1952. An archaeological Journey to Yemen (March-May 1947). (3 vols), Cairo: Government Press. |
| Pirenne 1956: pls XIII/e, e' | Pirenne, Jacqueline 1956. Paléographie des inscriptions sud-arabes. Contribution à la chronologie et à l'histoire de l'Arabie du sud antique. (Verhandelingen van de Koninklijke Vlaamse Academie voor Wetenschappen, Letteren en Schone Kunsten van België. Klasse der letteren, 26). Brussels: Paleis der Academiën. |
| Bron 1981 a: pls III/b and IV/a-d | Bron, François 1981. Inscriptions de Ṣirwāḥ. Raydān, 4: 29-34. |
| Wissmann 1982: 204-205, fig. 46 (facsimile) | Wissmann, Hermann von 1982. Die Geschichte von Sabaʾ II. Das Grossreich der Sabäer bis zu seinem Ende im frühen 4. Jh. v. Chr. (Sitzungsberichte der Österreichische Akademie der Wissenschaften, Philosophischhistorische Klasse, 402). Vienna: Österreichische Akademie der Wissenschaften. [Walter W. Müller (ed.)] |