A daily household expense account recording small purchases of bread, vinegar, vegetables, oil, wine, firewood, fodder and bath fees, made through agents Boethos and Peteminis, with running totals and balances. It comes from Ghoran in the Arsinoite nome (Fayum) in the 3rd century BC.
In English machine translation
[recto, column 1]
[… 7 lines lost …]
[recto, column 2]
I have 36 drachmas; total 39 drachmas 2 obols.
Through Boethos:
(Day) 4: to Amos the machimos, 1 obol
vinegar, 1 jar, 3 (?)
lamp (?), 10 (?), 5 1/4 obols
to the fig-seller, debt, 1/2 obol 1/4 obol
fodder, 1 obol; total 14 drachmas 2 obols
and through Peteminis:
loaves through Sostratos [1/4 obol]
from Hermoupolis
vinegar, 1/2 obol 1/4 obol
salted fish, 1/2 obol; oil, 1/4 obol
to Boethos, loaves, 1/2 obol 1/4 obol
vegetables, 1/4 obol; vinegar, 1/4 obol
firewood, 1 chalkous; gourd, 1 chalkous
eggs, 2 obols; total 5 1/4 obols; total 15 drachmas 1 1/4 obols
remainder 24 drachmas 1/2 obol 1/4 obol
(Day) 5: through Boethos, to Amos the machimos, 1 obol
fodder, 1 obol; oil and for the bath-attendant, through Drimylos the Syrian and Zoilos, 1 obol
oxythymon, 1/4 obol; total 3 1/4 obols
through …, 1/2 obol 1 chalkous; total 3 1/2 1/4 obols 1 chalkous
[recto, column 3]
and through Peteminis:
relish, 1 chalkous
loaves, 1/2 obol 1/4 obol
vegetables, 1/2 obol
nuts and dried fruit, 1/4 obol 1 chalkous
to Thareus, 1/4 obol; total [2 obols]
total 5 1/2 1/4 obols 1 chalkous
remainder 23 drachmas 1/2 obol 1/4 obol 1 chalkous
through Boethos:
(Day) 6: figs and oxythymon […]
cheese for Amos the machimos, 1 chalkous
and for him necessities […]
and through Peteminis:
loaves, 1/2 obol; wine, [2 obols]
vinegar, 1/4 obol; vegetables […]
relish, 1/2 obol; firewood for the oven, 1/4 obol; oil and for the bath-attendant [1 obol]
castor oil, 1 chalkous; nuts and dried fruit […]
to Boethos, 1/2 obol 1/4 obol; total 5 1/2 1/4 obols 1 chalkous
total 1 drachma 1 1/2 [1/4] obols 1 chalkous
[verso, column 3]
vegetables, 1 chalkous
wine, 2 obols
nuts and dried fruit, 1 chalkous
total 1 drachma 5 obols … 3 obols 1 chalkous
total 17 drachmas 1/4 obol 1 chalkous, of which 1/4 obol
(Day) 9: loaf, 1 obol, of which 1/2 obol
for the bath-attendant, 2 obols
for the bath-attendant, 1 drachma, of which 1/2 obol
oil […]
oil …
relish, 1/2 obol; vegetables, 1 chalkous
firewood, 1 chalkous
total 1 drachma 3 1/2 obols 1 chalkous, of which 1 1/2 obols
total 12 drachmas 1 obol, of which 1 1/2 1/4 obols
(Day) 10: nothing
(Day) 11: in Krokodilopolis
relish, 1/2 obol 1/4 obol
beans …
vegetables, 1 chalkous
[…]
A machimos was an Egyptian soldier of the Ptolemaic army; trogma denotes dessert nibbles such as nuts and dried fruit. Several numerals and the item 'lychnios' are uncertain in reading.
Working translation of the DDbDP edition, made with Claude Opus 5.5 from the edition and the catalogue records shown below (catalogued as Comptes). It has not been reviewed by a papyrologist: check the edition before citing. Restorations follow the edition; […] marks lost text and (?) an uncertain reading.