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4CARE-ARTEFACTS

ARTEFACT IDENTIFIERS

Artefact ID	1681
TM ID	TM 32798
Findspot (DEChriM ID)	- ()
Class	Textual
Material	Papyrus
Writing medium	Sheet/roll
Text content	Documentary
Language	Greek
Description	P. Princ. 2 102: Letter of condolence from Alexandros to a grieving father (Kerdon?) This first part (11 x 16 cm) of a letter appears quite intact, containing 17 lines with little damage. Addressed to κυρίῳ μου ἀδελφῶ (line 1), possibly named Kerdon, Alexandros relates his condolences for the death of Kerdon’s son, using the term τῆς φιλανθρωπίας (line 5), and apologizes for not coming to the city (εἰς τὴν πόλειν, line 10) in person. “Nobody among humans is immortal, only god” (οὐδεὶς ἐν ἀνθρώποις ἀθάνατος εἰ μὴ [μό]νος [τον] ὁ θεὸς, initially read as υἱὸς ὁ θεὸς, lines 14–15) appears among the formulae used. Chapa 1998 adds the reading [τοῦ] μακαρ[ίου Πα]ύλου for line 17. Farewell wishes are written along the left margin and the verso contains the address. A number of corrections were made to the text, initially assumed to have been by a second hand, but Chapa considers everything to have been written by the same hand.
Selection criteria	Christian terms/formulas/concepts, Christian onomastics
Date from	300
Date to	399
Dating criteria	Palaeography; the ed.pr. assigns it to the 4th c.; Naldini 1968 to the 3rd/4th c.; Chapa 1998 compares the writing to P.Mert. II 90 (~310 CE).
Absolute/relative date	Relative date
Archaeological context	Unknown provenance. The Princeton papyri were acquired from different sources: 90 papyri via distributions by the Egypt Exploration Fund in 1901/1907/1914-15/1922; most others via joint purchases by the consortium (Michigan, Cornell, Princeton, Los Angeles in conjunction with the British Museum and Geneva) from 1921 to 1928, arranged by Francis W. Kelsey; and a group of ~750 papyri via philanthropist Robert Garrett.
Accession number	Princeton, University Library AM 8957

BIBLIOGRAPHY

Editio princeps
• Harris Kase, Edmund. 1936. Papyri in the Princeton University Collections. Vol. II. Princeton: Princeton University Press. 98-99, No. 102.
Additional bibliography
• –––. 2005. “VII. Letters Dates III / IV. B. With Other Decisive Indications of Christian Identity.” Papyri from the Rise of Christianity in Egypt: Draft Conspectus. (PCE.VII.B). Macquarie University. 7, No. 85. [http://www.mq.edu.au/pubstatic/public/download/%3Fid%3D45105&usg=AOvVaw2xqK_R6N3vQdQpC4Mq_iMD]
• Chapa, Juan. 1998. Letters of Condolence in Greek Papyri. Papyrologica Florentina (Pap.Flor.) XXIX. Firenze: Edizioni Gonnelli. 131-137, No. 10.
• Choat, Malcolm. 2006. Belief and Cult in Fourth-Century Papyri. Studia Antiqua Australiensia 1. Turnhout: Brepols. 74, 77n326.
• Gonis, Nikolaos. 2004. “Review of: Berichtigungsliste der griechischen Papyrusurkunden aus Ägypten. Elfter Band.” Bulletin of the American Society of Papyrologists (BASP) 41. 181-188: 184.
• Naldini, Mario. 1968. Il Cristianesimo in Egitto. Lettere private nei papiri dei secoli II-IV. Firenze: Le Monnier. 166-168, No. 34.
• Skeat, Theodore Cressy. 1937. “Bibliography: Graeco-Roman Egypt Part I: Papyrology (1936).” Journal of Egyptian Archaeology (JEA) 23. 83-106: 89.
• Wilcken, Ulrich. 1937. “Urkunden-Referat.” Archiv für Papyrusforschung (AfP) 12. 218-247: 233.

Authors

Victoria G. D. Landau, 2023

Suggested citation

Victoria G. D. Landau, 2023, "Artefact ID 1681", 4CARE database - Fourth-Century Christian Archaeological Record of Egypt, https://4care-skos.mf.no/artefacts/1681

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External links

TM 32798 DDbDP (PN) HGV Digital PUL – Princeton Papyri Collections Princeton University Library – Catalog

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