Honours for Markiane
created: Transcription from previous editors (CDL).
source date: Second to third centuries AD
language: ar; en; fr; de; grc; grc-Latn; el; he
availability: CC BY-NC-SA 4.0 Deed Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International License. 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. (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/4.0/)

[...] 5173; [...], n. 873; [...], n. 11; [...] 037.

[...]
[...]ς φύλλα [...] Μᾶρκον ὃν ἀμφίπολον·
χαίρει δ' Ἄρτεμις Ἀγροτέρη καλοῖς ἐνὶ πέπλοις
Μαρκιάνην ἱερῷ δερκομένη θαλάμῳ·
ὄλβιος ἀρητὴρ ὃς ἔγεντο πατὴρ ἱερήων
[...]τ[...] [...]κ[...]ν φιλίοις στέμμ' ἀναδησάμενος
[...] [...]λεφοι[...] ορο [...] Μάρκῳ γενετηρ[...]
[...] καὶ [...]τα [...]ν ἱερ[...]
[...]

[^1] Χαίροι Ἀπόλλων μέν κροτάφοις ἐπιθέντα καλῆς φύλλα βλέπων [...]ς φύλλα[^a1] Μᾶρκον ὃν ἀμφίπολον[^2][^a2] χαίρει[^a3] Ἀγροτέρη[^3] πέπλοις[^a4] ὄλβιος[^a5] ὃς ἔγεντο[^a6] [...]τ[...] [...]κ[...]ν φιλίοιο[^a7] [...] [...]λεφοι[...] ορο[...][^a8] Μάρκῳ γενετηρ[...][^a9] [...] καὶ [...]τα [...]ν ἱερ[...][^a10]

[^a1: [...]ς φύλλα | σφυλλα]

[^a2: Μᾶρκον ὃν ἀμφίπολον | κονοναμ]

[^a3: χαίρει | χαίροι | ἀγρεῖ | αἱρεῖ]

[^a4: πέπλοις | τόξοις]

[^a5: ὄλβιος | οὕτως | οὗ Διός]

[^a6: ὃς ἔγεντο | ἠρᾶτο | ἐποιεῖτο]

[^a7: [...]τ[...] [...]κ[...]ν φιλίοιο | εὐίερον Φιλίου | ἄρτι πυκνὸν Φιλίου | εὐχώλην φιλίως]

[^a8: [...] [...]λεφοι[...] ορο[...] | τοῦτ' ἆρ' ὦ φίλε Φοῖβε, πόροις | [...]λεφοι[...] ορο[...]]

[^a9: Μάρκῳ γενετηρ[...] | Μάρκῳ γενετῆρι]

[^a10: [...] καὶ [...]τα [...]ν ἱερ[...] | καὶ μετὰ τῶν παίδων δὴν ἱερ' ἐκτελέειν]

[^1: with two lost lines restored before line 1]

[^2: ὂν patently misprinted]

[^3: from Pacifico's copy ΑΚ[---]|ΡΗ]

[...] les feuilles [...] Markos son desservant ; Artémis Agrotérè se réjouit de voir dans la demeure sacrée Markianè en beaux atours. Bienheureux prêtre qui devint père de prêtres quand il eut attaché sur la tête de ceux qui lui étaient chers la couronne [...] ! [...] à Markos [...]son père et [...].

[...] the leaves [...] Markos his attendant; Artemis Agrotere rejoices when seeing in the sacred residence Markiane with beautiful gown. Blessed priest who became a father of priests, once he tied upon the heads of his dear ones the crown [...]! [...] to Markos [...] his father and [...].

[...] le foglie [...] Markos suo intendente; Artemide Agrotere si rallegra quando vede nella sacra dimora Markiane con belle vesti. Felice sacerdote che è diventato padre di sacerdoti, una volta allacciata intorno alla testa dei suoi cari la corona [...]! [...] a Markos [...] suo padre e [...].

This is one of the inscriptions first edited in CIG by Franz from copies previously owned by a Sardinian having served as consul in Tripoli in 1827. It is Laronde's hypothesis that the copies had been made by Father Pacifico di Monte Cassiano during his visit to Cyrenaica in 1819 (see [...], p. 19).

The content seems to be related with GVCyr036 and might be a companion piece. What we get from the lettering and display through Franz's diplomatic copy increases this impression. In J.M. Reynolds' view both poems might have been cut on two columns (or on the same column?) of the peristatis of Apollo's temple. On the one hand, Artemis' temple would also be fit for hosting this piece. On the other hand, if Markos is really mentioned at line 1, this poem might be the continuation of the other one. Nothing can be securely deduced because of the very poor condition of the present one, which can no longer be checked, and because of the shift between both finds.

Both Franz and Kaibel considered lines 1-2 and 11-13 desperate and did not try to restore them. Peek on the contrary restored them generously, even supposing that two lines were lost above. We give most of his readings in apparatus and prefer to adopt a more cautious attitude.

What seems to be clear at verses 3-4 is Artemis' concern with Markiane, who might be her priestess. If she is related with the Markos of GVCyr036 she would be his sister and thus Markianos' daughter. The latter being 'father of priests', this would imply that Markos became eponymous priest of Apollo and in this we adopt Peek's restoration for the end of verse 1. The relation between both deities and their position as gods damoteleis makes the proud mention worthwhile. At Cyrene, Artemis' priestess was on duty for one year like Apollo's priest and the connexion between them was institutionnally expressed through the verb συνιαριτεύω (see [...]). As J.M. Reynolds points out, no Markiane appears in the list of 23 priestesses of Artemis IRCyr2020 C.221 (Commodan period), but plenty of time remains possible for Markiane to have been priestess.

Artemis' epithet is restored and should be considered with limited confidence, as no instance of this mainly literary epithet is known in Cyrenaica.

The father was himself a priest (ἀρητήρ). Franz restored 'of Zeus' at line 7 and Kaibel confirmed this statement with the epithet Φίλιος at line 8. None of those hypotheseis is sure. The father might also have been himself priest of Apollo and φίλιος may be an ordinary adjective.

Metrical analysis: from the endings of verse-lines 2, 5 and 6 we may infer the successive placement of pentameters and hexameters and suppose that we have regular elegiac couplets, with one hexameter lost at the beginning. However, if by chance this poem was the continuation of GVCyr036, the alternation would be less compulsory.