SSCN Voumes 1-10, 1994-2004

St. Shenouda Coptic Newsletter

Translation: + In the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Ghost. On this day which is the eighth of Pharmuthi of the eighth year. I, Maria, the daughter of the late Martha, in the Kastron of Jeme, I write to Severos(?), the son...of this same kastron of Hermonthis. [I] requested from you, you gave me three holokottinos and a trimesion of gold, saying that I should pay them to you as linen(tax) in Thoth. I shall not pay them to you as linen (tax) in Thoth; I shall give a “dove” of gold to you as the holokottinos each year, and I shall mortgage to you my portion of the house in which I live, which is the half of that house on the street of Daveid the old. You shall become master of it until I satisfy you up to the limit of your security. I, Maria, she who has been mentioned above, I sign this asphaleia and everything written therein. + I, Onorios, the son of the late Lalhev, I am witness. I, Iohannes, the son of Kam(ul), I am witness. I, Zacharias, the humble archpriest, Maria asked me, I wrote this asphaleia in my hand, I am witness. + B. Greek: 1. Marriage Contract (non-Christian?): P.Oxy. 1273, AD. 260. Ref: SP vol.1 No. 5, pp. 16-23. Translation: For good fortune. Aurelia Thaesis daughter of Eudaemon and of Herais, of Oxyrhynchus, acting with Aurelius Theon also called Nepotianus and however he is styled, and has given her daughter Aurelia Tausiris in marriage to Aurelius Arsinous son of Tryphon and of Demetria, of the said city, as husband, to whom the said giver brings as the dowry of her said daughter the bride in common gold on the Oxyrhnchite standard a necklace of the kind called maniaces with a stone, weighing without the stone 13 quarters, a brooch(?) with 5 stones set in gold, weighing without the stones 4 quarters, a pair of earrings with 10 pearls, weighing without the pearls 3 quarters, a small ring of half a quarter, and in clothing, of which the value is estimated, a silvery, striped Dalmatian shawl worth 260 drachmae, a white, single tunic, tasseled and striped, worth 160 drachmae, a turquoise-coloured Dalmatian shawl worth 100 drachmae, another Dalmatian shawl, white with purple border, worth 100 drachmae, making a total of her dowry 1 mnaiaion, 4-1/2 quarters in common gold and 620 drachmae in estimated value of clothes, a sum total to which no addition has been made; and questioned concerning the aforesaid dowry by the giver of the bride, Aurelia Thaesis, the bridegroom Aurelius Arsinous acknowledged that he had received the full number at the aforesaid weight and valuation. Wherefore let the parties to the marriage live together blamelessly, observing the duties of marriage, and let the bridegroom supply his wife with all things necessary in proportion to his means. But if—which heaven forbid— owing to disagreement a separation takes place between the

the whole of that room which is south of the staircase, which is ours, in that house, and you shall acquire it for yourselves and you shall administer it and you shall manage it and you shall keep it and it shall be considered as surrendered (so that you may) make a gift of it, surrender it, leave it to your children and those succeeding you. In the same fashion they shall take possession and they shall own and they shall be masters and they shall possess all ownership and all title and possession forever, validly and faultlessly. The price which was agreeable to me and agreed upon between us was three holokottinos of pure gold, of good weight, less a trimesion , and paid in full, i.e., gold nomismata 2 2/3, so that from now on, at once (you have) the administration of all that room for yourselves and those succeeding you. No man acting for me, whether I or brother of mine or near relative or distant relative, shall be able to dispute with you in any fashion about any matter concerning that room, whether against you, you, Severos and Daniel, or your children or your grandchildren or your near relatives or your distant relatives, whether stranger or servant or any one of us on any cause or pretext. Nor shall he be able to sue you in court or out of court, either in city or out of district, because I took and received from you the full price as payment in the manner in which I had agreed with you about it, If one should dare at any time or season, whether through us or through another acting as my agent, to dispute, namely, to sue, about any matter which concerns that room and controverts this deed of sale or any part of it, in the first place he shall not benefit in any way thereby, but he shall be estranged from the holy oath by which he is served. Afterwards he shall pay the fixed penalty of six holokottinos of pure gold and it shall be taken from his own property by the hand of the esteemed magistrate who is acting at that future date. After the payment of the penalty he shall be produced and he shall acknowledge and declare the validity of this binding sale, this which I drew up. For your security and those succeeding you, it is ruling and binding in every place in which it shall be shown. It was read to me, it was agreeable, I requested a scribe to subscribe it for me. I sought some untrustworthy witnesses to attest it for me. I executed it.

St. Shenouda Coptic Newsletter I, Mena, who have been mentioned above, acting as agent for my brothers I sign this sale ..... Athanasios ..... Shenute and also Petrosinos, we sign. +Abraham, the son of the late Daveid, they asked me, I wrote for them at their request. I, Psan, the son of Iohannes, I am [witness] ..... Iohannes.....Abraham...for...

4. Acknowledgment of Debt, stating a simple promissory note in the form of a mortgage contract between individuals (Djeme); Leather Roll, Private collection of W. E. Crum, middle of 8th century AD. Ref. TCLT 10, pp. 80-83

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