DASI ID: ID: 90
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"Jändl 2009: 224, pl. V"
Text:
Translations:
1S¹ʿdlh and his sons, of the family Mrṯdm 2dedicated to ʾlmqh ḏ-Hrn the tablet, 3as He ordered to them in His oracle (namely) ʾlm- 4qh Lord of ʾwm in the citadel ʾlw. Now He 5commanded the family Mrṯdm to establish the ordinance regarding 6their valleys ḏu-ʾrhqm in agreement with ʾlmq- 7h ḏu-Hrn; and ʾlmqh ḏ-Hrn bade them 8in His oracle that Qʿt- 9m and Ẓyʾ and S²ʿbn in Mṯw should offer harvest, 10turn by turn, every year; and they should supply themselves with corn 11from it to ʾrhqm, and they should sacrifice 12from (the produce of) the two fields to ʿṯtr and S²m- 13s¹m, and a sacrifice in Hrn and they should offer fruits of the garden 14for those valleys, (namely) the family of Mrṯdm, or 15whoever received the order. In the sanctuary of ʾlmqh ḏ- 16Ḥrwt may it be safeguarded according to the document, 17which S¹ʿdlt authenticated, document in fact (also) in the sanctuary 18of ʾlmqh ḏ-Nʿmn. May ʾlmqh ḏ-H- 19rn protect these valleys ḏ-ʾr- 20hqm from rainy storm and from all insect pest.
Translation Notes:
5I feel that s²ym should be understood not in the concrete sense of "to place, to dedicate" (as in Multhoff and Stein's translation), but rather "to establish" the agreement with Almaqah ḏ-Hrn.
8-9I have accepted the editors integration, but not the translation suggested by Beeston 1937 a: "that they should reap Qʿt and Ẓyʾ and S²ʿbn in Mṯw one harvest". The verb is singular with the -n suffix. Since the proper names are the names of fields, the subject would appear to be ṣrb.
The general meaning is clear: the harvest of these fields has to be given to the god once a year. It is interesting to note that a legal term ṣdq "fulfil an obligation" is used.
9my preference is to interpret S²ʿbn as the name of a third field; compare, however, Rhodokanakis' interpretation, also accepted by Multhoff and Stein: "and the tribe in Mṯw".
10drm drm is undoubtely a stereotypical expression, which has also been documented in a dedicatory inscription placed by a member of the Mrṯdm family in Maḥram Bilqīs in Marib (CIH 99, 11: ḏ]n wtfn drm drm b-ḫr[fm). It could also mean "twice a year" rather than "once a year, forever".
10-11yġtwr is translated by the SD "supply oneself with corn". The crops can be harvested from Mṯw until ʾrhqm, and a tithe must be paid on this harvest in the form of a sacrifice to three gods.I feel that the meaning of the verb proposed here (as also suggested by Multhoff and Stein 2008: 408, n. 63) is much more convincing than the etymological translation "descend" adopted by them, following the CIH's translation.
In Arabic in the VIII form the verb means: "take advantage of".
13gtnnn is a infinitive with the suffix -n; it seems better the translation of Multhoff and Stein "offer garden fruits" than the SD's translation "gather crop".
14-15the end of the phrase appears to name those whom the oracle of the god has commanded and will command to pay the tithes.
15ḏ-yqhn was translated by Beeston 1937 a: "whoever is in command", but wqh means "to order" rather than "to be in command".
16-17ḥg ʿlm b-hw tʿlm is a legal formula; the agreement between the family and the god is written in a document.
Chronological
Period: B (conjectural)
Physical
Support: Object → Artefact → Plaque → With framework
Materials: Bronze
Measures: h. 46.5, w. 29
Decorations:
Type Level 1: Framework
Type Level 2: With abstract-figurative elements
Figurative Subjects:
Subject Level 1: Plant
Subject Level 2: Rosette
Linguistic
Language: Ancient South Arabian → Sabaic → Central Middle Sabaic
Alphabet: Ancient South Arabian
Script Typology: Monumental writing
Textual Typology: Dedicatory text
Writing Techniques: Cast
Spatial
Site: ʿAmrān, ʿAmrān, Yemen
Ancient Name: ʿmrn
Type of Site: Modern site with reemployed inscriptions or artefacts
Deposit:
settlement: London
institution: The British Museum
private Collection: false
identification Number: BM 48457=1862,1028.5
Similar Epigraphs
No similar epigraphs found.