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Ja 753 I, II, III MaMB 285, 286, 287
INSCRIPTION INFORMATION
| Language | Ancient South Arabian » Sabaic » Central Middle Sabaic | ||
| Script | Ancient South Arabian | ||
| Script typology | Monumental writing | ||
| Text direction | Right-to-left | ||
| Text appearance | Recessed | ||
| Execution technique | Incision | ||
| Measure of letters | I 2.7; II-III 5.5 | ||
| Chronology |
| ||
| Textual typology | Dedicatory text |
GENERAL NOTES
| The text is engraved on two slabs. Two copies of the text are engraved on the back of each slab. |
TEXT
1 S¹ʿds²ms¹m ʾs¹rʿ [w-bn-hw Mrṯdm bny G±rt ʾqwl s²ʿbn ]Ḏ[mry hq]n(y)[w ʾlmqhw Ṯ]—
2 hwn bʿl ʾwm ṣlmnhn ḥng-n wqh-hmw ±[b-]ms¹ʾl-hw l-s¹ʿd-hmw ʾlmqhw n[ʿm]t[m w-]
3 wfym w-mngt ṣdqm ḏ-yhrḍyn ʾlb±[b-hmw] w-l-s¹ʿd ʾlmqhw ʾdm-hw bny Grt rḍ—
4 w w-ḥẓy ʾmrʾ-hmw ʾmlk S¹bʾ w-l ±[wzʾ ]ʾlmqhw ṣdq-hmw w-hwfyn-hmw b-kl
5 ʾmlʾ ys¹tmlʾnn b-ʿm-hw w-l ḫryn-hmw ʾl±[mqhw] bn bʾs¹tm w-nkym w-bn kl nḍʿ w-s²—
6 ṣy s²nʾm ḏ-rḥq w-qrb w-kwnt ḏt hqnyt±[n l-ḏ]t nʿmt w-tnʿmn l-S¹ʿds²ms¹m w-bn-hw M—
7 rṯdm bny Grt w-ql-hmw w-s²ʿb-hmw S¹mh±[rm ]b-ʿṯtr w-Hbs¹ w-ʾlmqhw w-ḏt Ḥmy—
8 m w-ḏt Bʿdnm w-b s²ms¹ mlkn Tnf w-±[b]ʿly-hmw ʿṯtr ʿzzm w-ḏt Ẓhrn
9 bʿly ʿrn Knn w-rṯdw hqnyt-hmw ± [ʿ]ṯtr S²rqn w-ʾlmqhw bʿl ʾwm
| 2 | ḥng-n: usually the n is assimilated (ḥg-n) (Beeston 1972: 353). |
| 3 | In the copies on the back: ḏ-yhrḍwn. |
| 7 | In the copies on the back: Hwbs¹ and w-b-ḏt Ḥmym. |
| 8 | In the copies on the back: w-b-ḏt Bʿdnm. |
TRANSLATIONS
| English | |
1 S¹ʿds²ms¹ ʾs¹rʿ and his son Mrṯdm, of the family Grt, ʾqwl of the tribe Ḏmry, dedicated to ʾlmqhw 2 Ṯhwn, Lord of ʾwm, two statues as He ordered them in His oracle, in order that ʾlmqhw grants them prosperity and 3 safety and good luck, that satisfy their hearts, and in order that ʾlmqhw grants His vassals, the family Grt, the 4 satisfaction and the goodwill of their lords the kings of Sabaʾ; may ʾlmqhw continue to fulfil them and to protect them in all 5 the favours they will seek from Him, and may ʾlmqhw deliver them from evil and mischief and from all the malice and the maleficence 6 of any enemy, the one who is near and the one who is far; this dedication was for what has been and will be favourable for S¹ʿds²ms¹ and his son 7 Mrṯdm of the family Grt and their ql and their tribe S¹mhrm. By ʿṯtr, Hbs¹, ʾlmqhw, and ḏt Ḥmym 8 and ḏt Bʿdnm, and by the solar deity of the king Tnf, and their two lords ʿṯtr ʿzzm and ḏt Ẓhrn, 9 the two Lords of the mountain Knn; and they committed their dedication to ʿṯtr S²rqn and ʾlmqhw, Lord of ʾwm. |
OBJECT INFORMATION
| Deposit | Mārib |
| Support type | Artefact » Base » Of statue with dedicatory inscription |
| Material | Stone |
| Dimensions | h. 48, w. 155, th. 39.8 |
| Link to object record |
ORIGIN AND PROVENANCE
| Modern site | Maḥram Bilqīs |
| Ancient site | ʾwm |
| Geographical area | Maʾrib |
| Country | Yemen |
| Archaeological context | Religious context: Temple of ʾlmqh bʿl ʾwm |
| Link to site record |
BIBLIOGRAPHY
| Jamme 1962 a: 224-226 | Jamme, Albert W.F. 1962. Sabaean Inscriptions from Maḥram Bilqîs (Mârib). (Publications of the American Foundation for the Study of Man, 3). Baltimore: Johns Hopkins Press. |
| Beeston 1972 e: 353 | Beeston, Alfred F.L. 1972. Review of Jamme, Albert W.F. 1962. Sabaean Inscriptions from Maḥram Bilqîs (Mârib). (Publications of the American Foundation for the Study of Man, 3). Baltimore: Johns Hopkins Press. Bulletin of the School of Oriental and African Studies, 35/2: 349-353. |