<?xml version="1.0"?>
<TEI xmlns="http://www.tei-c.org/ns/1.0" xml:id="CGRN_233" xml:lang="en">
<teiHeader>
<fileDesc>
<titleStmt>
<title><idno type="filename">CGRN 233</idno>: <rs type="textType" key="decree">Edict</rs> on the protection of Aphrodite's birds at Aphrodisias</title>
<author>Jan-Mathieu Carbon</author>
<author>Vinciane Pirenne-Delforge</author>
</titleStmt>
<publicationStmt>
<authority>Collection of Greek Ritual Norms, Collège de France - University of Liège.</authority>
<availability>
<p>Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike International License <ref target="http://creativecommons.org/" type="external">4.0</ref>.</p><p>All citation, reuse or distribution of this work must contain somewhere a link back to the DOI (<idno type="DOI">https://doi.org/10.54510/CGRN233</idno>), as well as the year of consultation (see “Home” for details on how to cite or click “Export Citation” to create a reference for this specific file).</p></availability>
</publicationStmt>
<sourceDesc>
<msDesc>
<msIdentifier>
<repository>n/a</repository>
</msIdentifier>
<physDesc>
<objectDesc>
<supportDesc>
<support>
<p>Upper part of a marble statue <rs type="objectType" key="base">base</rs>, broken across the shaft.</p>
<p><dimensions>
<height unit="cm">53</height>
<width unit="cm">37</width>
<depth unit="cm">58</depth>
</dimensions></p>
</support>
</supportDesc>
<layoutDesc>
<layout>
<p>Letters: <height unit="cm">2-2.5</height></p>
</layout>
</layoutDesc>
</objectDesc>
</physDesc>
<history>
<origin>
<p><origDate notBefore="0077" notAfter="0078">77/8 AD</origDate>
</p>
<p><desc>Justification: the Roman poet Silius Italicus, who issued this edict (cf. lines 1-2), was proconsul of Asia at this time (Calder).</desc></p>
</origin>
<provenance>
<p>Found about 3 km from the western wall of <placeName type="ancientFindspot" key="Aphrodisias" n="Asia_Minor_and_Anatolia"><ref target="https://pleiades.stoa.org/places/638753" type="external">Aphrodisias</ref></placeName>. The stone was re-used in a farmhouse with the rest of the blocks of the cistern discovered in 1934 (see Support). The block is no longer visible or its current location is unknown.
</p>
</provenance>
</history>
</msDesc>
</sourceDesc>
</fileDesc>
<encodingDesc>
<p>Encoded for EpiDoc schema 8.17 on 13-05-2020 by V. Pirenne-Delforge.</p>
</encodingDesc>
<profileDesc>
<langUsage>
<language ident="eng">English</language>
<language ident="grc">Ancient Greek</language>
<language ident="lat">Latin</language>
<language ident="fre">French</language>
<language ident="ger">German</language>
<language ident="gre">Modern Greek</language>
<language ident="ita">Italian</language>
</langUsage>
<textClass/>
</profileDesc>
<revisionDesc>
<change>Revised by XX in 20XX.</change>
</revisionDesc>
</teiHeader>
<facsimile>
<graphic url="x">
<desc/>
</graphic>
</facsimile>
<text>
<body>
<div type="bibliography">
<head>Bibliography</head>
<p>Edition here based on <ref target="http://insaph.kcl.ac.uk/iaph2007/iAph130609.html" type="external">I.Aph.</ref> 13.609, with <bibl type="author_date" n="Reynolds 1982">Reynolds 1982</bibl> no. 46, including a ph. of the squeeze at pl. XXIX.3.</p>
<p>Cf. also: <bibl type="author_date" n="Calder_1935">Calder 1935</bibl>;
Sokolowski <bibl type="abbr" n="LSAM">LSAM</bibl> 86;
<bibl type="abbr" n="Körner - Hallof">Körner - Hallof</bibl>65.</p>
<p>Further bibliography: <bibl type="author_date" n="Robert_1971">Robert 1971</bibl>;
<bibl type="author_date" n="Pirenne-Delforge_1994">Pirenne-Delforge 1994</bibl>;
<bibl type="author_date" n="Foschia_2004">Foschia 2004</bibl>.</p>
</div>
<div type="edition">
<head>Text</head>
<ab>
<lb xml:id="line_1" n="1"/><unclear>Τ</unclear>ιβέριος Κάτιος Ἀ<supplied reason="lost">σ</supplied>κ<unclear>ώ</unclear>
<lb xml:id="line_2" n="2" break="no"/>νιος Σείλιος <name type="ethnic" key="Italy"><w lemma="Ἰταλικός">Εἰταλικὸς</w></name>
<lb xml:id="line_3" n="3"/><name type="title"><w lemma="ἀνθύπατος">ἀνθύπατος</w></name> <name type="speechAct"><w lemma="λέγει">λέγει</w></name>· κα<supplied reason="lost">ὶ</supplied>
<lb xml:id="line_4" n="4"/><name type="authority"><w lemma="ψήφισμα">ψηφισμάτων</w></name> <w lemma="εἰμί">ὄντων</w>
<lb xml:id="line_5" n="5"/><w lemma="καθά">καθὰ</w> <name type="authority"><w lemma="κωλύω">κωλύεται</w></name> <w lemma="συνλαμβάνω">συνλαμ
<lb xml:id="line_6" n="6" break="no"/><unclear>βάν</unclear><supplied reason="lost">ειν</supplied></w>, <w lemma="τρέφω">τρέφειν</w>, <w lemma="σοβέω">σοβεῖν</w>,
<lb xml:id="line_7" n="7"/><gap reason="lost" quantity="7" unit="character" precision="low"/> <w lemma="ἐν"><supplied reason="lost">ἐ</supplied>ν</w> τῇ <name type="group"><w lemma="πόλις">πόλει</w></name> τὰ<unclear>ς</unclear>
<lb xml:id="line_8" n="8"/><name type="animal" key="bird"><w lemma="περιστερά"><supplied reason="lost">περιστερὰ</supplied>ς</w></name> τῆς τε <name type="genericOffering"><w lemma="θρησκεία">θρησ
<lb xml:id="line_9" n="9" break="no"/><supplied reason="lost">κείας</supplied></w></name> <supplied reason="lost">τῆς</supplied> <w lemma="περί"><supplied reason="lost">πε</supplied>ρὶ</w> τὴν <name type="deity" key="Aphrodite"><w lemma="θεός">θεόν</w></name>
<lb xml:id="line_10" n="10"/><gap reason="lost" quantity="12" unit="character" precision="low"/><orig><unclear>ΕΣΘΑΤΙ</unclear></orig><gap reason="lost" quantity="1" unit="character"/><supplied reason="lost">(?)</supplied>
<lb/><gap reason="lost" extent="unknown" unit="line"/>
</ab>
</div>
<div type="translation" xml:lang="eng">
<head>Translation</head>
<p>Tiberius Catius Asconius Silius Italicus, proconsul, orders: since there are also decrees (5) forbidding to catch, rear, drive away, [...] in the city, the [pigeons] of the cult for the goddess (10) [...]</p>
</div>
<div type="translation" xml:lang="fre">
<head>Traduction </head>
<p>Tiberius Catius Asconius Silius Italicus, proconsul, ordonne : puisqu’il existe également des décrets (5) selon lesquels il est interdit de capturer, d'élever, de disperser, [...] dans la cité, les [pigeons] du culte pour la déesse, (10) [...] </p>
</div>
<div type="commentary">
<head>Commentary</head>
<p>The edict was issued by the Roman poet Silius Italicus when he was proconsul of Asia (77/8 AD). Its aim appears to confirm the existing protection of pigeons and doves in Aphrodisias, the city of Aphrodite. Most if not all of these pigeons and doves were protected from human actions independent of ritual, since they belonged to the goddess (it is possible that another, related category of pigeons/doves was also mentioned in the fragmentary continuation of text, since τῆς τε θρησ[κείας] in lines 8-9 probably implies [καὶ κτλ.] as a pendant). The missing part of the stone must have provided further details of the proconsul's proclamation, probably including supplementary measures for safeguarding the birds of Aphrodite, such as penalties and fines imposed on offenders.</p>
<p>Lines 5-7: Three verbs define the official prohibitions of previous decrees, presumably earlier enactments by the city of Aphrodisias itself or possibly orders by other ruling figures. A fourth verb has probably disappeared in the lacuna at the beginning of line 7. Calder was tempted to restore πωλεῖν, "to sell", but rightly considered that such a prohibition would come "awkwardly after σοβεῖν" (p. 217; cf. also Robert, p. 95, who criticized the restoration πιάζειν favoured by Sokolowski). As Robert states (p. 97), "les habitants ne peuvent avoir de pigeonniers" (p. 94)—they are forbidden from capturing, keeping and rearing the birds, since all are devoted to Aphrodite and therefore free and protected in her eponymous city. More violent treatment of the birds is probably implied by σοβεῖν and perhaps also by the missing verb in line 7.</p>
<p>Lines 8-9: Aphrodite's predilection for doves and pigeons is well attested in the Greek world (Pirenne-Delforge, p. 28-31, 415-417) and the restoration [περιστερά]ς proposed by Calder has been widely accepted. See also here <ref target="CGRN_136">CGRN 136</ref> (Athens), line 24, and <ref target="CGRN_228">CGRN 228</ref> (Mytilene), line 8, with Commentaries. The word θρησκεία means "ritual regulation" in Herodotus (2.18) but remains rarely used before the Augustan period. It reappears at this time with the same meaning, before designating more broadly "ritual practices", "cult", and finally "religion" (see Foschia, with previous bibliography).</p>
<p>Line 10: The first editor (Calder p. 217) suggested reading a middle or passive infinitive ending in -σθα[ι]. This is a bit difficult to reconcile with the traces read by the later editions, as adopted here; it may also be possible to read [...].Ε̣Θ̣Α̣Π̣Ι̣ on the squeeze (Carbon). No convincing interpretation of these traces has yet been proposed.</p>
</div>
</body>
</text>
</TEI>