Private Letter
Letter written, with many misspellings, by Antonius to Apuleius and Valerias (his brother and sister-in-law?) about some articles of clothing
One text, 3 sources · Trismegistos-Text 21340
Letter from Antonius to Apuleius and Valerias about clothing TM 21340Philadelphia (Arsinoites)February 11, 99 A.D.
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 private letter from Antonius to Apuleius and Valerias at Philadelphia in the Fayum, dated 11 February AD 99. He asks them to look after two purple garments and other clothing, to ask a certain Apis about cloaks and weaving costs, and passes on Thermouthas' complaint that they never write to her.
In English machine translation
[recto]
Antonius to Apuleius and Valerias, both, greetings and continual good health. Before all else, greet each other (?) by letter. Please, then, take care for us of the two purple garments, so that no one else carries them off,
and the subricia cloaks and
their little pallium. And ask Apis about the cloaks (phainolai), and ask him how much the weavers' wages will cost.
And let Atolessia daughter of Isotas come down. I will write a letter. Let one of you come down. Thermouthas greets you very, very much and blames you greatly because you do not send her a letter and the reply.
Year 2 of Imperator Nerva Traianus Augustus Germanicus, Mecheir 17. And send Daphne's pallium to her.
[verso]
Deliver to Apuleius.
Deliver to Valerias.
The letter is full of misspellings; Latin garment terms such as subricium and pallium appear in Greek dress. The relationship of the recipients to the writer (perhaps brother and sister-in-law) is only a guess.
Working translation of the DDbDP edition, made with Claude Opus 5.5 from the edition and the catalogue records shown below (catalogued as Letter of Antonius to Apuleius and Valerias). 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.3.201
[r] Ἀντώνις Ἀποληείῳ καὶ Οὐαλεριᾶτι ἀμφοτέροις χαίρειν καὶ διὰ παντὸς ὑγιαίνειν. πρὸ μὲν πάντων σε ἀσπάσατε διὰἐπιστολῆς. καλῶς οὖν ποιήσετε μελήσετε ἡμῖν περὶ τῶν ἁλουργῶν τῶν δύο, ἵνα μὴ ἄλλος ἐξενείκῃ αὐτὰ καὶ τὰ ἱμάτια τὰ σουβρίκια καὶ τὸ παλλιόλιον αὐτῶν. καὶ ἐρωτήσατε Ἀπίνα…