1.186. Honours for Aurelia Apphia daughter of Epiktetos
- Description:
- White marble statue base shaft, with moulded panels on all four sides, the moulding extensively damaged, broken at the back (W. 0.52 × H. 1.24 × D. 0.49). There is a clamp-hole on the top, and a groove down the left side.
- Text:
- Inscribed on the front panel (die, W. 0.35 × H. 1.075). The text must have begun on a crowning feature, now lost.
- Letters:
- 0.025; ligatures ΤΗΝ, l.7; ΗΝ, l.9; ΤΗ, l.12. apices on first Ι, l.7, second Ε, l.11.
- Date:
- Third century A.D. (nomenclature).
- Findspot:
- Temple/Church: re-used in the north side of the chancel-barrier rail, at east end.
- Original Location:
- Unknown
- Last recorded location:
- Findspot (1994)
- History of discovery:
- Excavated by the NYU expedition (Temple 14; SBI 92).
- Bibliography:
- Unpublished.
- Text constituted from:
- Transcription (Reynolds). This edition Reynolds (2007).
- 0[?ἡ βουλὴ καὶ ὁ δῆμος ἐτείμησαν]
- 1 vv. Αὐρηλίαν vv.
- 2 Ἀπφίαν Ἐπικτή -
- 3του τοῦ Τειθω - v.
- 4 νου τοῦ Ἑρμογέ -
- 5νους τοῦ Ζήνω -
- 6νος Γανυμή -
- 7δους τὴν ἱέρειαν
- 8 τῆς Ἀρτέμιδος
- 9 ἐπὶ τῇ περὶ τὴν
- 10 θεὸν ἐξαιρέτῳ
- 11 θρησκείᾳ καὶ ἐ -
- 12 πὶ τῇ τοῦ βίου σε -
- 13μνῇ τε καὶ ἀγα -
- 14θῃ προαιρέσει
- 14a vacat
- 0[·····························]
- 1 ΑΥΡΗΛΙΑΝ
- 2ΑΠΦΙΑΝΕΠΙΚΤΗ
- 3ΤΟΥΤΟΥΤΕΙΘΩ
- 4ΝΟΥΤΟΥΕΡΜΟΓΕ
- 5ΝΟΥΣΤΟΥΖΗΝΩ
- 6ΝΟΣΓΑΝΥΜΗ
- 7ΔΟΥΣΤΗΝΙΕΡΕΙΑΝ
- 8ΤΗΣΑΡΤΕΜΙΔΟΣ
- 9ΕΠΙΤΗΠΕΡΙΤΗΝ
- 10ΘΕΟΝΕΞΑΙΡΕΤΩ
- 11ΘΡΗΣΚΕΙΑΚΑΙΕ
- 12ΠΙΤΗΤΟΥΒΙΟΥΣΕ
- 13ΜΝΗΤΕΚΑΙΑΓΑ
- 14ΘΗΠΡΟΑΙΡΕΣΕΙ
- 14a vacat
Apparatus
The first line must have been cut on an upper moulding.
Translation:
[?The council and the people honoured] Aurelia Apphia daughter of Epiktetos ?Ganymedes son of Teuthonos son of Hermogenes son of Zenon, priestess of Artemis, for her outstanding conduct of the cult and for the ?distinguished and good way of life.
Commentary:
The layout of the text, which leaves a large area of the inscribed panel vacant, suggests that the base was not originally designed for this text and that the cutter was not a very skilful workman (although his letters are quite well-designed his detailed spacing is uneven).
We can only guess at the description of those who conferred the honour, but what is proposed is likely enough. There may also have been some statement of the type of honours conferred (e.g. great, greatest, first) taking up a second line on the moulding.
The honourand belonged to a family which in all probability only received Roman citizenship in the third century A.D., clearly as a result of the Edict of Caracalla (211/2); but it appears that this is true of a number of comparatively important Aphrodisians. Although several of the names borne by her ancestors are common enough in the city, none can be identified at present. It appears that she belonged to the first generation of Roman citizens in her family, so that the date should be comparatively soon after 211/2.
An important cult of Artemis at Aphrodisias is also attested in 12.609 where the eminence of the priestess (another Apphia but that is a very common name) is clear since she was also a high priestess of the imperial cult.
Photographs:
- Face (1976)
-
- Top (1994)
-
- Left side (1994)
-
You may download this inscription in EpiDoc XML. (You may need the EpiDoc DTD v. 5 to validate this file.)