ISic001363: Epitaph for Oursoulos

I.Sicily with the permission of the Assessorato Regionale dei Beni Culturali e dell’Identità Siciliana - Dipartimento dei Beni Culturali e dell’Identità Siciliana
ID
ISic001363
Language
Ancient Greek
Text type
funerary
Object type
plaque
Status
No data
Links
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Edition

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Apparatus criticus

  • Text based on photograph;
  • lines.2-3: Kirchhoff: Οὐρσοῦλος; Kaibel, Wessel, Korhonen: Οὔρ|σουλος
  • line.4: Amico, Kirchhoff, Kaibel, Wessel: κε; Torremuzza, Ferrara, Korhonen: κη
  • lines.5-6: Ferrara: τελ[εύτατος] (sic); Kirchhoff: τελ[ευτᾷ---]; Kaibel: τελ(ευτήσας); Korhonen: τελ|[ευτᾷ]
  • line.6: Kirchhoff: καλ(ανδ---) Αὐγ[ούστ---]; Kaibel: [τῇ πρὸ ---] καλ(ανδῶν) Αὐγ(ούστων); Wessel: [πρὸ ---] καλ. Αὐγ.; Korhonen: καλ(ανδαῖς) Αὐγ(ούσταις). [τῇ πρ(ὸ) ---] καλ(ανδῶν) Αὐγ(ούστων) seems less probable because of the space left, considering that the verb τελευτάω is never abbreviated in inscriptions from Catania

Physical description

Support

Description
Marble plaque damaged on the upper right corner and lower left corner, set in plaster in modern times.
Object type
plaque
Material
marble
Condition
damaged
Dimensions
height: 21 cmwidth: 22 cmdepth: 0.5-5 cm

Inscription

Layout
No data
Text condition
No data
Lettering

Letter heights
Lines 1-6: 20-35mm
Interlinear heights
Interlineation line 1 to 2: mm

Provenance

Place of origin
Catina
Provenance found
Found “in area extra Stesichori portam” (Amico).

Current location

Place
Catania, Italy
Repository
Museo Civico di Catania , 288
Autopsy
Observed by Amico and Castelli in Museo Biscari, later by Korhonen in magazzino del cortile, Collezione Biscari (formerly sala VI 96).
Map

Date

4th — 5th century CE (AD 301 – AD 500)
Evidence
No data

Text type

funerary

commentary

This inscription presents the traditional structure of the Christian funerary inscriptions from Catania, with the formula ἐνθάδε κεῖται ὁ δεῖνα, the age of the deceased with the participle of ζάω and a second sentence introduced by τελευτᾷ (which never appears in the participle form: for this reason, the restoration of Kaibel, τελευτήσας, has to be rejected) with the date of death, dies natalis for the Christians. The name of the deceased, Οὔρσουλος, recurs in other inscriptions from the imperial age (IGB 3.1772).

Bibliography

Digital editions
Printed editions

Citation and editorial status

Editor
Jonathan Prag
Principal contributor
Jonathan Prag
Contributors
Last revision
12/22/2022