Description: A ?panel, broken on all sides, with the surface worked to provide a series of separate inscribed areas. From a group of inscribed
stones, M.45, M.46, M.47,
M.48, and M.55.
Text: Roughly but clearly inscribed: i: an erasure to the left of lines 2,3, which may have destroyed
part of this text, was made to accommodate a later text, ii, of which there only survives a final O. iii: in a tabella
andsata, of which only the right end survives, with a design of a palm branch in the ansa, below i and
ii, to the left; iv: in a panel to the right of iii; v: on a moulding below iii
and iv; vi: within a tabella ansata, of which only the right end survives, below v;
vii: inscribed on a fragment of a panel destroyed when the ansa for vi was cut;
viii: within a panel, below vi, of which only the right end survives; ix: within a panel, o the right of viii,
of which only the left end survives.
Letters: No measurements. i. Rather roughly cut Latin; ii-ix in Greek, relatively neat.
Date: First - third century CE
Findspot: South of Berenike:
Esc-Sheleidima;
found and photographed by members of an Italian army unit in 1927.
Original location: Unknown.
Last recorded location:
Findspot (1927)
English translation
Translation by: Charlotte Roueché
i: C(aius) Valerius [ . . . ] Reburus was here .... for his own. ii and iii: (Not usefully translatable). iv: ? man of Berenike [ . . . v: (Not usefully translatable). vi: . . .?Menan]dros [ . . ?Parai]batas cur[?ator . . .? Arim]mas [(scil. son) of] Bespon [ . . . ]. vii and viii: (Not usefully translatable). ix: ?Bazas
Commentary
For this group of texts see on M.45.
Earlier panels have been cut away and earlier texts erased to make room for later ones in the manner of graffiti; for the kind of layout see the surviving M.55. These may be dedications , or simple presence inscriptions.
i: Line 3: suo may be part of the erased inscription to the left; the end of the line can then be read as fui[t] hic, which is common in Latin presence inscriptions, or perhaps fui hic as an equivalent of the term ἥκω.
iv: It is possible that this text was cut away at the left to accommodate iii. It is tempting to see here an ethnic [Βε]ρνικεύς from Berenice.
v: Perhaps [---]ν στρατ[---] or a transliterated Latin name [---ε]νς Τραι[---]
vii: Apparently a list of names, some of which may well be local, if correctly restored ([Παραιβ]άταϲ, [Ἀρίμ]μαϲ). Βέϲπων[ος] - perhaps a patronymic: Βέϲπων is not attested in LGPN, but cf. Βεσπας in C.245. For κουράτωρ see on M.55.
ix: Bazas seems clear: presumably a version of the name Βάζης, attested in LGPN, V4-26236
Bibliography:
Text constituted from: Transcribed from photographs (Reynolds, Roueché).
Images
Fig. 1. View of the group, M.45, M.46, M.47, M.48, M.49 (1927, Department of Antiquities, F. 1058)
Fig. 2. View of M.49 (detail from F. 1058)
Fig. 3. iii, face (detail from F. 1058)
Fig. 4. iv, (detail from F. 1058)
Fig. 5. v, face (detail from F. 1058)
Fig. 6. vi, face (detail from F. 1058)
Fig. 7. vii, face (detail from F. 1058)
Fig. 8. viii, Face (detail from F. 1058)
Fig. 9. ix,face (detail from F. 1058)