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One text, 2 sources · Trismegistos-Text 32836

Letter from Helenos to Silvanus asking for money for estate works TM 32836unbekanntIV

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 private business letter from Helenos to Silvanus asking him to send 2 talents to pay creditors from Ibion, monthly workers and craftsmen, since no wine has been sold. He also reports that the potter Heron was arrested by the village headman Kiales and enrolled in a dekania (a group liable for compulsory service). Written at Oxyrhynchus in the 4th century AD.

In English machine translation

Helenos to Silvanus, my lord brother, greeting. I have also sent to you by Pekysis the donkey-driver, so that you may send us 2 talents for the works, so that we may be able to give to the people from Ibion, for I am greatly troubled by them, and so that I may pay our monthly workers and the potters (?) and for the other works. For no one has bought wine from us. Heron the potter was arrested by Kiales the komarch, and he put him into the dekaniai, having removed others who were in the dekania and put this man in. So I spoke to him about this and (?) to take care. I pray for your health for many years. [left margin] The dekaniai are also troubling us on account of our men, concerning the price of the wine and the donkey-driver who is going to the […]

A dekania was a group of ten men organised for liturgical or policing duties; the term has no exact English equivalent. The sentence about the conversation with the komarch is grammatically unclear, and 'plastopoioi' (moulders, probably of pottery or bricks) is uncertain.

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 Helenus). 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.17.2155

Papyri.info — DDbDP (Duke Databank of Documentary Papyri) — text · IV

[ctr] Ἕλενος Σιλβανῷ τῷ κυρίῳ μου ἀδελφῷ χαίρειν. καὶ διὰ Πεκύσιος τοῦ ὀνηλάτου σοι ἔπεμψα ἵνα πέμψῃς ἡμῖν εἰς τὰ ἔργα δύο τάλαντα ἵνα εὕρωμεν δοῦναι τοῖς ἀπὸ Ἰβιῶνος, πάνυ γὰρ ἐνοχλοῦμαι ὑπʼ αὐτῶν, καὶ ἵνα τοῖς καταμηνίοις ἡμῶν δῶ καὶ τοῖς πλαστοποιοῖς καὶ εἰς τὰ ἄλλα ἔργα. οἶνο…