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The Oxyrhynchus Papyri, Vol. 2, edited by Bernard P. Grenfell and Arthur S. Hunt (London: Egypt Exploration Fund, 1899)
Private contracts and letters: Nos. 268-282 [AD 17-95] [1] [2]
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No. 268. Repayment of a
Dowry. 29.3 x 38.8 cm.
AD 58.
Contract by which a woman Ammonarion and her daughter Ophelous agree to
accept from Antiphanes, a relative of Ammonarion's deceased husband
Heraclas, a certain sum of money, in lieu of Ammonarion's dowry and of
(p.248) Ophelous' share of her father's property. Ammonarion was
entitled on the death of her husband to the repayment of her dowry ;
and Ophelous was one of her father's heirs. By the present agreement
Antiphanes, who probably also inherited under the will of Heraclas,
effects a composition on account of both these claims against Heraclas'
estate. The relation of Antiphanes to Heraclas is not certain ;
probably he was a nephew (cf. note on 8). The contract is addressed to
the archidikastes.
A clause, making a reservation for Antiphanes, which had been omitted, is
inserted in the left-hand margin.
translation from Greek:
"Copy. To Theon, chief justice and superintendent of the chrematistae
and the other courts, from Ammonarion, daughter of Ammonius, son of
Dionysius, and however else she is described at Ptolemais Hermiu, and
from her daughter Ophelous, whose father is Heraclas, of Oxyrhynchus,
the two women acting with their guardian, the half brother of
Ammonarion on the mother's side, Besarion, son of Heras, and however
else he is described at Ptolemais, and from . . . Antiphanes, son of
Ammonius, of the said city of Oxyrhynchus. We agree with each other as
follows :—Ammonarion and Ophelous have given their consent and have
received from Antiphanes from hand to hand in cash the sum which they
severally consented to accept, Ammonarion, on account of the dowry,
amounting to 800 silver drachmae, which she brought to her late
husband, the brother of Antiphanes' father and the father of Ophelous,
Heraclas, son of Antiphanes, of the same city of Oxyrhynchus, in
accordance with a settlement completed some time ago through the
daybook, and Ophelous on her part resigns to Antiphanes her share of
all the property left by her late father Heraclas. The said agreement
of marriage is void, and neither Ammonarion nor Ophelous nor any one
acting on their behalf has any further claim against Antiphanes or
against the property left by Heraclas, Ammonarion on account of the
refunded dowry, and Ophelous on account of the resigned inheritance, as
is aforesaid; and neither of them has any claim respecting any other
matter whatever written or unwritten of past date down to the present
day, and any claim that is made shall be void and inadmissible. The
above agreement has no . . ., for which we make due petition."
Date.
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No. 269.
Loan of Money. 20.5 X 33 cm.
AD 57.
Copy of acknowledgement of a loan of 52 silver drachmae for a term of
rather more than three months from Tryphon, son of Dionysius (cf.
introd. to cclxvii), to Dioscorus. The copy of this agreement is
followed by a short letter from Tryphon to a friend named Ammonas, who
is requested to dun Dioscorus for payment of the debt. The agreement is
thus an enclosure in Tryphon's letter, and was sent to Ammonas in order
to acquaint him with the conditions of the loan.
translation from Greek:
I. "Copy. Dioscorus, son of Zenodorus, Persians of the Epigone, to
Tryphon, son of Dionysius, greeting. I acknowledge the receipt from you
at the Serapeum at Oxyrhynchus through the bank of Archibius, son of
Archibius, of the sum of 52 silver drachmae of the Imperial coinage,
which is the total amount of my debt. I will repay you on the 30th of
the month Caesareus of the current 3rd year of Nero Claudius Caesar
Augustus Germanicus (p.252) Imperator, without any delay. If I do not
repay you in accordance with this agreement, I will forfeit to you the
aforesaid sum with the addition of one half, with proper interest for
the overtime, for which you are to have the right of execution upon me
and upon all my property, as if in accordance with a legal decision.
This note of hand is valid wherever produced and whosoever produces
it."
Date, copy of the signature of the borrower, and copy of the docket of the bank through which the payment was made.
II. "Tryphon to his dear friend Ammonas, also called Macer (?),
greeting. If you can, please worry Dioscorus and exact from him his
bond. If he gives you the money, give him a receipt, and if you find a
safe person give him the money to bring to me. My salutations to all
your household. Good-bye."
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No. 273.
Cession of Land. 13.8 x 11 cm.
AD 95.
Agreement between Julia Heracla, acting with her specially appointed
guardian Lucius Ofilius, and Theon, son of Nicippus (cf. cclxxi. 3), by the terms
of which Julia cedes to her daughter Gaia, as a free gift, five arourae of catoecic
land. Probably Theon was the husband, actual or prospective, of Gaia, who
is stated to have been under age ; and the agreement is parallel to those clauses
in marriage contracts (e.g. cclxv. 4 sqq., C. P. R. 22. 9 sqq.) in which the
parents of the bride settle property upon her.
translation from Greek:
(p.259)
"The 14th year of the Emperor Caesar Domitianus Augustus
Germanicus, the 30th of the month Payni, at Oxyrhynchus in the Thebaid.
Julia Heracla, acting with the guardian assigned to 'her by the
(instructions) issued by Gaius Septimius Vegetus, the late praefect, in
accordance with the letter which he wrote, namely Lucius Ofilius, son
of Lucius . . . , son of Antistius, agrees with Theon, son of Nicippus,
son of Nicippus, of the Phylaxithalassean or Althean deme (the contract
being executed in the street), that she has ceded to her daughter Gaia
also called Sarapias, daughter of Pausanias also called Dionysius, son
of Astyanax, of the Phylaxithalassean or Heraclean deme, being under
age, from the present time henceforth for ever by an unalterable deed
of gift, out of the fifteen arourae owned by her near Seryphis in the
western toparchy in the lot of Nicandrus, five arourae of catoecic land
to be selected at will from the whole amount, which land Gaia also
called Sarapias shall from the date of this contract be permitted to
transfer by herself to another through the official assignments,
without requiring the consent of her mother Julia Heracla to the
transfer. Gaia also called Sarapias shall therefore possess and own the
land with her children and heirs ..."
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No.
275. Contract of
Apprenticeship. 37.9 x 9.7
cm. AD 66.
Agreement by which Tryphon, son of Dionysius (cf. introd. to cclxvii),
apprenticed his son Thoonis to a weaver named Ptolemaeus for the term
of one year. Weaving was the trade of Tryphon's family, cf. cclxxxviii.
The main conditions of the contract are that Thoonis' expenses should
in the first instance be borne by his father, but that Ptolemaeus
should pay Tryphon an allowance of 5 drachmae a month for food and 12
drachmae at the end of the year for clothing ; that Thoonis should
serve his full year, and should make up at the end of it any days which
he had missed ; and that Ptolemaeus should instruct his apprentice to
the best of his ability. Money penalties are imposed on failure to
fulfil these terms.
translation from Greek:
(p.264)
"Agreement between Tryphon, son of Dionysius, son of Tryphon,
his mother being Thamounis, daughter of Onnophris, and Ptolemaeus,
weaver, son of Pausirion, son of Ptolemaeus, his mother being Ophelous,
daughter of Theon, both parties being inhabitants of the city of
Oxyrhynchus. Tryphon agrees that he has apprenticed to Ptolemaeus his
son Thoonis, whose mother is Saraeus, daughter of Apion, and who is not
yet of age, for a term of one year from this day, to serve and to
perform all the orders given him by Ptolemaeus in respect of his
weaver's art in all its branches of which Ptolemaeus has knowledge. The
boy is to be fed and clothed during the whole period by his father
Tryphon, who is also to be responsible for all the taxes upon him, on
condition of a monthly payment to himself by Ptolemaeus of 5 drachmae
on account of victuals, and at the termination of the whole period of a
payment of 12 drachmae on account of clothing. Tryphon is not to have
the power of taking away his son from Ptolemaeus until the completion
of the period; and if there are any days on which the boy fails to
attend, Tryphon shall produce him for an equivalent number of days
after the period is over, or shall forfeit for each day 1 drachma of
silver. The penalty for taking him away within the period shall be 100
drachmae, and an equal sum to the treasury. If Ptolemaeus fails to
instruct the boy thoroughly he is to be liable to the same penalties.
This contract of apprenticeship is valid.' Date, and signature of
Ptolemaeus."
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No.
278. Hire of a
Mill. 34.4 x 11.9 cm
AD 17.
Lease of a mill by Isidorus to Heracleus, son of Soterichus (cf. cccv),
for seven months, at the rent of 2 drachmae 3 obols a
month.
translation from Greek:
"Isidorus, son of Isidorus, has leased to Heracleus, son of Soterichus,
a Persian of the Epigone, from the mills, which he possesses one
perfect Theban mill from the present month Mecheir until the 5th
intercalary day of Mesore of the present third year of Tiberius Caesar
Augustus, at the rent agreed upon by the two parties for the aforesaid
mill, namely 2 drachmae 3 obols of silver a month [1]. The lessee shall
pay to Isidorus the monthly rent of the mill without any delay. The
mill and the rent are guaranteed against all risks, and at the end of
the time the servant shall restore the mill safe and uninjured in the
condition in which he received it, at whatever spot in Oxyrhynchus
Isidorus may require, or shall pay its value as agreed upon, namely,
100 drachmae of silver, and for every month that he fails to return it,
i| times the rent; Isidorus having the right of execution upon both the
person and all the property of the lessee, as by a judicial decision.
This lease is valid wheresoever produced." Date, and signature of
Heracleus written for him by Dionysius.
Note:
1. Not that there were silver coins having the value of an obol at this
period ; for the obol was, at any rate after the reign of Ptolemy Soter
(cf. Rev. Pap. p. 218),
always a copper coin. But in adding up the installments of the rent the
3 obols were to be calculated as worth half a silver drachma, though
(p.269) a silver drachma in the Roman period exchanged for seven obols
on the average, not six.
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No.
280. Lease of Land. 14.5 X
10.3 cm. AD 88-9.
Lease
of 5 arourae of land for four years from Dionysius, son of Dionysius,
to Dionysius, son of Harpocration, at the rent of 17 bushels of wheat.
For the first three years any crops might be sown except woad (10-dm) ;
in the last year half of the land was to be sown with wheat, half with
beans (dpokos). In the event of a failure of the inundation in any of
the years, that year was not to be counted in the lease ; cf. note on
.5.
translation from Greek:
"Dionysius, son of Dionysius, son of Pausirion, of Oxyrhynchus, has
leased to Dionysius, son of Harpocration, son of Sarapion, of the same
city, a Persian of the Epigone, for four vears and four inundations,
beginning with the present eighth year of the Emperor Caesar Domitianus
Augustus Germanicus, the land belonging to him situated near Tychis
Nechotis in the middle basin [1], and previously held in gift [2] by
Artemidorus, his share, namely 5 arourae, on condition that during the
first three years the lessee may sow and plant the land with whatever
crops he chooses, woad excepted, and in the last year he shall sow half
the land with wheat, and plant the other half with beans, of which half
shall be ploughed while the other half is cut, at the fixed rent of 17
artabae of wheat guaranteed for each year appointed against all risks,
an allowance being made to the lessee . . ."
Notes:
1. Here used for a space surrounded by mounds, not for a mound or embankment itself.
2. On land "held in gift" see Rev.Pap. p. 137. Land and even villages were assigned by the Ptolemies to court favourites.
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No. 281.
Complaint against a Husband. 18.1 X 9.3
cm. AD 20-50.
Petition addressed to the archidikastes by a woman who had been
deserted by her husband, and who wished to recover the dowry which she
had brought him on her marriage. Cf. introd. to cclxvi and cclxxxii.
This papyrus was found with cclxxxiii, ccxciv, and a number of other
documents dated in the reigns of Tiberius, Gaius, and Claudius, and
belongs to the same period.
translation from Greek:
(p.272)
"To Heraclides, priest, chief justice, superintendent of the
chrematistae and the other courts, from Syra, daughter of Theon. 1
married Sarapion, bringing him by cession a dowry amounting to 200
drachmae of silver. As he was destitute of means I received him into my
parents' house, and I for my part conducted myself blamelessly in all
respects. But Sarapion, having squandered my dowry as he pleased,
continually ill-treated and insulted me, using violence towards me, and
depriving me of the necessaries of life ; finally he deserted me
leaving me in a state of destitution. I therefore beg you to order him
to be brought before you, in order that he may be compelled perforce to
pay back my dowry increased by half its amount. This petition is
without prejudice to any other claims which I have or may have against
him."
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No. 282.
Complaint against a Wife. Plate VII. 17.5 x 9.7
cm. AD 30-35.
Petition to the strategus from Tryphon, son of Dionysius, complaining
that his wife Demetrous had left him and carried off various articles
belonging to him. A list of the stolen property was added, but this is
lost. (p,273) Demetrous was the first wife of Tryphon (cf. introd. to
cclxvii), who married Saraeus in A. D. 36. The date of this papyrus,
which is written in a large uncial hand, can therefore be placed with
some certainty between the years 30 and 35.
translation from Greek:
"To Alexandrus, strategus, from Tryphon, son of Dionysius, of the city
of Oxyrhynchus. I married Demetrous, daughter of Heraclides, and I for
my part provided for my wife in a manner that exceeded my resources.
But she became dissatisfied with our union, and finally left the house
carrying off property belonging to me a list of which is added below
[1]. I beg, therefore, that she be brought before you in order that she
may receive her deserts, and return to me my property. This petition is
without prejudice to the other claims which I have or may have against
her. The stolen articles are : .... a . . . worth 40 drachmae . . ."
Notes:
1. The plural indicates that Demetrous had an accomplice; very likely
her mother was concerned, cf. cccxv, another petition against
Demetrous, written two years later.
Footnotes:
1. [Editor's Note:] The original textual commentaries and notes provided by Grenfell and Hunt on
passages in Greek, and on some bibliographic references, have
frequently been abbreviated or omitted, if not essential to
understanding the content of the papyri documents. Any such omissions
are marked with "....", and any added words needed for clarity are
placed between brackets [ ]. These elisions are separate from those
used by Grenfell and Hunt in the translated text, which have not been
altered.
2. [Editor's Note:] References to all other papyri from the Oxyrhynchus
collections are given with their sequential number as "No. xx".
Abbreviations to other papyri collections and standard historical
references used by Grenfell and Hunt include the following:
Archiv.= Archiv fur Papyrusforschung.
B.G.U. = Aeg. Urkunden aus den K. Museum zu Berlin, Griechische Urkunden.
C.I.G. = Corpus Inscriptionum Graecarum
C.I.L. = Corpus Inscriptionum Latinarum
Cod. Just.= Codex Justianus
Cod. Theod.= Codex Theodosianus
C.P.R. = Corpus Papyrorum Raineri, by C. Wessely.
Marcellinus =The late Roman historian Ammianus Marcellinus.
P. Amh. = The Amherst Papyri (Greek), Vols. I-II, by B.P.Grenfell and A.S.Hunt.
P. Brit.Mus. = Greek papyri in the British Museum, vol.I-II by F.G. Kenyon.
P. Cairo = Catalog of the Greek Papyri in the Cairo Museum,by Grenfell & Hunt.
P.
Grenf. = Greek Papyri, Ser. 1 by B.P. Grenfell, and Ser. II by Grenfell and Hunt
P. Hibeh = The Hibeh Papyri by B.P Grenfell and A.S. Hunt
P. Leipzig = Griechische Urkunden der Papyrussammlung zu Leipzig by I Mitteis.
P. Leyden = Papyri Graeci Musei Antiquarii Lugduni-Batavi, by C. Leemans.
P. Tebt. = The Tebtunis Papyri, by B.P. Grenfell, A.S. Hunt, et al.
Perseus = the satirical ancient Roman playwright Perseus.
Wilcken, Ost. = Griechische Ostraka, by U. Wilcken.
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