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Ja 2366 Q 700; CSAI I, 11
By kind permission of Mission Qatabān
INSCRIPTION INFORMATION
| Language | Ancient South Arabian » Qatabanic » Central Qatabanic | ||
| Script | Ancient South Arabian | ||
| Script typology | Monumental writing | ||
| Text direction | Right-to-left | ||
| Text appearance | Recessed | ||
| Execution technique | Incision | ||
| Chronology |
| ||
| Textual typology | Construction text | ||
| Royal inscription | Yes |
TEXT
1 S²hr Ygl bn Ydʿ(ʾb)( mlk )(Qtbn)
2 bny qrḍn Ylbʾ w-ʿ(glm)t-s¹ w-rʾs¹-s¹ fdfd
3 ʾrḍ-s¹ Grbtn w-bqr mʾtw-s¹(y)w Ġyln (w)-(Y)s¹rn
4 (w)-(ṣ)yr w-grb Grbtn w-bny ʾqrḍ-s¹ w-ḥrt-s¹yw
5 w-fdfd-s¹ w-s¹nbṭ ʾbʾr-s¹ w-bny qrḍn Yrtʿ
6 ḏ-Flgn ḏ-(K)ybn l-ʿlw Mhyws¹r l-Grbtn b-ʿṯtr
7 w-b ʿm w-b ʿm ḏ-Dym[tm] w-b ʿm ḏ-S²[qr w-b ʿm ḏ-Ry]—
8 mt w-b ʾnby [S²ymn] w-b Ḥwkm[ Nbṭ w-b-ḏt ]Rḥbn
| 6 | ḏ-S¹ybn (Jamme). |
| 8 | S²ymn (Jamme). |
TRANSLATIONS
| English | |
1 S²hr Ygl son of Ydʿʾb king of Qatabān 2 constructed the barrage Ylbʾ and its diversion wall and its outlet as an enlargement of 3 its territory Grbtn and he excavated its two water conducts Ġyln and Ys¹rn 4 and he brought into cultivation and terraced (the territory of) Grbtn and built its barrages and its canals 5 and he enlarged it and dug its wells up and he built the barrage Yrtʿ 6 ḏ-Flgn that of Kybn over Mhyws¹r as far up to Grbtn; by ʿṯtr 7 and by ʿm and by ʿm ḏ-Dymtm and by ʿm ḏ-S²qr and by ʿm ḏ-Ry- 8 mt and by ʾnby S²ymn and by Ḥwkm Nbṭ and by ḏt Rḥbn. |
OBJECT INFORMATION
| Support type | Rock |
| Dimensions | w. 180 |
| Link to object record |
ORIGIN AND PROVENANCE
| Modern site | Jabal Qarn ʿUbayd |
| Ancient site | Unknown |
| Geographical area | wādī Ḥarīb |
| Country | Yemen |
| Link to site record |
CULTURAL NOTES
On the basis of the Qatabanic corpus, it clearly appears that the construction of dams and other irrigation works was a function typical of royal authority.
Here the king S²hr Ygl bn Ydʿʾb (probably to be identified as the king of CSAI I, 6=Doe 5) conducts a number of hydraulic works in the territory of Grbtn, in the region of Ḥinū az-Zurayr. From the linguistic point of view, inscriptions related to this subject have a very rich lexicon, with technical terms not always easy to translate, and with many geographical differences that can be observed.
Here the king S²hr Ygl bn Ydʿʾb (probably to be identified as the king of CSAI I, 6=Doe 5) conducts a number of hydraulic works in the territory of Grbtn, in the region of Ḥinū az-Zurayr. From the linguistic point of view, inscriptions related to this subject have a very rich lexicon, with technical terms not always easy to translate, and with many geographical differences that can be observed.
BIBLIOGRAPHY
| Jamme 1972: 32-33, pl. 7 (facsimile) | Jamme, Albert W.F. 1972. Miscellanées d'ancient arabe III. Washington. 2025/04/17; https://www.jstor.org/stable/community.38250312. [Privately printed] |