Get Social With Us

4CARE-ARTEFACTS

ARTEFACT IDENTIFIERS

Artefact ID1333
TM IDTM 120657
Findspot (DEChriM ID)3   (Maʿbad Hībis)
ClassTextual
MaterialPlaster
Writing mediumDipinto
Text contentSubliterary
LanguageGreek
Description

I.Temple Hibis 34:

At the entrance of the church, the inscription is carefully painted in yellow ocher on thin whitewash, in large and well-formed letters with thin strokes (average 4.5 cm. in height; with extremes reaching 5.5 and 3.5 cm.). The text reads: "God of Abraham, Isak and Iakob" (reminiscence of Old Testament), with an initial Greek cross and nomen sacrum.

Selection criteriaChristian terms/formulas/concepts, Christian symbols/gestures/isopsephy, Nomina sacra, Biblical quote or paraphrase
Date from350
Date to450
Dating criteria

The location, careful painting and content suggest that the text was painted during the early times of use of the church (Wagner 1987: 361).

Absolute/relative dateRelative date
Archaeological context

Dipinto on the east wall of the temple (exterior) immediately below the torus molding of cornice – i.e. about 2 m. above the roof line of the Christian church.

Accession number

Hibis temple, in situ.

BIBLIOGRAPHY

New edition

• Cruz-Uribe, Eugene. 2008. Hibis Temple Project. Volume 3, The graffiti from the Temple Precinct. San Antonio, Texas. no. 165. 

Editio princeps

• White, H.G. Evelyn and Oliver, James H. 1938. The Temple of Hibis in el-Khargeh Oasis. Vol. II: Greek Inscriptions. New York, no. 34.

Additional bibliography

• Chaniotis, A., Corsten, T., Stroud, R.S. and Tybout, R.A. 2008. “SEG 58-1813. Khargeh Oasis. Hibis. Collection of inscriptions.” In Supplementum Epigraphicum Graecum, Current editors: A. T. E. N. Chaniotis Corsten Stavrianopolou Papazarkadas. Consulted online on 20 July 2021.

• Wagner, Guy. 1987. Les oasis d'Égypte. Cairo, p. 361, n. 1.

Authors
Valérie Schram, 2021
Suggested citation
Valérie Schram, 2021, "Artefact ID 1333", 4CARE database - Fourth-Century Christian Archaeological Record of Egypt, https://4care-skos.mf.no/artefacts/1333
External links
Gallery