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A large
The text is inscribed boustrophedon and in quasi-stoichedon, with good regularity. Since there is an empty space of a bit more than 1 line before line 1, we seem to have the beginning of the inscription, though an uncertain amount of space is perhaps missing to the left and right beyond the available letterspaces on the wall block itself. The last line may be preserved or the text may have continued on another block below, now missing.
Letters:
Encoded for EpiDoc schema 8.17 on 01-01-2014 by J.M. Carbon.
Edition here based on Guarducci,
Other editions:
Further bibliography:
And provide to/for [... (something)] and a mixture of all seeds [... and (something)] and a small iron thing (e.g. a knife) and [... and] wholly spherical things and pure sacrificial animals (5) [and ...] and palm-wine and [wine? ...] and a wooden basket and [...] and offerings [...] two [(head-baskets? e.g. filled with...)] and barley and a small libation vessel and [...] and sacrificial offerings (and) an older [viz. animal ... (10) ...] together with on both sides [...] the priest and the sacrificer are to provide [...] offerings from the bronze jars [...].
Et l'on doit fournir à/pour [... (quelque chose)] et une variété de semences [... et (quelque chose)] et un petit objet de fer (e.g. un couteau) et [... et] des choses complètement sphériques et des animaux sacrificiels purs (5) [et ...] et du vin de palme et [du vin ? ...] et un panier de bois et [...] et des offrandes [...] deux [(paniers portés sur la tête ?, e.g. remplis de...)] et de grains d'orge et une petite phiale et [...] et des offrandes sacrificielles [et] un plus vieil [animal ? ... (10) ...] avec des deux côtés [...] le prêtre et le sacrificateur doivent fournir [...] des offrandes des vases en bronze [...].
This is an intriguing list of quite varied sacrificial and perhaps other provisions, but we have no idea as to its context, especially given the fragmentary indirect object of παρέχεν in line 1 which is difficult to interpret. There appear to be two majors sections of the text, first a long list in lines 1-10, then perhaps an additional list of offerings signalled by a further instance of παρέχεν in line 11 (note also ἰαρώματα in line 12, repeated from line 7), though this latter section is probably incompletely preserved. The order in which offerings and objects are presented in the syndetic list of lines 1-10 is puzzling: it moves back and forth between concrete objects, sacrificial animals and other substances such as perhaps wine. We note that there are two recurrent features in the list. First, the use of substantivised adjectives to designate some of the offerings: φοιν[ίκ]ιον in line 5, and possibly [ὁ]λοσφαίραι̣[α] in line 4. Second, the presence of diminutives: σιδαρί[σ]κον in line 3, and φιαλίσκαν in line 8. Despite this relative consistency, several of the traces and even some of the objects invoked in the list remain enigmatic.
Line 1: It is difficult or impossible to be sure about the recipient of the offerings; one might expect a deity or perhaps even an official. Comparetti indeed thought of a man, restoring Τ[ραλ]λίωι Ἀρεί[ωνι]. Guarducci plausibly thinks of an epithet of Ares, preceding the theonym: Τ[. . .]λίωι Ἄρει. Manganaro restores a well-attested Cretan god, but the remaining traces cause some problems: Τ[αλλ]αίω(ι) ἱαρεί[αν | κα]λάν; thus, a beautiful female sacrificial animal (?) for (Zeus) Tallaios. Though the god makes sense, the reading is problematic on several counts: it requires substituting an
Line 2: Despite the scepticism of Guarducci, the restoration
Line 3:
Line 4: Both Guarducci and Manganaro think of a new compound word παλοσφαίρα, meaning "clay balls", which they give in the dative plural constructed with δεῖ[να] in the preceding line. Another option, as we give it here, would be equally conjectural and involve a (substantivised) compound adjective: [ὁ]λοσφαίραι̣[α], referring to perfectly spherical objects. For sphere(s) as a ritual object in the State Calendar of Athens, in a list of objects following the
Line 5: For the traces at the beginning of the line, Manganaro thinks of [αἰρό]πινα, which yields a good sense for an inclusion in this list:
Line 6: The object mentioned here appears derived from κάναστρον, usually meaning a wicker basket (καναστραῖα, just like κάναστρον, cf.
Line 7: The word ἰαρώμα is rather obscure, though it ought to designate consecrated objects or offerings of some sort. Some scholars (e.g. Manganaro and Maddoli) prefer to interpret this as aromatic substances, ἀρώματα, but the normal ellision of καὶ as κ᾽ (rather than the malformed κι᾽) appears to preclude this. The traces in the middle of the line are extremely difficult to interpret, and it is not clear whether δύο belongs with these traces or instead with what follows. At the end of the line, the traces ΣΑΛΙ̣ could be interpreted as a variety of objects. Comparetti proposes the word σαλία (= Att. τηλία), which is a sieve or baker's board, and Guarducci adopts this, thinking also of a diminutive: σαλί̣[σκας ἀ|λεύρων] κ᾽ αὐφίτων, i.e. small sieves for flour and barley-grains. Manganaro points to the word σάλαξ, which also means sieve. We note as an attractive alternative to the sieve that the word σαλία has another sense, which Hsch. s.v. gives as πλέγμα καλάθῳ ὅμοιον, ὃ ἐπὶ τῆς κεφαλῆς φοροῦσιν αἱ Λάκαιναι, οἱ δὲ θολία. The σαλία might then be another sort of basket, perhaps filled with two types of grains.
Line 9: This part of the list includes further sacrificial offerings of some sort: one might expect these to be animals, just like the striking ἰηρῖα καθαρά̣ in line 4, though they could be other offerings (e.g. aromatics) to be burned (so Maddoli). Here, these offerings appear to be followed by the specification that the next offering is an "older" one of some sort, probably a vague minimum age requirement for a sacrificial animal.
Line 10: This line is virtually unintelligible.
Line 11: This line probably introduces a new section of the lists of provisions. The priest and another official (rather than city, above?) must provide other offerings. The κοσυβάτας is a sacrificial agent of some sort, probably acting in an ancillary capacity to the priest. He is only attested here and in Hsch. s.v. κόσβατοι· οἱ ἐπὶ θυσιῶν τεταγμένοι.
Line 12: χόννος is a rather well-attested Cretan word for a copper cup, see