CSAI
Corpus of South Arabian Inscriptions

Indexes
Tools
Record’s details
CC BY 4.0
The above license applies to the data in this record, but not to any images displayed. The images are the property of third parties and are either used with permission or reproduced from publications (see the credits below each image).

AO 31930


INSCRIPTION INFORMATION

LanguageAncient South Arabian » Minaic » Central Minaic
ScriptAncient South Arabian
Script typologyMonumental writing
Text directionRight-to-left
Text appearanceRaised
Execution techniqueCasting
Measure of letters2.7
Chronology
PeriodA
Textual typologyDedicatory text
Royal inscriptionYes

GENERAL NOTES

As usual in the inscriptions of Lbʾn and S¹mhyfʿ, there are word separators at the beginning and at the end of every line, even in the middle of a single word.

TEXT

marker


   1  | Lbʾn Ydʿ bn Ydʿʾb s³lʾ ʾrny—
   2  dʿ mṣrbn ywm s¹ḥdṯ ʾtḥ n—
   3  ḥln w-gnʾ Ns²q |

TRANSLATIONS

English

   1  Lbʾn Ydʿ son of Ydʿʾb dedicated to ʾrny-
   2  dʿ this altar when he restored the ʾtḥ
   3  nḥln and walled Ns²q.
2-3the meaning of the phrase ʾtḥ nḥln remains obscure. The first word occurs in construction contexts as the name of a part of buildings, while the second usually refers to land grants. In this case, the action of restoring and dedicating is certainly referred to a specific object (cf. the following walls of Nashq) which we still cannot define.

OBJECT INFORMATION

DepositParis, Louvre Museum, AO 31930
Support typeArtefact » Altar (mṣrb)
ShapeSquared
MaterialBronze
Dimensionsh. 54, w. 39, th. 30.5
Link to object record

ORIGIN AND PROVENANCE

Origin. Conjectural
Modern siteas-Sawdāʾ
Ancient siteNs²n
Geographical areaJawf - Wādī al-Buhayra
CountryYemen
NotesThe author of the inscription is Lbʾn Ydʿ king of Nashshān. However, the text commemorates the fortification of the town of Nashq. So, it is uncertain whether the text comes from as-Sawdāʾ or al-Bayḍāʾ.
Link to site record

BIBLIOGRAPHY

Caubet and Gajda 2003: 1233-1236, figs 2, 6Caubet, Annie and Gajda, Iwona 2003. Deux autels en bronze provenant de l'Arabie méridionale, suivi d'un appendice de Mme Françoise Demange sur la technique de fabrication (note d'information). Comptes Rendus de l'Académie des Inscriptions et Belles Lettres: 1219-1242.
Jändl 2009: 147-148Jändl, Barbara 2009. Altsüdarabische Inschriften auf Metall. (Epigraphische Forschungen auf der Arabischen Halbinsel, 4). Tübingen: Wasmuth / Berlin: Wasmuth.
Arbach 2022: 68, fig. 17Arbach, Mounir 2022. The city-states of the Jawf at the dawn of Ancient South Arabian history (8th-6th centuries BCE). I. From cities to kingdoms. (Arabia Antica, 17/1). Roma: «L'Erma» di Bretschneider. 2025/12/29; https://doi.org/10.48255/9788891322920.
Rossi 2022: 113-114Rossi, 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.