The Archaeological Exploration of Sardis

Inscribed Stele Fragment (©Archaeological Exploration of Sardis/President and Fellows of Harvard College)

Inscribed Stele Fragment: Votive Dedication to Men Axiottenos?

Monograph 14: Sardis: Greek and Latin Inscriptions, Part II: Finds from 1958 to 2017 (2019) Cat. 461

Date

Probably 160/61 AD (see ll. 10–11 comm.)., Roman

Sardis or Museum Inv. No.

NoEx61.005

Material

Marble, Stone

Object Type

Stele, Inscription

Inscription Type

Religious Inscription

Inscription language

Greek

Inscription Text

		[	  ]Δ̣Ι̣Ο̣ . [Στρα?]-
		[τ?]ονείκου εὐξά̣[με]-
		νος, ἐὰν λήψεται
	4	γυναῖκαν, ἣν θέλω,
		καὶ λαβὼν καὶ μὴ ἀ-
		ποδὼν τὴν εὐχήν,
		κολασθεὶς ἀνέθη-
	8	κεν κα̣ὶ ἀ̣πὸ νῦν εὐλο-
		γεῖ μετὰ τῶν ἰδίων 
		πάντων. Ἔτους σμε´,
		μη(νὸς) Δείου βι´.

Inscription Translation

“[ - - - (name), son of Clau]diu[s? Strat?]onikos, made a vow for the case that he should get the wife that I aspire for (i.e., that he aspires for); when he got her and did not fulfill his vow he was punished. He erected (the stele) and praises (the deity) from now on together with all his relatives. In the year 245, on the twelfth day of the month Dios.”

Inscription Comment

Site

Sardis

Findspot

Found in a house in Sart Mahmut.

Description

Fragment of a stele of white marble; upper and lower parts broken off. On the right and left sides is a recessed margin.

Dimensions

H. 0.42, W. 0.32–0.38, Th. 0.06, H. of letters 0.015–0.02.

Comments

1–2 Robert (p. 34) considers the following combination with no. 460: [Μην]ὶ Ἀξιοτηνῷ Ἐ[πα/φρόδ]-ειτος οἰκο̣[νό/μος Κλαυ]δίο[υ Στρα/τ]ονείκου; see no. 460 comm. “(Un tel) fils d’Aristoneikos(?),” Robert (p. 24). - ΔΙΟ could hardly be followed by Υ as the remains of the letter are too close to O.

5–6 For ἀποδιδόναι (τὴν) εὐχήν, see L. Robert, Nouv. inscr. Sard. I, p. 30, with n. 4; Petzl, Beichtinschriften, p. 152, Index s.v. ἀποδίδωμι; and nos. 457 and 466.

6 Ligatures THNEYXHN (the first vertical stroke of the last H is miswritten as Γ).

8 κα̣ὶ ἀ̣πό: ΚΛΙΛΠΟ: the stone. - εὐλογεῖ: see no. 463, 4 comm.

10 Ἔτους σμε´: the year 245 corresponds probably, according to the Sullan era, to 160/61 AD; a count according to the Actian era (i.e., 214/15 AD) is not excluded.

11 μη(νός): the H is written into the M; μ(ηνός) Robert. Between Δείου and βι´ is a short horizontal stroke.

For more detailed commentaries see Robert’s and Petzl’s publications.

See Also

Bibliography

L. Robert, Nouv. inscr. Sard. I, p. 23, no. 2, pl. II 2 (Lane, CMRDM I, p. 53, no. 80, 3–13, pl. XXXIV; Petzl, Beichtinschriften, pp. 117–18, no. 101; De Hoz, Kulte, p. 226, no. 39.43, 3–13); Herrmann, ms.

Author

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