The Epigraphic Corpus of Georgia 2.0

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77. The inscription of Vespasianus

Description:   Plaque with Greek inscription


Object Description:

Object type:  

Plaque

Material:  

Stone

Object size:  

Width:   115cm

Height:  123cm


Inscription Surface Description:

Layout:  

The inscription is depicted deligently using an exquisite Asomtavruli Script. The first two lines are written by larger letters, the others use relatively smaller letters. The upper left corner of the stone is broken off, the right side is damaged. The average length of the lines is 85 cm.

Dimensions:  

Width: 85cm

Height:    89cm


Hand Description:

Letter Height:  

4-6

Letter Width:  


Origin:

Date:   

75 AD

Provinance:   

Date:   

1867

Observed:  

ID:  

Authority:  

Ilia State University, Institute of linguistic Research

Number:  

ECG77

Licence:  


[Αὐτοκράτωρ][Καῖ]σαρ Οὐε[σ πασιανός][σεβ]αστός ἀρχιε[ρεύς][μέγιστο]ς δημαρχικῆς

ἐξο[υσίας][τ]ὸ[Ζ]αὐτοκράτωρ τὸ ῘΔ ὕπατος τὸ [Ҁ]ἀποδεδειγμένος τὸ Ζ πατήρ πατρίδος τ[ει]μητής

καὶ αὐτοκράτωρ Τίτος καῖσαρ σεβαστοῦ υἱός δημαρχικῆς ἐξουσίας τὸ Ē ὕπατος τὸ Δ ἀποδεδειγμένος τὸ Ē τιμητής καὶ Δομιτιανός καῖσαρ σεβαστοῦ υἱός ὕπατος τὸ Γ ἀποδεδειγμένος

τὸ Δ βασιλεῖ Ῐβήρων Μιθριδάτῃ βασιλέως Φαρασμάνου

5

καὶ Ἰαμασασποΐ υἱῷ φιλοκαίσαρι καὶ φιλορωμαίῳ καὶ ἔθνει


τὰ τείχη ἐξωχύρωσαν


σαρ Οὐε αστός ἀρ

20

χιε ς δημαρχικῆ


ς ἐξο ὸ αὐτοκράτωρ τὸ

ῘΔ ὕπατος τὸ ἀποδεδειγμέ

νος τὸ Ζ πατήρ πατρίδος τ μη

τής καὶ αὐτοκράτωρ Τίτος καῖσαρ

25

σεβαστοῦ υἱός δημαρχικῆς ἐ


ξουσίας τὸ Ē ὕπατος τὸ Δ ἀπο

δεδειγμένος τὸ Ē τιμητή

ς καὶ Δομιτιανός καῖσαρ σεβα

στοῦ υἱός ὕπατος τὸ Γ ἀπο

30

δεδειγμένος τὸ Δ βασιλεῖ


Ῐβήρων Μιθριδάτῃ βασιλέως Φ

αρασμάνου καὶ Ἰαμασασποΐ υἱῷ

φιλοκαίσαρι καὶ φιλορωμαίῳ καὶ ἔ

θνει τὰ τείχη ἐξωχύρωσαν


<ab xmlns="http://www.tei-c.org/ns/1.0"> <lb n="18" /><roleName><w lemma="Αὐτοκράτωρ"><supplied reason="lost">Αὐτοκράτωρ</supplied></w> </roleName><roleName><w lemma="Καῖσαρ"><supplied reason="lost">Καῖ</supplied>σαρ</w> </roleName><name nymRef="Οὐεσπασιανός">Οὐε<supplied reason="lost">σ <lb n="19" break="no" />πασιανός</supplied></name> <roleName><w lemma="σεβαστός"><supplied reason="lost">σεβ</supplied>αστός </w></roleName><roleName><w lemma="ἀρχιερεύς">ἀρ <lb n="20" break="no" />χιε<supplied reason="lost">ρεύς</supplied></w> </roleName><w lemma="μέγας"><supplied reason="lost">μέγιστο</supplied>ς </w><w lemma="δημαρχικός">δημαρχικῆ <lb n="21" break="no" />ς </w><w lemma="ἐξουσία">ἐξο<supplied reason="lost">υσίας</supplied></w> <w lemma="ὁ"><supplied reason="lost">τ</supplied>ὸ</w> <num value="7"><supplied reason="lost">Ζ</supplied></num> <roleName><w lemma="αὐτοκράτωρ">αὐτοκράτωρ </w></roleName><w lemma="ὁ">τὸ </w> <lb n="22" /><num value="14">ῘΔ </num><roleName><w lemma="ὕπατος">ὕπατος </w></roleName><w lemma="ὁ">τὸ </w><num value="6"><supplied reason="lost">Ҁ</supplied></num> <w lemma="ἀποδείκνυμι">ἀποδεδειγμέ <lb n="23" break="no" />νος </w><w lemma="ὁ">τὸ </w><num value="7">Ζ </num><w lemma="πατήρ">πατήρ </w><w lemma="πατρίς">πατρίδος </w><w lemma="τιμητής">τ<supplied reason="lost">ει</supplied>μη <lb n="24" break="no" />τής </w><w lemma="καί">καὶ </w><roleName><w lemma="αὐτοκράτωρ">αὐτοκράτωρ </w></roleName><name nymRef="Τίτος">Τίτος </name><roleName><w lemma="καῖσαρ">καῖσαρ </w></roleName> <lb n="25" /><roleName><w lemma="σεβαστός">σεβαστοῦ </w></roleName><w lemma="υἱός">υἱός </w><w lemma="δημαρχικός">δημαρχικῆς </w><w lemma="ἐξουσία">ἐ <lb n="26" break="no" />ξουσίας </w><w lemma="ὁ">τὸ </w><num value="5">Ē </num><roleName><w lemma="ὕπατος">ὕπατος </w></roleName><w lemma="ὁ">τὸ </w><num value="4">Δ </num><w lemma="ἀποδείκνυμι">ἀπο <lb n="27" break="no" />δεδειγμένος </w><w lemma="ὁ">τὸ </w><num value="5">Ē </num><w lemma="τιμητής">τιμητή <lb n="28" break="no" />ς </w><w lemma="καί">καὶ </w><name nymRef="Δομιτιανός">Δομιτιανός </name><roleName><w lemma="καῖσαρ">καῖσαρ </w></roleName><roleName><w lemma="σεβαστός">σεβα <lb n="29" break="no" />στοῦ </w></roleName><w lemma="υἱός">υἱός </w><roleName><w lemma="ὕπατος">ὕπατος </w></roleName><w lemma="ὁ">τὸ </w><num value="3">Γ </num><w lemma="ἀποδείκνυμι">ἀπο <lb n="30" break="no" />δεδειγμένος </w><w lemma="ὁ">τὸ </w><num value="4">Δ </num><w lemma="βασιλεύς">βασιλεῖ </w> <lb n="31" /><w lemma="Ἴβηρ">Ῐβήρων </w><name nymRef="Μιθριδάτης">Μιθριδάτῃ </name><w lemma="βασιλεύς">βασιλέως </w><name>Φ <lb n="32" break="no" />αρασμάνου </name><w lemma="καί">καὶ </w><name>Ἰαμασασποΐ </name><w lemma="υἱός">υἱῷ </w> <lb n="33" /><w lemma="φιλοκαῖσαρ">φιλοκαίσαρι </w><w lemma="καί">καὶ </w><w lemma="φιλορώμαιος">φιλορωμαίῳ </w><w lemma="καί">καὶ </w> <w lemma="ἔθνος">ἔ <lb n="34" break="no" />θνει </w><w lemma="ὁ">τὰ </w><w lemma="τεῖχος">τείχη </w><w lemma="ἐξοχυρόω">ἐξωχύρωσαν </w> </ab>

Translation:

The absolute monarch Caesar Vespasianus Sebastus, the great chief priest, equipped with the power given 7 times by the Tribunus Plebis and elected 14 times as an autocrat. 6 times made an Apo Hypaton and proclaimed so for the 7th time, the father of his homeland and a censor; and the autocrat Titus the Caesar, the son of Vespasianus, 5 times equipped with the power granted by the Tribunus Plebis and 4 times Hypatos and proclaimed for the 5th time and a censor; and Domicianus Caesar, the son of Sevastos, three times a shypatos and proclaimed for the 4th time to Mithridat, the King of Iberians, the son of the King Parsman and Iamazpuh, the friend of Caesar and the lover of the Romans and they fortified these walls for people.

Critical Aparatus:

  • ἀμώμητος αμειμητον

Comments:

The outlines of letters (the ending with the small triangle shape deepening of a straight form), the broken down middle line of the letter α, the use of very small signs a little bigger than a dot instead of horizontal lines in shaping letters such as ε, η and θ, the outlines of Σ, Ω and Ξ) and the linguistic data. (a rare itacism of εθνι, τειμητης; one case of mixing ο║ω - αυτοκρατορ – in the 4th line) are characteristic for the 1st century inscriptions everywhere where people could write in Greek. One word in the 15th line of the Greek text Ἰαμασασποΐ is read in different ways by different scholars. Much earlier publishers (e.g. Bartholomew, J. Mohl and I.V. Latishev) used to read it as Ιαμασδει (and this was considered to be a female name) τω υιω, L. Renáe and I. Pomialovski read it as - Ιαμασδαιτων, which meant the population of Amazda (Armazi). A. Amiranashvili read it as Ιαμασπω which equals Ιαμασασπω. This reading by A. Amiranashvili (and Boltunova as well) was accepted (See M.N. Todd, T Kaukhchishvili) before another work was published by G. Tsereteli. There was no unanimity about the identification of the person of “Aamasasp” (that was taken as a male name). G Tsereteli read this as a female name Amazaspuh suggesting that it may refer to the wife of the King Parsman and a mother of Mithridat.

Bibliography:

  • წერეთელი გიორგი მცხეთის ბერძნული წარწერა ვესპასიანეს ხანისასაქართველოს სსრ მეცნიერებათა აკადემია, ენათმეცნიერების ინსტიტუტი 1958 1-23 თბილისი
  • ყაუხჩიშვილი თინათინ საქართველოს ბერძნული წარწერების კორპუსი ივანე ჯავახიშვილის სახელობის თბილისის სახელმწიფო უნივერსიტეტი, კლასიკური ფილოლოგიის, ბიზანტინისტიკისა და ნეოგრეცისტიკის ინსტიტუტი 1958251-252 თბილისი
  • ყაუხჩიშვილი თინათინ საქართველოს ისტორიის ძველი ბერძნული წყაროები 1976241-245თბილისი
  • Boltounova Anna Quelques notes sur l'inscription de Vespasien, trouvée à Mtskhetha 1976213-222
  • თინათინ ყაუხჩიშვილი საქართველოს ბერძნული წარწერების კორპუსი ტ. II აღმოსავლეთ საქართველო თბილისი, 2000 გვ. 251-252
  • მცხეთა: არქეოლოგირუი კვლევა-ძიების შედეგები ტ. 11 თბილისი 1955 გვ. 41; გვ. 135
  • თ. ყაუხჩიშვილი ახალი ბერძნული წარწერა არმაზციხე-ბაგინეთიდან (II) "ნარკვევები" IV თბილისი 1998 გვ. 11-14
  • თ. ყაუხჩიშვილი ახალი ბერძნული წარწერა არმაზციხე-ბაგინეთიდან "მცხეთა" XI თბილისი 1996
  • თინათინ ყაუხჩიშვილი , ბერძნული წარწერები საქართველოში თბილისი 1951 გვ. 234-240
  • დევიდ ბრაუნდი საქართველო ანტიკურ ხანაში კოლხეთისა და ამიერკავკასიის იბერიის ისტორია ძვ.წ. 550-ახ.წ. 562 წლებში ბათუმი 2014 გვ. 327-329