Support: Two fragments of a white marble panel, slighlty tapering and also thicker in the middle than on the edges; fragment a: broken off on all sides (w: 0.20 × h: 0.24 × d: 0.037 at left to 0.05 at right); fragment b: keeping right edge of the stone, neatly bevelled, broken off above, at left and below (w: 0.15 × h: 0.11 × d: 0.035 at right to 0.047 at left).

Layout: Inscribed in stoichedon style on front face.

Letters: 0.014; slanting mu and sigma, dotted theta, phi with symetrical half-lunate-shaped loops.

Date: Probably between 390 and 370 BC (Rosamilia) (lettering).

Findspot: Found probably before 1937 at Cyrene ➚: Sanctuary of Apollo, in the excavations of the East staircase leading to the Fountain Terrace (at least fr. b).

Place of origin: Findspot.

Last recorded location: Cyrene Museum, 47+51. Seen by Pugliese Carratelli in 1960 Shahat: Cyrene Museum Both fragments seen by C. Dobias-Lalou in 2010 at the same place.

Text constituted from: Transcription from stones (CDL).

Apparatus

French translation

(a) [---] ce que la [---] et si quelque chose [--- voir le commentaire] à la suite de la découverte vers/selon les [---] ayant laissé tomber ce qui est [le plus?] grand [---], plus de cinq [---] ; et ce que [---] il s'en acquittera [---] des hiéromnémons [---].

(b) [---] dans le sanctuaire [---] hiéromnémon [---] et les demi-[---].

English translation

(a) [---] what the [---] and if something [--- see commentary] towards/against the [---] having dropped whatever larg[est?] is [---] more than five [---]; and whatever [---] he shall fulfill [---] the hieromnemones [---].

(b) [---] in the sanctuary [---] hieromnemon [---] and the half-[---].

Italian translation

(a) [---] ciò che [---] e se qualcosa [--- vedi commento] verso/contro i [---] avendo lasciato cadere ciò che è grand[issimo? ---], più di cinque [---]; e ciò che [---] ripagherà [---] gli hieromnemones [---].

(b) [---] nel santuario [---] hieromnemon [---] e le metà-[---].

Commentary

The back of the panel had an odd shape, which probably prevented Pugliese Carratelli at SECir to be sure that both fragments belong to one and the same stone; however, their dimensions measured at different places and the bevelled right edge allow for the shape described above and the material, lettering and content do confirm the similarity. Fragment a belonged to the left half of the panel and fragment b belonged to the right side, probably lower because of the probable tapering feature. Consequently in our edition the order of the fragments is inverted in comparison with editio princeps and with Rosamilia's edition. We infer the date of discovery from the mentioned findspot of fragment a at SECir, which seems a quotation from Oliverio, although no sketchbook of his is mentioned by Pugliese Carratelli.

This is one of the very few inscriptions in stoichedon style from Cyrenaica.

Those very fragmentary rests do not allow to get a clear view of the subject; however the mentions of hieromnemones, of a sanctuary, of payment and the hypothetical particle in relative sentences all lead to the view that some forms of religious regulations were mentioned here.

At a.3 Rosamilia 2023 noticed a faint horizontal line at the break, only visible from the photo of the squeeze. He read thus a probable omega or else a circular letter (omicron more plausible here than theta). As no photograph allows to confirm this, we leave the question open.

At a.5, the reading is definetely puzzling: as already explained by Dobias-Lalou 2000, pp. 143-144, the segment ΕΠΙΦΩΡΑΙ might be taken in most dialects as the subjunctive of a present stem in -άω 'to discover' and this is Rosamilia's choice, because he relates it to αἰ δέ τι κα at the preceding line. However, in Dorian dialects and especially in Cyrenaean, such present stems are very rare, if not absent, having been joined to the stems in -έω. If we look at nouns, we may read either the single φωρά 'theft' preceded by ἐπί or the predictable compound ἐπιφωρά 'discovery'. The lack of direct context does not help to choose and we eventually prefer to leave the question open.

At a.6, Rosamilia 2023 rightly pointed out the incompatibility of the particle κα with the participle θές, as read for IGCyr. We suggest now the aorist participle of καθίημι 'to drop'.

At a.12, Rosamilia noticed on the photo of the squeeze a possible tau.However, as evidenced from the stone and from the shape of the squeeze, the rim of the chipped off stone is lowered and an oblique crack begins at the place of the upper bar of the suspected tau.

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All citation, reuse or distribution of this work must contain a link back to DOI: https://doi.org/10.60760/unibo/igcyrgvcyr2 and the filename (IGCyr000000 or GVCyr000), as well as the year of consultation.

Images

Fig. 1. Face of fragment a of igcyr100400 Sacred regulation

Fig. 2. Face of fragment b of igcyr100400 Sacred regulation

Fig. 3. Squeeze of fragment a of igcyr100400 Sacred regulation

Fig. 4. Squeeze of fragment b of igcyr100400 Sacred regulation

Maps