P.Mich.inv. 4529 / Recto

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Record Details

Inventory Number

P.Mich.inv. 4529

Processing Number

2222

Section/Side

wax/wood

Image Side

Recto

Background and Physical Properties

Publ./Side

pages I - IV

Material

WT

Size

twice 13.5 x 18 cm

Items

2

Lines

Page I (wood) - 11 (Latin) + 10 (Greek);

Page II (wax) - 9;

Page III (wax) - 9;

Page IV (wood) - 7 + 7

Mounted

No

Negative

Yes

Conservation Status

The text on the wood is badly faded on page IV, and a large hole has been eaten in the wood of page I; the text on the wax is legible throughout

Status

published

Library

Ann Arbor

Contents

Date

April 29, 145 A.D.

Origin

Alexandria, province of Egypt

Provenance

Karanis, Herakleidou meris, Arsinoite nome, province of Egypt

Acquisition

26-B7-?

Language

Latin

Greek

Genre

Documentary

Author

Sempronia Gemella

Type of Text/Title of Work

Birth Certificate of Illegitimate Twins

Content

Copy of the declaration of birth of illegitimate twins by their Roman mother; the father, though said to be "unknown", was probably either someone who could not get into marriage (a soldier), or someone who had a legal status lower than the mother (a local villager, for instance)

Subject Headings

Citizenship--Rome.

Birth certificates--Egypt--Alexandria.

Illegitimacy--Egypt--Alexandria.

Literacy--Egypt--Alexandria.

Women--Legal status, laws, etc.--Egypt--Alexandria.

Persons

Sempronia Gemella;

Gaius Iulius Saturninus (Satornilos), guardian of Sempronia Gemella;

Marcus Sempronius Sarapion, son of Sempronia Gemella (see ZPE 100 (1994) p. 241-242);

Marcus Sempronius Socratio (Sokration), son of Sempronia Gemella (see ZPE 100 (1994) p. 241-242);

Antoninus Pius, Emperor and consul of 145 A.D.;

Marcus Aurelius, consul of 145 A.D.;

Marcus Vibius Pollio;

Marcus Octavius Serenus;

Lucius Aemilius Maximus;

Lucius Aponius Saturninus;

Gaius Aebutius Saturninus (decurio? - see ICS 3, 1978, p. 122, with reference to C.P.L. 221);

Marcus(?) Vibius Eucharistus(?) (Eucharistos);

Marcus Holconius Ampliatus

Geographica

Alexandria ad Aegyptum

Translation

(Scriptio interior - Pages II-III, on wax)

Sempronia Gemella, under the guardianship of Gaius Iulius Saturninus, called to witness those who were about to affix their seals, that on the twelfth day before the Kalends of April just past she brought forth twin sons from uncertain father, and that these are named Marcus Sempronius Sarapion and Marcus Sempronius Sokration, the sons of [Spurius]; and she said that she had employed these written testimonies for this reason, because the Aelian-Sentian and the Papian-Poppaean laws forbid that illegitimate sons and daughters be registered in the public record; on this matter two (pairs of?) tablets were written on the same model (?). Dated at Alexandria on the coast of Egypt on the third day before the Kalends of May in the fourth consulship of the Emperor Caesar Titus Aelius Hadrianus Antoninus Augustus Pius and the second of Marcus Aurelius Caesar, in the eighth year of the Emperor Caesar Titus Aelius Hadrianus Antoninus Augustus Pius, on the fourth day of the month Pachon.

(Witnesses - Page IV, on wood)

(Seals of) Marcus Vibius Pollio;

of Marcus Octavius Serenus;

of Lucius Aemilius Maximus;

of Lucius Aponius Saturninus;

of Gaius Aebutius Saturninus;

of Marcus(?) Vibius Eucharistus(?);

of Marcus Holconius Ampliatus

(Scriptio exterior - Pages IV and I, on wood)

Sempronia Gemella, under the guardianship of Gaius Iulius Saturninus, called to witness those who were about to affix their seals, that on the twelfth day before the Kalends of April just past she brought forth twin sons from uncertain father, and that these are named Marcus Sempronius Sarapion and Marcus Sempronius Sokration, the sons of Spurius; and she said that she had employed these written testimonies for this reason, because the Aelian-Sentian and the Papian-Poppaean laws forbid that illegitimate sons and daughters be registered in the public record; on this matter two (pairs of?) tablets were written on the same model (?). Dated at Alexandria on the coast of Egypt on the third day before the Kalends of May in the fourth consulship of the Emperor Caesar Titus Aelius Hadrianus Antoninus Augustus Pius and the second of Marcus Aurelius Caesar, in the eighth year of the Emperor Caesar Titus Aelius Hadrianus Antoninus Augustus Pius, on the fourth day of the month Pachon.

(Greek summary - Page I, on wood)

I, Sempronia Gemella, with my guardian Gaius Iulius Satornilos, gave testimony that twin sons were born from unknown father and that these are named Marcus Sempronius Sarapion and Marcus Sempronius Sokration, the sons of Spurius, as described above. I, Gaius Iulius Satornilos, was appointed her guardian, and I wrote for her since she does not know letters.

Papyri.info Link

https://papyri.info/apis/michigan.apis.2222

Information on Publications

Publications

Series and Volume	Editor	Year	Pg/Nr	Photo	SB	Preferred Citation	Corrections
AJA 32	Sanders HA	1928	309-329	4 plates	Sanders HA, AJA 32, 309-329, 1928, 4 plates
JSav	Cagnat R	1929	74-77	Cagnat R, JSav, 74-77, 1929

Information on Publications--Further Republications

Further Republications

Rep_Editor - Weiss E; Rep_Ser - ZSav 49; Rep_Year - 1929; Rep_Pg_No - 260-273

Rep_Editor - Cuq E; Rep_Ser - Mélanges Paul Fournier; Rep_Year - ***; Rep_Pg_No - 119-133

Rep_Editor - Sanders HA; Rep_Ser - PMich III; Rep_Year - 1936; Rep_Pg_No - 169

Rep_Editor - Arangio-Ruiz V; Rep_Ser - Negotia; Rep_Year - 1943; Rep_Pg_No - 4

Rep_Editor - Calderini A; Rep_Ser - Papiri latini; Rep_Year - 1945; Rep_Pg_No - 34

Rep_Editor - Cavenaile R; Rep_Ser - CPL; Rep_Year - 1956; Rep_Pg_No - 162

Information on Publications--Bibliography

Bibliography

U. Wilcken, Archiv 9 (1930) p. 242-243; 10 (1932) p. 276-277; J.G. Winter, Life and Letters in the Papyri (Ann Arbor, 1933) p. 54-55; O. Guéraud, EtPap 4 (1938) p. 27-30; H.C. Youtie, Le monde grec. Hommages à Claire Préaux (Bruxelles, 1975) p. 728-729; 736; J.F. Gilliam, ICS 3 (1978) p. 115-123 [= Roman Army Papers (Amsterdam, 1986) p. 409-417]; S. Strassi Zaccaria, ZPE 85 (1991) p. 257-259; P. van Minnen, ZPE 100 (1994) p. 241-242; C. Terreni, SDHI 62 (1996) p. 573-582; J. Rowlandson et al., Women and Society in Greek and Roman Egypt (Cambridge, 1998) p. 91-92, No. 71

Availability/System Requirements

Scanner Initials

CT

Cataloging

Cataloger

PH

Year Begin

145

Year End

145

Technical Details

Collection

Advanced Papyrological Information System (APIS UM)

Image Size

2589 x 2117

File Size

729 KB

Record

2222

Link to this Item

https://quod.lib.umich.edu/a/apis/x-2222/4529p2.tif content_copy

Related Links

IIIF

Manifest

https://quod.lib.umich.edu/cgi/i/image/api/manifest/apis:2222:4529P2.TIF content_copy