Description: A white marble block, tapering a little towards the top (width across faces a. and c., w: 0.45-0.43 × h: 2.80 × width across face b. 0.46-0.425). Surface smoothed on faces a., b., and c. but left roughly dressed on face d.

Text: Inscribed: a., concentrated on upper part of stone, with fillet (0.085 wide) down the left side and margin down the right.b., the text is arranged in two parts, separated by a sizable vacant area (0.15 in height).

Letters: a., letter-heights average 0.03 in lines 1-5 and 0.02 thereafter; letters were apparently designed freehand, and include both angular and lunate epsilon and sigma (as well as lunate omega), alpha sometimes with a straight, sometimes with a dropped bar, and omicron frequently written small. Ligatured ΩΝ in line 5; many abbreviations, most of them marked by a sign—superscript bar, lightning-bolt, s, c, or c (lines 3-5, 13, 15, 17, 19, 21, 22)—or by raising the final inscribed letter above the text (l. 10). Informal lettering at bottom of this face (col. ii), letters 0.06.b., letter-heights 0.02 throughout, cut between visible guidelines; they are also normally consistent in form, with lunate epsilon, sigma, and omega, although alpha appears both with straight and dropped bar. Some entries in a later hand, over erasures (lines 15, 20, 32, 39, 48), or on the original surface (lines 5, 8, 30, 58, 60-1). Abbreviations: downward-slanting line attached to rho at the end of line 23, round dots after the last inscribed letters in lines 26, 27, 41, a slanting stroke attached to one in the middle of line 48, probably s in line 32 and c at the end of line 56. Stops in the form of small round dots or arrowheads, once a small circle (l. 53). Diaeresis marks, lines 5, 10, 13, 14, 26-8, 43.

Date: Early third century CE (nomenclature); Fifth century CE (lettering)

Findspot: Aphrodisias: City, Village: New Museum excavations, east of what is now the entrance.

Original location: Unknown

Last recorded location: Museum

English translation

Translation source: Reynolds and Tannenbaum, 1987

a. i. God help us. Donors to the soup kitchen. Below are listed the members of the decany of the students of the law, also known as those who fervently praise God, who erected, for the relief of suffering in the community, at their personal expense, this memorial (scil. building). Jael, prostates, with her son Josua, magistrate, Theodotos, former palace employee, with his son Hilarianos, Samuel, president of the dekania, a proselyte, Joses, son of Jesseas, Benjamin, the psalm singer, Judas the good-tempered, Joses, proselyte, Sabbatios, son of Amchios, Emmonios, godfearer, Antoninos, godfearer, Samuel, son of Politianos, Joseph, son of Eusebios, proselyte, and Judas, son of Theodoros, and Antipeos, son of Hermias, and Sabbatios the sweet, and Samuel the older, priest.

a. ii. Samuel the older, from Perge.

b. [---] Serapionos, [---] Joseph, son of Zenon, Zenon, Jacob, Manases, Ioph, Judas, son of Eusebios, Heortasios, son of Kallikarpos, Biotikos, Judas, son of Amphianos, Eugenios, goldsmith, Praoilios, Judas, son of Praoilios, Rufos the old, Amantios, son of Charinos, Murtilos, Jacob, sheepfarmer, Seberos, Euodos, Jason, son of Euodos, Eusabbathios, greengrocer, Anusios, Eusabbathios, the foreigner, Milo, Oxucholios, the younger, Diogenes, Eusabbathios, son of Diogenes, Judas, son of Paulos, Theophilos, Jacob, also called Apellios, Zacharias, mono(?), Leontios, son of Leontios, Gemellos, Judas, son of Acholios, Damonikos, Eutarkios, son of Judas, Joseph, son of Philer, Eusabbathios, son of Eugenios, Kurullos, Eutuchios, bronze-smith, Joseph, confectioner, Ruben, confectioner, Judas, son of Hortasios, Eutuchios, poulterer, Judas, also called Zosi, Zenon, recycler, Ammianos, stockfeeder, Ailianos, son of Ailianos, Ailianos, also called Samuel, Philanthos, Gorgonios, son of Oxucholios, Heortasios, son of Achilles, Eusabbathios, son of Oxucholios, Paregorios, Heortasios, son of Zotikos, Sumeon, son of Zenon

And the following Godfearers: Zenon, councillor, Tertullos, councillor, Diogenes, councillor, Onesimos, councillor, Zenon, son of Longianos, councillor, Antipeos, councillor, Antiochos, councillor, Romanos, councillor, Aponerios, councillor, Eupithios, purple-seller, Strategios, Xanthos, Xanthos, son of Xanthos, Aponerios, son of Aponerios, Hupsikles son of Mel(?), Poluchronios, son of Xanthos, Athenios, son of Ailianos, Kallimorphos, son of Kallimorphos, Junbalos, Tuchikos, son of Tuchikos, Poluchronios, missile-maker, Chrusippos, Gorgonios, bronze-smith, Tatianos, son of Oxucholios, Apellas, son of Hegemoneos, Balerianos, tablet-maker, Eusabbathios, son of Heduchroos, Manikios, son of Attalos, Hortasios, stone-carver, Brabeus, Klaudianos, son of Kallimorphos, Alexandros, boxer, Appianos, plasterer, Adolios, mincer, Zotikos, armband-maker, Zotikos, comedian, Eupithios, son of Eupithios, Patrikios, bronze-smith, Elpidianos, athlete, Heduchroos, Kallinikos, Balerianos, treasurer, Heuretos, son of Athenagoros, Paramonos, portrait-painter, Eutuchianos, fuller, Prokopios money-changer, Prunikios, fuller, Stratonikos, fuller, Athenagoras, carpenter, Meliton, son of Amazonios.

Commentary

There is a full discussion of this text in Reynolds and Tannenbaum, 1987; since then it has been the subject of lively debate, on which see especially Chaniotis 2022 (below).

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