One text, 2 sources · Trismegistos-Text 31324
Letter from Serenos to his brother Diogenes about family health TM 31324OxyrhynchosIII
The same ancient text or artifact as recorded by 3 records across 2 independent projects, recognised as one entity by its TM-Text identifier. View on Trismegistos →
A private letter from Serenos to his brother Diogenes reporting that their sister is recovering and their brother Harpokration is well, thanks to their ancestral gods, and asking for urgent news about Sarapion, who is said to be ill. It also mentions their father moving the sheaves; the other side carries fragments of an account listing names and payments. From Oxyrhynchus, 3rd century AD.
In English machine translation
[recto]
[… lines lost …]
To Thaesis, wife of Hatres, son of […] bath-man (?) […]
To Horos son of Auktos […]
Vegetable-sellers, likewise
Difference for year 2, of the artaba 4 […]
Priscilla
Kakes
[verso]
Serenos to Diogenes his brother, greeting.
With the help of the gods our sister has taken a turn for the better, and our brother Harpokration too is safe and well, for our ancestral gods always help us, granting us health and safety. I was myself about to go up on the 10th (?) […], since the people from Sarapion's household said that he was unwell; therefore I am writing to you so that by whomever you can you may write to me at once about this. The transport of the sheaves will be done immediately by our father, for he had already carried off beforehand those in the arouras […].
Greet warmly my sweetest brother Harpokration and Theanous and Theon and Diogenes and Heliodoros. Hierakiaina and her daughter Tsenesis greet you all warmly.
I pray for your health, with all your household.
The letter was written on the back of a reused account sheet, whose fragmentary entries list people such as vegetable-sellers. 'Brother' and 'sister' may be used loosely for relatives or friends in such letters.
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 Serenus). 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.oxy.6.935
[r] [… ? lines lost …] Θαήσει γυναικὶ Ἁτρῆτος υἱοῦ βαλαν[…] Ὥρῳ Αὔκτου […] λαχανοπῶλαι ὁμοίως διάφορον β ἔτους ἀρτάβης δ …[…] Πρείσκιλλα Κακῆτος [v] Σερῆνος Διογένει τῷ ἀδελφῷ χαίρειν. θεῶν συνλαμβανόντων ἡ ἀδελφὴ ἐπὶ τὸ κομψότερον ἐτράπη, καὶ ὁ ἀδελφὸς δὲ Ἁρποκρατίων σώζεται καὶ…