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One text, 2 sources · Trismegistos-Text 20285

Petition to the governor of the Thebaid about a seized donkey and assault TM 20285Kellis (Oasis Magna)

The same ancient text or artifact as recorded by 2 records across 2 independent projects, recognised as one entity by its TM-Text identifier. View on Trismegistos →

Petition from Aurelius Pamouris son of Psais of the village of Kellis in the Great Oasis to Aurelius Herodes, governor of the Thebaid. He complains that a powerful local man, Pollon son of Psais of Mothis, seized his donkey and beat him during a period of unrest when he was still a minor, and asks the governor to intervene.

In English machine translation

To Aurelius Herodes, the most eminent governor (hegemon) of the Thebaid, from Aurelius Pamouris son of Psais, from the village of Kellis of the city of the Mothites of the Great Oasis. Nothing is more terrible or more violent, my lord governor, than the violence and greed (committed) in the unsettled times of that period by Pollon son of Psais, from the same city of the Mothites. A man of great power in the district, he violently and tyrannically seized my donkey when I was still under age at that time, and beat me with blows beyond human endurance. Being a man of modest means and [through] […] of mine providing for my livelihood, I necessarily take refuge [with you], master, through this [petition], asking and begging you to order […] […]

The 'city of the Mothites' is Mothis, the administrative centre of the Dakhleh Oasis, to which Kellis belonged. The end of the petition, with the specific request, is lost.

Working translation of the DDbDP edition, made with Claude Opus 5.5 from the edition and the catalogue records shown below (catalogued as Petition to the praeses Thebaidos). It has not been reviewed by a papyrologist: check the edition before citing. Restorations follow the edition; […] marks lost text and (?) an uncertain reading.

DDbDP-text Full record →

p.kellis.1.20

Papyri.info — DDbDP (Duke Databank of Documentary Papyri) — text · Kellis (Oasis Magna)

Αὐρηλίῳ Ἡρώδῃ τῷ διασημοτάτῳ ἡγουμένῳ Θηβαΐδος. παρὰ Αὐρηλίου Παμούριος Ψάιτος ἀπὸ κώμης Κέλλεως τῆς Μωθιτῶν πόλεως τῆς Μεγάλης Ὀάσεως. οὐδὲν δεινότερον οὐδὲ βιαιότερον, ἡγεμὼν κύριε, βίαν καὶ πλεονεξίαν ἐν τοῖς τότεἀκαταστασίοις καιροῖς ὑπὸ Πόλλωνος Ψάιτος ἀπὸ τῆς αὐτῆς Μωθιτῶν …