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One text, 2 sources · Trismegistos-Text 78595

Letter from Herakleides to his mother Thaesis about bakers and chickens TM 78595Oxyrhynchos1. Hälfte IV

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 letter from Herakleides to his mother Thaesis at Oxyrhynchus, first half of the 4th century AD. He urges her to press certain people, apparently bakers, before a festival, to appeal to the logistes (city curator) if they neglect her, to see to the oil, and to look after the chickens without selling any until he returns.

In English machine translation

[recto] To my lady mother Thaesis, Herakleides her son, very many greetings. I make obeisance for you every day before the lord god. So do not neglect to pester them. Instruct Artemidoros that, as we told you, do not neglect it; if the first day of the festival passes (?), do not let them off a single day. So if you learn that they have not taken care of you, go to the logistes and petition him: 'Either give me the bakers or give me letters to Dionysodoros.' And do not neglect the matter of the oil. I greet my sister. Go to my boiler (?) Moros, the handler, and he goes to the logistes and throws them out. Look after the chickens. So do not sell any of them until I come. I pray for your health for many years. [verso] Deliver to Thaesis from Horion, oven-baker.

The address names the sender as Horion, oven-baker, not Herakleides, perhaps the bearer or a second name. The logistes was the chief financial official of the city; the syntax of the letter is colloquial and several phrases are 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 to Thaesis). 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.65.4493

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

[r] κυρίᾳ μου μητρὶ Θαήσει Ἡρακλείδης υἱὸς πλεῖστα χαίρειν. τὸ προσκύνημά σου ποιῶ καθʼ ἑκάστην ἡμέραν παρὰ τῷ κυρίῳ θεῷ. μὴ ἀμελήσεις οὖν ἐνοχλήσειν αὐτοῖς. ἔντελλε Ἀρτεμιδώρῳ ὅτι καθὼς εἰρήκαμέν σοι ὅτι μὴ ἀμελήσεις· ἐὰν ἀπέσχῃ ἡ πρώτη ἡμέρα τῆς ἑορτῆς μὴ ἀφῇς αὐτοῖς μηδεμίαν ἡ…