Fragment of a lease of a cleruchic land holding from Tebtynis in the Arsinoite nome, 2nd century AD. The tenants undertake to alternate wheat and barley in odd years with hay in even years, pay rent in kind and money plus customary extra gifts, do all farm work at their own cost, and deliver the rent in Pauni at the threshing floor.
In English machine translation
[...]
[...] [...] [...]
[...] [or however many] they may be; the [first] [and third and fif]th year of the lease
[for sowing wheat and] barley, at a rent for the [arou]ras [...] [half] together with seed of w[heat], [...] artabas [...] [and of barl]ey 1 artaba, in [all]
[for the three-year period], each year [... artabas of wheat]
[and] 10 [artabas of barley] [...]
[...] and the [second and fourth and]
[sixth year] for sowing hay [...]
[...] of cattle (?), at a [rent] each [year for the]
[arouras] [...] [h]alf [...] drachmas [...]
[...] [and as] customary gifts on the land [sown] with wheat, [1 bird] worth [2] drachmas [and]
[...] of wine for the whole holding, all [free from deductions] and from risk; we [carrying out]
[every year] all the [proper] works of the holding
[at our own expense] at the required seasons, [doing no] damage;
[and we will pay] the rents
[every year in the month of] Pauni on the [threshing floor, new, clean,]
[unadulterated, the measure]ment being made [by]
[...] [...]
[...]
The 'thalla' were customary small extra payments in kind (here a bird and wine) added to the rent. Much of the rotation scheme is restored by the editor.
Working translation of the DDbDP edition, made with Claude Opus 5.5 from the edition and the catalogue records shown below (catalogued as Affitto di terreno). It has not been reviewed by a papyrologist: check the edition before citing. Restorations follow the edition; […] marks lost text and (?) an uncertain reading.