Letter from Gemellus to Epagathus
Lucius Bellenus Gemellus to Epagathus
One text, 3 sources · Trismegistos-Text 10780
Letter from Lucius Bellenus Gemellus to Epagathos about piglets for a birthday feast TM 10780Euhemeria (Arsinoites, Ägypten)Roman CE 101
The same ancient text or artifact as recorded by 3 records across 3 independent projects, recognised as one entity by its TM-Text identifier. View on Trismegistos →
A letter from the landowner Lucius Bellenus Gemellus to his estate manager Epagathos, ordering him to buy two well-bred piglets to fatten for a sacrifice at the birthday celebration of Sabinus, and to send urgently a strong, broad strap for the ox team to Aphroditopolis. It was written on 21 August 101 in the Fayum.
In English machine translation
[recto]
[… lines lost …]
[…] […] expense and […] guard. Buy us two well-bred piglets for feeding at home, since we are going to sacrifice […] piglets at the birthday feast of Sabinus. So do not do otherwise.
Farewell. Greet Orsenouphis and Heron and all those at home.
Year 4 of Trajan the lord, month Kaisarios 28.
You will send me a strap (?) for the bull team to Aphroditopolis, strong and broad, since the one it has is cut through (?) and the ploughman is being punished; at once.
[verso]
Deliver to Epagathos from Lucius Bellenus Gemellus.
The words written ωειρι and ουρι in the postscript are obscure; they seem to denote a piece of harness for the ox team, so 'strap' is a guess. Kaisarios is the Roman-period name for the month Mesore.
Working translation of the DDbDP edition, made with Claude Opus 5.5 from the edition and the catalogue records shown below (catalogued as Letter from Gemellus to Epagathus). It has not been reviewed by a papyrologist: check the edition before citing. Restorations follow the edition; […] marks lost text and (?) an uncertain reading.
p.fay.115
[r] [… ? lines lost …] […]θαι …τοεα[…]δαπάνης καὶ […]…λυς φύλακα. ἀγόρασον ἡμῖν δύο εὐγενῆ χοιρίδια εἰς τροφὴν εἰς οἶκον ἐπεὶ μέλλομεν α…χο… μον χοιρίδια θύειν εἰς τὰ γενέσια Σαβίνου. μὴ οὖν ἄλλως ποιήσῃς. ἔρρωσο. ἀσπάζου Ὀρσενοῦφιν καὶ Ἥρωνα καὶ τοὺς ἐν οἴκῳ πάντας ἔτους δ Τραια…