DOI Seite / Zitierlink:
https://doi.org/10.11588/diglit.1034#0040
I
THE GREEK PAPYRI.
35
" [Seventh day] : ... [5 dr. J ob.]; the cloak-bearer,
4 dr. ; collecting the donkeys, 4 dr. ; meat, 1 dr. 1 ob.;
fish, 1 dr. 1 ob. ; a sheep's head, \ ob. ; lentils, 2 ob. ;
salad, 1 ob. ; lard, 1 ob. ; oil, 3 ob. ; in all, 16 dr.
4 ob.
" Eighth day: meat, 1 dr. 1 ob.; fish, 1 dr. I ob.;
salt fish, 2 ob. ; fuel, 2 ob. ; beans, \ ob. ; oil, 3 ob.;
lentils, 3 ob. . . .
[In a different handwriting] : " Fourteenth day:
. . ., 1 ob. ; oil, 3 ob. ; lentils, 2 ob. ; fuel, 2 ob. ; a
sheep's head, 1 ob. ; in all, ij dr. ... wine, 3 dr.
1 ob. ; lentils, 2 ob.; fuel, 2 ob. ; oil, 3 ob.; 2 ob. . . .
" Fifteenth day: for the day's expenses, \ dr.;
lentils, 2 ob.; fuel, 2 ob. : bread, I ob. In all, 1 dr.
4 ob.
" Sixteenth day : a donkey, 1 dr. 1 ob. ; lentils, 2
ob.; bread, 1 ob.; beet-root, \ ob.; fuel, 2 ob.; rice (?),
5 ob.; in all, 2 dr. 5J ob.
" Seventeenth day: a donkey, 3 ob. ; rice, 4 ob. ;
lentils, 1 ob. ; bread, 1 ob.; fuel, 2 ob. ; oil, 3 ob.; a
garland, 2 ob.; in all, 2 dr. 4 ob.
" Eighteenth day : fuel, 2 ob. ; food, 2 ob. ; bread,
1 ob. ; oil, 3 ob. ; in all, 1 dr. 2 ob."
The account has been rendered by the cook or
steward of some superintendent of the tax-gatherers,
from whom he had received at the outset 35 drachma.
The two handwritings in which the accounts have
been kept do not imply a change of purveyors, but
only that two different public scribes or friends had
been employed in noting down the current expendi-
ture of each day. It would seem that on the third
day the purveyor tried to cheat his master out of an
obol, an attempt not unfrequently made even in these
modern times. In fact, the whole document comes
home with peculiar force to any one who has lived on
board a dahabiah without a dragoman. The cook,
under such circumstances, is accustomed to receive a
certain sum of money on account, and out of this to
purchase what is necessary until it is expended, when
he submits his accounts and receives a fresh sum of
money. Each item of expenditure is duly set down,
usually by some friend who is skilful in arithmetic, and
at the end of each day the various items are added
tocether. We have only to change the Greek into
Arabic, and the papyrus might easily be a page from
the book of a modern Egyptian housekeeper. Even
the articles bought are much the same as those which
would appear in a similar account-book to-day. In-
stead of reeds, it is true, charcoal or the dry stalks of
the sugar-cane would be entered under the head of
fuel, and perhaps the " garland " or nosegay would be
omitted, but otherwise the ancient and modern lists
would bear a striking resemblance to one another.
The donkey, however, would receive one name only,
and not two ; what difference may be intended be-
tween 6νος and the rarer κίλλος (written κείλος) it is
difficult to determine. (The usage suggests that ουος
may be a saddle-ass for riding, and κίΧΧος a donkey
for baggage or farm stuff".—F. P.)
49. Dr Wilcken has shown that in the Roman age
the nome and capital of the Fayum were divided into
three parts, called after the names of the Greeks
Herakleides, Themistes and Polemon. It is possible
that the latter name is to be recognised under the
corrupt form of Polomos in No. 166, line 6. At all
events reference is here made to a village in the vicinity
of the capital Arsinoe, which probably bore the name
of Magdolos or Magdolion. We hear of another
village in No. 116, named that of Philogrides.
The capital itself was divided into quarters, one of
which, we learn from No. 223, was termed Marasza
the quarters again being subdivided into streets. At
the northern end was the great temple, where, as we
are informed by No. 196, there stood the sacred image
of a hawk, the symbol of Hofos, protected by guardian
priests. The special object of worship, however, to
the inhabitants of the Fayum was the crocodile-god
Sebek, called Sukhos by the Greeks, and one of the
fragments of papyri in Mr Petrie's collection (No. 71)
makes mention of " Bakhis the priestess of Sukhos."
In one part of the city were salt-pans, such as still
exist among the mounds of the ancient ArsinoS, and
the streets were full of busy artisans, among whom
we may include cooks. The population was doubtless
mainly " Macedonian" or Greek, but we find from
Mr Petrie's papyri that there were individuals in it
who traced their descent from a Persian family, while
the fellahin who worked in the neighbouring fields
were, of course, native Egyptians.
Accounts were kept in silver drachms, obols, and
copper drachmae. Thanks to the labours of Wilcken,
Revillout, and Wessely, we now know that, while 6
obols went to the silver drachma, the obol itself was
worth 120 copper drachmae, at all events in Ptolemaic
times. In the Roman age a discount was taken off
what was called " dirty " silver (apyvpiov ρνπαρόν), the
ostraka of the period of the Antonines being par-
ticularly frequent in their mention of it. The symbols
employed to denote the various kinds of currency are
numerous, and at present but imperfectly determined.
The most common of these, that which denotes the
silver drachma and has the form of an S, has been
considered by M. Revillout to represent the half-
drachma in the papyri ; but on the ostraka it signifies
THE GREEK PAPYRI.
35
" [Seventh day] : ... [5 dr. J ob.]; the cloak-bearer,
4 dr. ; collecting the donkeys, 4 dr. ; meat, 1 dr. 1 ob.;
fish, 1 dr. 1 ob. ; a sheep's head, \ ob. ; lentils, 2 ob. ;
salad, 1 ob. ; lard, 1 ob. ; oil, 3 ob. ; in all, 16 dr.
4 ob.
" Eighth day: meat, 1 dr. 1 ob.; fish, 1 dr. I ob.;
salt fish, 2 ob. ; fuel, 2 ob. ; beans, \ ob. ; oil, 3 ob.;
lentils, 3 ob. . . .
[In a different handwriting] : " Fourteenth day:
. . ., 1 ob. ; oil, 3 ob. ; lentils, 2 ob. ; fuel, 2 ob. ; a
sheep's head, 1 ob. ; in all, ij dr. ... wine, 3 dr.
1 ob. ; lentils, 2 ob.; fuel, 2 ob. ; oil, 3 ob.; 2 ob. . . .
" Fifteenth day: for the day's expenses, \ dr.;
lentils, 2 ob.; fuel, 2 ob. : bread, I ob. In all, 1 dr.
4 ob.
" Sixteenth day : a donkey, 1 dr. 1 ob. ; lentils, 2
ob.; bread, 1 ob.; beet-root, \ ob.; fuel, 2 ob.; rice (?),
5 ob.; in all, 2 dr. 5J ob.
" Seventeenth day: a donkey, 3 ob. ; rice, 4 ob. ;
lentils, 1 ob. ; bread, 1 ob.; fuel, 2 ob. ; oil, 3 ob.; a
garland, 2 ob.; in all, 2 dr. 4 ob.
" Eighteenth day : fuel, 2 ob. ; food, 2 ob. ; bread,
1 ob. ; oil, 3 ob. ; in all, 1 dr. 2 ob."
The account has been rendered by the cook or
steward of some superintendent of the tax-gatherers,
from whom he had received at the outset 35 drachma.
The two handwritings in which the accounts have
been kept do not imply a change of purveyors, but
only that two different public scribes or friends had
been employed in noting down the current expendi-
ture of each day. It would seem that on the third
day the purveyor tried to cheat his master out of an
obol, an attempt not unfrequently made even in these
modern times. In fact, the whole document comes
home with peculiar force to any one who has lived on
board a dahabiah without a dragoman. The cook,
under such circumstances, is accustomed to receive a
certain sum of money on account, and out of this to
purchase what is necessary until it is expended, when
he submits his accounts and receives a fresh sum of
money. Each item of expenditure is duly set down,
usually by some friend who is skilful in arithmetic, and
at the end of each day the various items are added
tocether. We have only to change the Greek into
Arabic, and the papyrus might easily be a page from
the book of a modern Egyptian housekeeper. Even
the articles bought are much the same as those which
would appear in a similar account-book to-day. In-
stead of reeds, it is true, charcoal or the dry stalks of
the sugar-cane would be entered under the head of
fuel, and perhaps the " garland " or nosegay would be
omitted, but otherwise the ancient and modern lists
would bear a striking resemblance to one another.
The donkey, however, would receive one name only,
and not two ; what difference may be intended be-
tween 6νος and the rarer κίλλος (written κείλος) it is
difficult to determine. (The usage suggests that ουος
may be a saddle-ass for riding, and κίΧΧος a donkey
for baggage or farm stuff".—F. P.)
49. Dr Wilcken has shown that in the Roman age
the nome and capital of the Fayum were divided into
three parts, called after the names of the Greeks
Herakleides, Themistes and Polemon. It is possible
that the latter name is to be recognised under the
corrupt form of Polomos in No. 166, line 6. At all
events reference is here made to a village in the vicinity
of the capital Arsinoe, which probably bore the name
of Magdolos or Magdolion. We hear of another
village in No. 116, named that of Philogrides.
The capital itself was divided into quarters, one of
which, we learn from No. 223, was termed Marasza
the quarters again being subdivided into streets. At
the northern end was the great temple, where, as we
are informed by No. 196, there stood the sacred image
of a hawk, the symbol of Hofos, protected by guardian
priests. The special object of worship, however, to
the inhabitants of the Fayum was the crocodile-god
Sebek, called Sukhos by the Greeks, and one of the
fragments of papyri in Mr Petrie's collection (No. 71)
makes mention of " Bakhis the priestess of Sukhos."
In one part of the city were salt-pans, such as still
exist among the mounds of the ancient ArsinoS, and
the streets were full of busy artisans, among whom
we may include cooks. The population was doubtless
mainly " Macedonian" or Greek, but we find from
Mr Petrie's papyri that there were individuals in it
who traced their descent from a Persian family, while
the fellahin who worked in the neighbouring fields
were, of course, native Egyptians.
Accounts were kept in silver drachms, obols, and
copper drachmae. Thanks to the labours of Wilcken,
Revillout, and Wessely, we now know that, while 6
obols went to the silver drachma, the obol itself was
worth 120 copper drachmae, at all events in Ptolemaic
times. In the Roman age a discount was taken off
what was called " dirty " silver (apyvpiov ρνπαρόν), the
ostraka of the period of the Antonines being par-
ticularly frequent in their mention of it. The symbols
employed to denote the various kinds of currency are
numerous, and at present but imperfectly determined.
The most common of these, that which denotes the
silver drachma and has the form of an S, has been
considered by M. Revillout to represent the half-
drachma in the papyri ; but on the ostraka it signifies