ISic003012: I.Sicily inscription 003012

No image available

ID
ISic003012
Status
draft
Language
Ancient Greek
Object type
plaque
Text type
dedication

Edition

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Apparatus criticus

  • Text from autopsy

Physical description

Support

Description
A large quadrangular slab of limestone, somewhat damaged around the edges.
Object type
plaque
Object condition
damaged
Dimensions
height: 49 cm, width: 46.5 cm, depth: 20 cm

Material

Description
limestone
Type > subtype
inorganic.stone > unverified

Inscription

Layout
Large letters across the middle of the face of the slab, seemingly a complete text.
Text condition
complete
Technique
chiselled
Pigment
No data
Lettering

Roughly carved, with broken bar alpha, seemingly in ligature with rho; kappa with moderately short arms; smaller omicron; somewhat open four bar sigma.

Letter heights
Line 1: mm
Interlinear heights
Interlineation line 1 to 2: mm

Provenance

Place of origin
Syracusae high certainty
Provenance found
From excavations in Piazza Minerva, Ortygia, in March/February 1914, recovered from the foundations of the 'vecchio seminario'.. Now in storage in the archaeological park of Neapolis.
Map

Current location

Place
Siracusa, Sicilia
Repository
Museo Archeologico Regionale Paolo Orsi
34812
Autopsy
Observed by Prag 2026-09-17, without full study
Map

Date

Fourth or third century BCE (400 BCE - 201 BCE)
Evidence
lettering

Text type

dedication

commentary

Manganaro suggested that the text referred to Arkos, a personification of 'security' (the word also means 'bear', and occurs as a personal name). Orsi speculated on [Συ]ρακοσ[ιος] or [Ἱε]ρακος, but neither of these seems plausible, given that the ligature should render ΑΡ, not ΡΑ, and there would seem to be a vacat before the Α. The letter forms perhaps suggest a third century BCE date, given the combination of broken bar alpha and open sigma.

Bibliography

Digital editions
Printed editions

Citation and editorial status

Editor
Jonathan Prag
Principal contributor
Jonathan Prag
Contributors
Last revision
9/25/2026
License
Commons CC-BY 4.0