Order for Payment
Order, written in the form of a duplicate letter, for payment of a stone-cutter and of several masons for their work on two houses
One text, 3 sources · Trismegistos-Text 1937
Order to pay a stonecutter and builders for work on two houses TM 1937Philadelpheia, Herakleidou meris, Arsinoite nome, EgyptMay 254 B.C.[?]
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 payment order written as a letter, in duplicate (inner and outer copies), from Petosiris to Theopompos, instructing him to pay a stonecutter and several builders for cutting stone, hanging beams, roofing and levelling work on the houses of Nestor and Diotimos at Philadelphia. It dates to year 31 of Ptolemy II, April-May 254 BC.
In English machine translation
[recto, inner text]
Petosiris to Theopompos, greeting.
Give to Teos the stonecutter the wage for the stone door(?) […] which he contracted […] to cut in the house of Nestor, 6 drachmas; and
to Harentotes the builder for beams, to cut and hang up the beams and to build them in, 1 drachma 1 obol; and to Amphion the builder and Psenpsebis for roofing in the house of Diotimos of five-couch rooms […] 14 1/2 at the rate for a five-couch room […] total 7 (drachmas) 2 1/2 obols; towards this he has 1 (drachma) 1 obol; and for levelling in the house of Diotimos 2 (drachmas).
[recto, outer text]
Petosiris to Theopompos, greeting.
Give to Teos the stonecutter the wage […] stone […] which he contracted […] to cut in the house of Nestor, 6 drachmas; and
Har[entotes …] […] to cut and hang up the beams and to build them in […] 1 drachma 1 obol; and to Amphion […] and Psenpsebis for […] in the house of Diotimos […] 14 1/2, 7 drachmas 2 1/2 obols; for […] for levelling in the house of […] 2 drachmas.
Farewell.
Year 31, Phamenoth […]
[verso]
For the house of Diotimos in Philadelphia, for roofing of five-couch rooms […] and for levelling 2 drachmas.
Total […]
[verso, upper margin]
Roofing […]
[…]
⟦five-couch⟧
and for levelling 2 drachmas
A 'five-couch' room (pentaklinos) is a dining room sized for five couches, used here as a unit for pricing the roofing. The text dates itself to Phamenoth of year 31, while the records give a range of 24 April to 23 May 254 BC.
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 Petosiris to Theopompos). 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.mich.1.37
[r,int] Πετοσῖρις Θευπόμπωι χαίρειν. δὸς Τεῶτι λαξῶι μισθὸν θυρ[…] λιθίνης ἧς συνεβουλεύσατο[…] κόψαι ἐν τοῖς Νέστου δραχμὰς ϛ καὶ Ἁρεντώτῃ οἰκοδόμῳ εἰς δοκοὺς ὥστε κόψαι καὶ ἀνακρεμάσαι τὰς δοκοὺς καὶ κατοικοδομῆσαι δραχμὴν α ὀβολὸν καὶ Ἀμφίονι οἰκοδόμῳ καὶ Ψενψεῆβι εἰς δόρωμα ἐ…