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SR-Naʿḍ 9
Robin and Rijziger 2018: 272, fig. 1
INSCRIPTION INFORMATION
| Language | Ancient South Arabian » Sabaic » Late Sabaic | ||||||||
| Script | Ancient South Arabian | ||||||||
| Script typology | Monumental writing | ||||||||
| Text direction | Right-to-left | ||||||||
| Text appearance | Recessed | ||||||||
| Execution technique | Incision | ||||||||
| Chronology |
| ||||||||
| Textual typology | Construction text - fragmentary |
GENERAL NOTES
| "The remains of the date accordingly place the text in either 430–440 CE or 460–470 CE" (Robin and Rijziger 2018: 274-275). |
TEXT
1 [... ... ... ...]mr w-Yws³f w-ʿb(d)ʾln w-Y(ḥ)—
2 [... ... ... ...] w-hqs²bn w-hs²q(r)n byt-h—
3 [mw ... ...] Bʿ(l) S¹myn ʾlh Ys³r—
4 [ʾl ... ...]d mlkn w-b-rd(ʾ) mrʾ-(h)—
5 [mw ... ... s¹](b)ʿy(([ʿr](b)ʿy)) w-ḫms¹ mʾtm
TRANSLATIONS
| English | |
1 [… … …]mr, Joseph, ʿAbdʾīlān and Yḥ- 2 [… have …, …], built a new and completed [their] palace 3 [… … …]. owner of the Sky, God of Isra- 4 [el … … …]… of the king, and with the aid of [their] lord 5 [… … … seven]ty and five hundred (or: … for]ty and five hundred) |
| Robin and Rijziger 2018: 273 | Robin, Christian J. and Rijziger, Sarah 2018. "The Owner of the Sky, God of Israel" in a new Jewish Ḥimyaritic inscription dating from the fifth century CE. Der Islam, 95/2: 271-290. 2019/10/08; https://doi.org/10.1515/islam-2018-0050. |
OBJECT INFORMATION
| Support type | Stone piece |
| Material | Stone |
| Dimensions | w. 50 |
| Link to object record |
ORIGIN AND PROVENANCE
| Modern site | Naʿḍ |
| Ancient site | Nʿḍ |
| Geographical area | Waʿlān |
| Country | Yemen |
| Archaeological context | Urban context: Private house |
| Link to site record |
CULTURAL NOTES
"Two of the anthroponyms mentioned in line 1 ‒ and perhaps a third ‒ are clearly monotheistic. But the most interesting feature is the invocation to “God of Israel” – an expression that is here attested for the first time in Yemen. It indicates that the authors were not only monotheists but also Jews" (Robin and Rijziger 2018: 273).
"The dating of the inscription shifts depending on the restoration of the last line of the text: "If we maintain 57[.], the date could be 570 or any number between 570 and 579. The year 570 corresponds to 460–461 CE; at that time, it was the king Shuriḥbiʾīl Yaʿfur (approx. 455–468) who reigned. The year 579 corresponds to 469–470 CE; the monarch was then Shuriḥbiʾīl Yakkuf (468–480 approx.). If, however, we maintain 54[.], the inscription dates from the period 430–440 CE, towards the end of the reign of Abīkarib Asʿad (around 400–445 CE)" (Robin and Rijziger 2018: 274-275).
"As the invocation to their lord (king or prince) shows, the authors of the text were part of the local social hierarchy. This implies that they were converted Ḥimyarites (that is to say proselytes) and not exiled Judeans who had settled in Yemen" (Robin and Rijziger 2018: 273).
BIBLIOGRAPHY
| Robin and Rijziger 2018: 271-275, fig. 1 | Robin, Christian J. and Rijziger, Sarah 2018. "The Owner of the Sky, God of Israel" in a new Jewish Ḥimyaritic inscription dating from the fifth century CE. Der Islam, 95/2: 271-290. 2019/10/08; https://doi.org/10.1515/islam-2018-0050. |