CIAS 47.11/p 8 n° 1 Q 840; Ry 367; CSAI I, 126
By kind permission of GOAM
INSCRIPTION INFORMATION
| Language | Ancient South Arabian » Qatabanic » Central Qatabanic | ||
| Alphabet | Ancient South Arabian | ||
| Script typology | Monumental writing | ||
| Writing technique | Cast | ||
| Chronology |
| ||
| Textual typology | Dedicatory text |
TEXT
1 S²rḥʾl w-Zydʾl w-bn-s¹m ḏtw Zydʾl w-ʾls²rḥ ʾʾdmn s¹—
2 qnyw ʾl-s¹m w-mrʾ-s¹m ḏ-S¹mwy ʾlh ʾmrm (b)[... ...](k)rbn
3 b-Tmnʿ s¹qnyt ḏhbn ḥg-n tkrb-s¹ S²rḥ[ʾl w-Zy]dʾl b-qd—
4 mw ḏn ywmn bn ʾʾrḫm qbl ʿly-s¹m [w-ʿly b]ny-s¹m b-qd—
5 mw ywmn w-ʾḏn ḏ-S¹mwy ʾlh ʾmrm l-(y)[... ...]ḏtn ʾrḫ l-
6 s¹m b-ḏtn tkrb-s¹ w-s¹ṯbw l-ḏ-S¹mwy w-[... ...]ʾmnm rṯd—
7 w S²rḥʾl w-Zydʾl w-bn-s¹my ḏ-[S¹]mwy ʾʾḏn-s¹my w-
8 ʾʾḏn bn-s¹my w-qny-s¹my w-ḏ-S¹mwy [l]-ys¹ṯb kl s²nʾ-s¹—
9 my w-s²nʾ ḏn qnyw w-b-qnyn w-wzʾ Zydʾl rṯd mrʾ-s¹ ḏ-S¹—
10 mwy ʾbl-s¹ ʿdwn ḏ-ḏy-s¹
| 1 | Zydʾl seems to be the name of the dedicants' ancestor; ʾls²rḥ, instead of being the third dedicant, could be an ancestor as well. |
| 6 | w[... ...]tʾmnm (Jamme). |
| 10 | The last line is engraved on the bottom margin of the slab. |
TRANSLATIONS
| English | |
1 S²rḥʾl and Zydʾl and their sons, those of Zydʾl and ʾls²rḥ, the Adamites, dedi- 2 cated to their God and their Lord ḏ-S¹mwy, God of ʾmrm, in[... ...] 3 in Tmnʿ a bronze dedication as S²rḥʾl and Zydʾl asked Him, before 4 this day, against things that had happened to them and to their sons before 5 this day, and the authority of ḏ-S¹mwy, God of ʾmrm may [... ...]so He intervened for 6 them, as they asked Him, then they testified ḏ-S¹mwy [... ...]gratitude; 7 S²rḥʾl and Zydʾl and the sons of both of them have committed to ḏ-S¹mwy the faculties of both of them and 8 the faculties of their two sons and the properties of both of them; may ḏ-S¹mwy repulse every enemy of both 9 of them and the enemy of what they possess and of what they will possess. Besides Zydʾl has committed to his Lord u-S¹- 10 mwy his camel ʿdwn, that is among his (camels) (?). |
| 3-6 | "... according to what S²rḥʾl and Zydʾl had assigned to him (the deity; had set aside for him, had promised him) before this day, against the bad luck which had struck them and their children before this day, and ḎS¹MWY, god of the oracle, allowed that [...] whatever (fate) he had preordained for them in response to what they had assigned to him (had set aside for him, had promised him) ..." (Drewes 2003). |
| 10 | CIAS translates ḏ-ḏy-s¹ "de ce qui est à lui"; Robin "qui est à Lui"; Avanzini 2004 a: 176 "he of ḏ-S¹mwy (?). |
| Drewes 2003 | Drewes, Abraham J. 2003. The meaning of Sabaean mkrb, facts and fiction. Semitica, 51: 93-125. |
| CIAS | Beeston, Alfred F.L., Pirenne, Jacqueline and Robin, Christian J. 1977-1986. Corpus des inscriptions et antiquités sud-arabes: Vol. I (1977): Tome 1. Inscriptions. Tome 2. Antiquités; Vol. II (1986): Le Musée d’Aden. Tome 1. Inscriptions. Tome 2. Antiquités. Louvain: Peeters. [Académie des Inscriptions et Belles-lettres] |
OBJECT INFORMATION
| Deposit | Aden, The National Museum, NAM 483=AM 335 |
| Support type | Artefact » Plaque » With framework |
| Material | Bronze |
| Measures | h. 46, w. 58 |
| Link to object record |
ORIGIN AND PROVENANCE
| Modern site | Hajar Kuḥlān |
| Ancient site | Tmnʿ |
| Geographical area | Wādī Bayḥān |
| Country | Yemen |
| Link to site record |
CULTURAL NOTES
This is the only dedication in Qatabanic to ḏ-S¹mwy ʾlh ʾmrm, a god well known in Haram and Sabaʾ. On the basis of the textual features and of the onomastic formula of the dedicants, we are probably dealing with foreign merchants who lived in Timnaʿ where they had a temple for their god ḏ-S¹mwy.
This can be considered an indirect evidence of the trade activities in Qataban. As in CSAI I, 72=VL 9, in this case too a foreign community was settled in Timnaʿ and made a dedication for a god who par excellence was in control of all trades.
BIBLIOGRAPHY
| CIAS: ii, 141-144, photo | Beeston, Alfred F.L., Pirenne, Jacqueline and Robin, Christian J. 1977-1986. Corpus des inscriptions et antiquités sud-arabes: Vol. I (1977): Tome 1. Inscriptions. Tome 2. Antiquités; Vol. II (1986): Le Musée d’Aden. Tome 1. Inscriptions. Tome 2. Antiquités. Louvain: Peeters. [Académie des Inscriptions et Belles-lettres] |
| Jamme 1988: 31-40 | Jamme, Albert W.F. 1988. Miscellanées d'ancient arabe XVI. Washington. 2019/07/23; https://cuislandora.wrlc.org/islandora/object/cuislandora%3A202307#page/1/mode/1up. [Privately printed] |
| Robin and Vogt 1997: 184, cat. 235a | 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. |