ISic004521: ISic004521
No image available
- ID
- ISic004521
- Status
- draft
- Language
- Ancient Greek
- Object type
- pebble
- Text type
- unassigned
Edition
Apparatus criticus
Physical description
Support
- Description
- A small, naturally shaped and roughly oval pebble of extremely hard blackish limestone. It measures approximately 8 cm in maximum length, 4.5 cm in maximum width and 3.5 cm in maximum thickness, and weighs 196 g. The upper, unsmoothed face bears the inscription.
- Object type
- pebble
- Object condition
- No data
- Dimensions
- height: 8 cm, width: 4.5 cm, depth: 3.5 cm
Material
- Description
- limestone
- Type > subtype
- stone.sedimentary_rock > unspecified
Inscription
- Layout
- No data
- Text condition
- No data
- Technique
- chiselled
- Pigment
- No data
- Lettering
- No data
- Letter heights
- Line 1: 4-10mm
- Interlinear heights
- Interlineation line 1 to 2: not measured
Provenance
- Place of origin
- Sabucina
- Provenance found
- On the hill of Sabucina, NE of Terranova Siculo (near Gela)
Current location
- Place
- Siracusa, Sicilia
- Repository
- Museo Archeologico Regionale Paolo Orsi
- 38818
- Autopsy
- Autopsied
- Map
Date
not stated (Unknown - Unknown)- Evidence
- No data
Text type
commentary
The apparently complete text, written from left to right, is tentatively read as ἔβαν. The object bears a pencilled annotation reading “falso”, reflecting an earlier doubt about its authenticity. Although the forms of alpha and epsilon are compatible with the alphabet attested at Sabucina, the complete sequence does not correspond coherently to any identifiable Greek, indigenous or non-Sicilian alphabet, while the beta is anomalous in the area alphabetic tradition. The inscription should therefore be regarded as being of uncertain authenticity. The material itself does not resolve the question: comparable blackish limestone was used for the two inscribed statue bases dedicated respectively to Hieron II and to his son Gelon (ISic000823 and ISic003331).
Bibliography
- Digital editions
- TM: -
- EDR: -
- EDH: -
- EDCS: -
- PHI: -
- Printed editions
- Manenti and Mignosa (2024) at 115-116 no.2 figs.4-6
Citation and editorial status
- Editor
- Jonathan Prag
- Principal contributor
- Valentina Mignosa
- Contributors
- Last revision
- 7/30/2026