CSAI
Corpus of South Arabian Inscriptions

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al-Jawf 04.11


Arbach and Schiettecatte 2006: pl. 5/12

INSCRIPTION INFORMATION

LanguageAncient South Arabian » Minaic » Central Minaic
ScriptAncient South Arabian
Script typologyMonumental writing
Text directionRight-to-left
Text appearanceRecessed
Execution techniqueIncision
Measure of letters4
Chronology
PeriodA. Conjectural
Textual typologyDedicatory text

GENERAL NOTES

The irregular writing, the unusual patronymic, the expression k-s¹mʿt at the beginning of the text and the verb ḥṯd instead of a verb of dedication might suggest that this text is a fake. However, it is syntactically, grammatically and culturally consistent.

TEXT

marker


   1  Ḥmʿṯt bn ʿm—
   2  nyhn k-s¹mʿt Y—
   3  hrmlk w-Ns²n ḥ—
   4  ṯd ʿ(ṯ)tr ḏ-Grb
   5  nfs¹-s¹ w-wld-s¹ w-
   6  qny-s¹ |

Apparatus
2Yhrmlk might be the name of a king of Nashshān.
3-4The root ḤṮD is never attested. We cannot exclude an error for rṯd or s¹ḥdṯ.

TRANSLATIONS

English

   1  Ḥmʿṯt son of ʿm-
   2  nyhn, for the testimony (?) of Y-
   3  hrmlk and Nashshān, dedicated (?)
   4  to ʿṯtr ḏ-Grb
   5  himself, his sons and
   6  his property.
3-4the translation "dedicated" is determined by the context, as there are no comparisons for the verb ḥṯd, which could be a writer's error (for rṯd or s¹ḥdṯ?).

OBJECT INFORMATION

DepositṢanʿāʾ, The National Museum
Support typeStone piece
MaterialStone
Dimensionsh. 28, w. 32, th. 10
Link to object record

ORIGIN AND PROVENANCE

Origin
Modern siteas-Sawdāʾ
Ancient siteNs²n
Geographical areaJawf - Wādī al-Buhayra
CountryYemen
Link to site record

CULTURAL NOTES

If we maintain this text original, it turns out to be interesting as it shows a legal formula, which expresses the testimony of the tribe and its authority. Yhrmlk is probably a king or an officer.

BIBLIOGRAPHY

Arbach and Schiettecatte 2006: 24, pl. 5/12Arbach, Mounir and Schiettecatte, Jérémie 2006. Catalogue des pièces archéologiques et épigraphiques du Jawf au Musée National de Ṣanʿâʾ. Ṣanʿâʾ National Museum. Ṣanʿāʾ: Centre français d'archéologie et de sciences sociales de Ṣanʿâʾ. [Text in French and Arabic]
Rossi 2022: 180-181, 468, fig. 27Rossi, Irene 2022. The city-states of the Jawf at the dawn of Ancient South Arabian history (8th-6th centuries BCE). II. Corpus of the inscriptions. (Arabia Antica, 17/2). Roma: «L'Erma» di Bretschneider.