Official Letter
Letter from Nikobios to the nomarch Maimachos, who has been blamed for his remissness in delivering certain quantities of seed of sesame and corn, and who is asked to state what he has done
One text, 3 sources · Trismegistos-Text 1943
Letter from Nikobios to Maimachos forwarding complaint about grain and sesame deliveries TM 1943ArsinoitesOctober 26, 253 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 →
An official letter from Nikobios to Maimachos, a nomarch in the Arsinoite nome, forwarding a copy of a letter from his superior Diotimos complaining that the nomarchs were failing to deliver the required wheat and sesame. Nikobios asks Maimachos for an account of how much grain and sesame he has measured in. It dates to 253 BC.
In English machine translation
[recto]
Nikobios to Maimachos, greetings. I have copied for you below the letter from Diotimos. Please, therefore, write us an account concerning both the wheat and the sesame, how much you have measured into the […] for him, so that we may send word as he writes. Farewell. Year 33, Thoth 2.
Diotimos to Nikobios, greetings. Since, from the time we went away, the nomarchs have been doing nothing as they should in the measuring of the sesame and the wheat, as soon as you receive the letter, if they do not immediately measure out the due quantity, spare no effort; it will be measured if you yourself go in person to each place and apply pressure. Farewell. Year 33, Mesore 8.
[verso]
To Maimachos.
Diotimos was the dioiketes (chief finance minister) under Ptolemy II; his letter is dated Mesore 8, some weeks before Nikobios' covering letter. The destination of the deliveries in line 3 is damaged and unread.
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 Nikobios to Maimachos). 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.1.43
[r] Νικόβιος Μαιμάχωι χαίρειν. ὑπογέγραφά σοι τῆς παρὰ Διοτίμου ἐπιστολῆς τὸ ἀντίγραφον. καλῶς οὖν ποιήσεις γράψας ἡμῖν ἀπολογισμὸν περί τε τοῦ σίτου καὶ τοῦ σησάμου, πόσον εἰσμεμέτρηκας εἰς τὸ π…σο…[…] αὐτῶι, ὅπως ἐπιστείλωμεν καθότι γράφει. ἔρρωσο. ἔτους λγ, Θῶυθ β. Διότιμος Νι…