One text, 3 sources · Trismegistos-Text 1471

Estimate of the cost of painting windows in the king's lodging TM 1471Philadelphia3rd century BC

The same ancient text or artifact as recorded by 4 records across 3 independent projects, recognised as one entity by its TM-Text identifier. View on Trismegistos →

A cost estimate for encaustic painting of the windows in the king's lodging, specifying colours (red ochre, blue, violet, wood-colour, bitumen) for different rooms and the price per window, with a list of materials needed. It comes from the Zenon archive, mid-3rd century BC, probably Philadelphia in the Fayum.

In English machine translation

[1] In the king's lodging: the windows that are in the side (passage) walls, with frames (?), and those looking onto the courtyard, together amounting to 38: to encaustic-paint the sides with red ochre, the fronts with blue, the sills (?) in wood-colour, and the ears (?) of those that have them with bitumen; with materials and wages, for each window 1 drachma 1/2 obol; and the windows of the cooling-room, being 2: the lattice-bars (?) he will paint with violet, the frame he will paint in wood-colour, and the sides likewise; materials and wages for each window 3 drachmas 4 1/2 obols. For this: wax 15 minas, cost 10 drachmas, and bitumen 2 minas, cost 2 drachmas, red ochre 1/2 (mina), cost 2 obols, pitch 3 kotylai, cost […], blue […] cost 1 drachma. [2] The windows in the exedra, being four: to encaustic-paint their frames with violet and the sills (?) in wood-colour; for each, materials and wages 1 drachma 1/2 obol 1 chalkous. And those of the room, being 2, with frames, the parts looking inward: to paint the frames and the sills (?) in wood-colour; for each, materials and wages 1 drachma 1 1/2 obols. And of the bedroom, the framed windows, the parts looking inward, being 8: to paint the frames and the sills (?) in wood-colour; materials for each and wages 1 drachma 1/2 obol. […]

The 'king's lodging' was a residence prepared for a royal visit. Several architectural terms (kanonotai, plintheia, otia, kombalia) are technical and their exact meaning is uncertain.

Working translation of the DDbDP edition, made with Claude Opus 5.5 from the edition and the catalogue records shown below (catalogued as Estimate of the cost of painting windows). 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.cair.zen.5.59847

Papyri.info — DDbDP (Duke Databank of Documentary Papyri) — text · Mitte III v.Chr. · Philadelphia? (Arsinoites)

[1] ἐν τῶι καταλύματι τοῦ βασιλέως· τὰς θυρίδας τὰς ἐν τοῖς παροδίοις τοίχοις οὔσας κανονωτὰς καὶ τὰς εἰς τὴν αὐλὴν βλεπούσας γείνονται εἰς τὸ αὐτὸ λη ἐγκαῦσαι τὰ πλάγια μίλτωι, τὰ δʼ ἀντία κυάνωι, τὰ δὲ πλινθεῖα ξυλοειδεῖ, τὰ δʼ ὠτία τῶν ἐχουσῶν ἀσφάλτωι· σὺν ἀνηλώματι καὶ μισθῶ…