A lease contract from Aphrodite in 555 AD in which Aurelius Georgios, an illiterate shepherd from Psinabla in the Panopolite nome, rents for one year the grazing rights on two farms belonging to Flavius Dioskoros. He agrees to pay 18 gold carats as yearly rent for pasturing his flocks.
In English machine translation
643 (?)
☧ In the reign of our most divine master Flavius Justinian, eternal Augustus and Imperator, year 29, in the 13th year after the consulship of Flavius Basilius the most glorious, Pachon 8, at the beginning of the 4th indiction.
To Flavius Dioskoros, son of Apollos son of Dioskoros of blessed memory, the most admirable, from the village of Aphrodite of the Antaiopolite nome, † Aurelius Georgios, son of Psaios son of Pharoous, his mother being Theonoe, from the village of Psinabla of the Panopolite nome, a shepherd, being one of the heirs of Psaios son of Besis, from the same village of Psinabla, greetings. I acknowledge willingly and of my own choice that I have leased from your admirableness for a period of one year, for the crops of the now coming, with God's help, fourth indiction, the pasturage belonging to you by inheritance of the whole farm of however many arouras it is, with all its rights, called Piah Pall…, of the holding of Akanthon, of the late Elias, former councillor, and of the whole farm called […], of its arouras, according to the boundaries of the heirs of Ko…tos of glorious memory […], lying in the southern plain of the same village of Aphrodite called Hieras Ananeias, […] shepherd, on the south Psilampon, on condition that I hold under me the aforesaid pasturage of all the arouras of the two farms with all their rights according to the boundaries, for grazing and for feeding my flocks, and that I pay you as rent, that is as the fee for the yearly grazing, 18 carats of gold by the goldsmiths' standard of the same village of Aphrodite. The lease agreement shall be valid and secure with the signature of the one signing for me and of the usual witnesses attesting below […], and having been asked on all points I have assented.
☧ I, Aurelius Georgios son of Psaios, shepherd from Psinabla, the aforesaid, have leased as stated above. I, Dioskoros son of Iosephios, priest, having been asked, wrote for him since he does not know letters.
☧ I, Aurelius Phoibammon son of A…[…], witness the lease, having heard it from the party.
† Written by me, Hermauos, notary.
The lessor is Dioskoros of Aphrodite, the well-known poet and notary whose archive preserves many such documents. The opening letters χμγ are a Christian symbol, often read as numerical value 643, whose meaning is debated.
Working translation of the DDbDP edition, made with Claude Opus 5.5 from the edition and the catalogue records shown below (catalogued as Lease. Land). It has not been reviewed by a papyrologist: check the edition before citing. Restorations follow the edition; […] marks lost text and (?) an uncertain reading.