Above the inscription, Jaussen and Savignac read three letters: qs¹s¹.

the g is probably an error of writing for r (or it is simply an error in the letters' sequence, as the corresponding ʿ in l.2); it is unsure whether the following sign in both lines has to be interpreted as b or ġ (the sign above the letter in l.1, which was interpreted as an added l by the editors, could be instead an oblique trait of the ġ). The letter following the s¹, which resembles a b or s¹, should be a k. The following, in l.1, could be a dextrograde n.

Line: 1-2

the last sign, which seems a dextrograde s², is probably to be interpreted as a z.

Line: 3

This text is one of the few alphabetic South Arabian lists. It is almost complete, although with some errors and a "false start". It was recognized as a list of letters only at the end of the 1970s by Ghul (Beeston 1979 a: 87-88). For further information on the South Arabian alphabetic order, see Ryckmans, Jacques 1985.

Topic: Society