P.Mich.inv. 3999 / Verso
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Record Details
- Inventory Number
- P.Mich.inv. 3999
- Processing Number
- 2129
- Section/Side
- Recto + Verso
- Image Side
- Verso
Background and Physical Properties
- Publ./Side
- Recto + Verso
- Connections
- -
- Material
- Pap
- Size
- 12 x 25 cm.
- Items
- 1
- Lines
- 1-27
- Mounted
- Yes
- Negative
- No
- Conservation Status
- Medium-brown papyrus rather regularly cut on all sides.
- Palaeographic Description
- Margins are small at top (0.8 cm.) and (until line 19) at the left (0.5 cm., discounting the vertical strip whose partial remains appear opposite lines 8-13. The prayer (lines 20-24) below the mu of medenos, the first word in l. 19 (therefore ca. 3.0 cm. from the papyrus' left edge; cf. similarly P. Ross. - Georg. III 9.21-24). Righthand margin is virtually non-existent. At line ends (cf. 5, 7, 11, 12, 24) sigmas are sometimes finished off as filler strokes brought out to the very right edge of the papyrus. The bottom margin (there is seemingly no more writing after line 25 on the front) is also, where it can be measured, small, 0.3-0.5 cm. In antiquity, on completion of the front-side text, written along the papyrus' fibers, the papyrus was apparently folded inward, lengthwise in thirds, from right to left. One indication of this is that the righthand third is considerably narrower than the middle and lefthand thirds. The result was a long (25 cm.), narrow (4 cm.) strip. The strip was then turned over and sideways, and inscribed, again along the fibers, again along the fibers, on the back of the left hand third of the front-side text-another indication that the original folding went from right to left. The long, narrow strip was then itself folded in two, slightly off center, resulting in a packet ca. 4.4 cm. x 13.7 cm. On the packet's inside was preserved (rather well) the text of P. Mich. inv. 3999.Ironically, yet quite naturally, it is along the creases that created the protective packet that the principal losses to the text have occurred. The two lines of writing on the outside of the packet are badly abraded.
- The hand, which is apparently the same throughout, is very hard to place, since there appears to be no decisive parallels in any of the standard picture books. This is clearly not a professional notarial cursive. It is a fairly thick, careful hand, not at all inelegant; it lacks the extreme floridness and rightward slant typical of some later Byzantine hands. Diaeresis is used four times, and orthographical are usually (not invariably) simple itacisms (especially iota for epsilon-iota). An attempt at stylistic flair, the chiasmus beginning at line 8, results in an anacoluthon, with nominatives taking over for expected accusatives at the end of line 11. These nominatives may also, perhaps, be viewed as survivors from the nominatives of the arbitrator's original pronouncement: "Let NN have . . ."
- Status
- published
- Library
- Ann Arbor
Contents
- Date
- VIth century A.D. (?)
- Origin
- Oxyrhynchus, Oxyrhynchite nome, province of Egypt
- Provenance
- Oxyrhynchus, Oxyrhynchite nome, province of Egypt
- Acquisition
- March 1925; Acquired from Nahman lot
- Language
- Greek
- Genre
- Documentary
- Author
- Leontios
- Type of Text/Title of Work
- Christian letter
- Content
- Letter from Leontios to Theon, curialis, dealing with matters concerning the burial of corpses.
- Persons
- Theon, curialis, city father,
- Leontios,
- John,
- Eusebios,
- Didymos.
- Geographica
- -
- Translation
- (Lines 1-24): " To the blessed and truly dearest son, Theon, curialis, city father, from Leontion, greetings in the Lord.
- Inasmuch as you sent John and Eusebios and Didymos for decision in my presence, now, upon having given their argument a fair hearing, I have decided as follows: that Didymos have all the great tomb for his corpses, and, as for the small tomb, that the three, John and Eusebios and Didymos, have it, each a third share of the one tomb. And the three, John and Eusebios and Didymos, took thought of God and they left me compliantly and prayed for one another this very day, no one of them showing any signs of annoyance.
- May the divine foresight pro-
- tect you for a very long
- time, in health
- and good spirits, in
- the fear of God."
- Papyri.info Link
- https://papyri.info/apis/michigan.apis.2129
Information on Publications
- Publications
-
Series and Volume Editor Year Pg/Nr Photo SB Preferred Citation Corrections ZPE 75 Keenan JG 1988 267-71 SB XX 14987 Keenan JG, ZPE 75, 267-71, 1988 -- SB XX 14987 -- BL XI, 234 (l. 8); BL XI, 234 (l. 8);
Cataloging
- Cataloger
- TC
- Year Begin
- 500
- Year End
- 599
Technical Details
- Image Size
- 6428 x 4241
- File Size
- 4 MB
- Record
- 2129
- Link to this Item
-
https://quod.lib.umich.edu/a/apis/x-2129/3999v.tif
Rights and Permissions
The University of Michigan Library provides access to these materials for educational and research purposes. These materials are in the public domain. If you have questions about the collection, please contact APIS Help. If you would like to request high-resolution images, please contact the Papyrology Collection. If you have concerns about the inclusion of an item in this collection, please contact Library Information Technology.
No Copyright. This work has been identified as being free of known restrictions under copyright law, including all related and neighboring rights. You can copy, modify, distribute and perform the work, even for commercial purposes, all without asking permission.
Related Links
IIIF
- Manifest
-
https://quod.lib.umich.edu/cgi/i/image/api/manifest/apis:2129
Cite this Item
View the Help Guide for more information.
- Full citation
-
"P.Mich.inv. 3999; Verso." In the digital collection Advanced Papyrological Information System (APIS UM). https://quod.lib.umich.edu/a/apis/x-2129/3999v.tif. University of Michigan Library Digital Collections. Accessed April 29, 2025.