DOI issue:
Sudan
DOI article:Łajtar, Adam: Banganarti 2006: the inscriptions
DOI Page / Citation link:https://doi.org/10.11588/diglit.42092#0403
BANGANARTI
SUDAN
of an inscription on the southern face of the
same, fourth support counting from the
south, perpendicular to the present text, in
which he is designated, among others, as
νοτάριος ζητών (for this person, see
above). Judging from the latter inscrip-
tion, he was an exceptional figure, which
explains why he was remembered by his
contemporaries. Another unusual trait of
the inscription discussed here is that its
author uses the word χαράσσω = “to carve”
instead of the stereotypical γράφω to
describe the process of leaving a written
record from a visit to the church.7 He also
gives quite a precise date of his visit to the
church, using three chronological in-
dications: weekday, day of the lunar
month, and month of the civil calendar.
Such a precise dating is paralleled in the
Banganarti material only by the inscrip-
tion of a certain Teeita situated on the east
wall of Room 19, on the first layer of
plaster, which suggests that it is more or
less contemporary with the discussed
inscription, both of them predating the
final remodeling of the church in or shortly
after AD 1280 (Lajtar 2005: 311-312 with
Fig. 2; 2008: 327-328).
Fig. 2. Inscription of the notario from the western portico of the Upper Church in Banganarti
(Tracing A. Lajtar)
7 As far as I can see, this is the first attestation of the word χαράσσω with relation to Christian Nubia.
400
SUDAN
of an inscription on the southern face of the
same, fourth support counting from the
south, perpendicular to the present text, in
which he is designated, among others, as
νοτάριος ζητών (for this person, see
above). Judging from the latter inscrip-
tion, he was an exceptional figure, which
explains why he was remembered by his
contemporaries. Another unusual trait of
the inscription discussed here is that its
author uses the word χαράσσω = “to carve”
instead of the stereotypical γράφω to
describe the process of leaving a written
record from a visit to the church.7 He also
gives quite a precise date of his visit to the
church, using three chronological in-
dications: weekday, day of the lunar
month, and month of the civil calendar.
Such a precise dating is paralleled in the
Banganarti material only by the inscrip-
tion of a certain Teeita situated on the east
wall of Room 19, on the first layer of
plaster, which suggests that it is more or
less contemporary with the discussed
inscription, both of them predating the
final remodeling of the church in or shortly
after AD 1280 (Lajtar 2005: 311-312 with
Fig. 2; 2008: 327-328).
Fig. 2. Inscription of the notario from the western portico of the Upper Church in Banganarti
(Tracing A. Lajtar)
7 As far as I can see, this is the first attestation of the word χαράσσω with relation to Christian Nubia.
400