A Christian letter from Apollonios to the deacon Stephanos, whom he calls his beloved son, urging him to come quickly with his brother Hierax and asking him to bring tow and use money from a pastophoros to buy purple wool. It also mentions a tunic given to Theodoros for sale and sends greetings to several people; written in the Great Oasis in the 4th century AD.
In English machine translation
Apollonios to Stephanos, deacon, beloved son in the Lord, greeting.
First of all I greet you warmly, and your brother Hierax, by all means. I write to you urgently so that you may quickly join us before the […]. When you come, bring me the three pounds of tow, and receive the money from the pastophoros and buy me with it purple (dyed wool). Your brother Hierax has given Theodoros son of Hierax a kolobion to sell. So if you need it, buy it or, with its price, buy purple. Bring your brother Hierax with you, but by all means join us quickly.
I pray for your health in the Lord, beloved child, for many years.
I greet warmly brother Sineas and his son and Tachoumis his sister with her children. […] I […] that before I came to the Oasis there arrived […] did not […] them.
[left margin]
I greet warmly brother Origenes […] Hierax and Sineas […]
and […] the money […].
A pastophoros was originally a shrine-bearer of the Egyptian temples, a striking figure to appear in a Christian letter. The kolobion is a short-sleeved tunic.
Working translation of the DDbDP edition, made with Claude Opus 5.5 from the edition and the catalogue records shown below (catalogued as Brief eines Christen). It has not been reviewed by a papyrologist: check the edition before citing. Restorations follow the edition; […] marks lost text and (?) an uncertain reading.