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One text, 2 sources · Trismegistos-Text 20556

Petition of a weaver against a tax collector for extortion TM 20556Oxyrhynchosca. 50

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 →

A petition from Sarapion son of Theon, a weaver of Oxyrhynchus, to the strategos Tiberius Claudius Pasion, complaining that the former collector of the weavers' trade tax, Apollophanes, violently seized his linen tunic and extorted further money from him. He asks the strategos to deal with the collector; the document dates to about AD 50.

In English machine translation

[recto] To Tiberius Claudius Pasion, strategos, from Sarapion son of Theon, of the weavers from the city of Oxyrhynchus, of the quarter of the Gymnasium Street. Apollophanes, who was collector of the trade tax on weavers in the 1st year of Tiberius Claudius Caesar Augustus Germanicus Imperator, using great violence, seized the linen tunic I was wearing, worth 8 drachmas, and extorted from me another 4 drachmas, and from the month Neos Sebastos of the 9th year of Tiberius Claudius Caesar Augustus Germanicus Imperator until Pharmouthi, 6 months, 2 drachmas a month, which together make 24 drachmas. Therefore I ask you to take proceedings against him as seems good to you. Farewell. […] (meaningless letter sequences) [verso] […] (meaningless letter sequences)

The cheironaxion was a tax on trades and crafts. The letter strings after the petition and on the back appear to be nonsensical writing exercises unrelated to the text, so they are left untranslated.

Working translation of the DDbDP edition, made with Claude Opus 5.5 from the edition and the catalogue records shown below (catalogued as Extortion by a Tax - Collector). 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.oxy.2.285

Papyri.info — DDbDP (Duke Databank of Documentary Papyri) — text · ca. 50 · Oxyrhynchos

[r] Τιβερίωι Κλαυδίῳ Πασίωνι στρατηγῷ παρὰ Σαραπίωνος τοῦ Θέωνος τῶν ἀπʼ Ὀξυρύγχων πόλεως γερδίων λαύρας δρόμου Γυμνασίου. Ἀπολλοφάνης γενόμενος πράκτωρ χειρωναξίου γερδίων τῷ α ἔτει Τιβερίου Κλαυδίου Καίσαρος Σεβαστοῦ Γερμανικοῦ Αὐτοκράτορος πολλῇ βίᾳ χρώμενος ἀφήρπασεν ὃν ἤμην …