Formative Gobbet

Jo Grijpstra - 000
The Queen of the Desert: the Rise and Fall of Palmyras Civilization ( CLAS43230 )
Ted Kaizer

Inscription 28 from Healeys Aramaic Inscriptions and Documents of the

Roman Period is the earliest dated inscription found in Palmyra, dating back to 44
BCE. The inscription commemorates the dedication of a statue, set up by the
priests of Bl for Garmay of the tribe of Bne Khnb. At the time of the
dedication Palmyra was part of the Seleucid Empire, something that is reflected
in this inscription: the dating system used is Seleucid. 1 The inscription was found
in the temple of Bl and was written in the Aramaic dialect spoken in Palmyra.
Note that this inscription was solely written in Aramaic, even though it was at this
point part of the Seleucid Empire. The Roman city has been dubbed the only
publicly bilingual city in the Roman Empire. 2 Yet here we find an inscription
composed solely in Aramaic.
Inscription 28 is not the only inscription written exclusively in Aramaic.
Healeys collection of Palmyreen inscriptions 3 consists out of 17, 8 of which were
exclusively written in Aramaic. These are inscriptions 29 and 38 through 45. Out
of these, only 28 and 29 predate the Roman era. Inscription 29 4, which dates
back to 6/5 BCE, is strikingly similar to inscription 28: this inscription was also
found in the temple of Bl and it is a dedication made, again, by priests. What
interests me about these two inscriptions is that, even though Palmyra was part
of the Seleucid Empire and though the city became known for its bilinguality in
the Roman era, the inscriptions do not include a Greek version. Though religion
and government were two thoroughly intertwined entities in Greek poleis 5, this
does not appear to be the case in Hellenistic Palmyra, nor does this situation
appear to have changed during the Roman era.
Drijvers states that Greek was the official language used by the Seleucid
administration and that it did penetrate into Palmyra is reflected upon by the use
of the Seleucid dating system in the inscription. 6 Yet the two dedications made by
priests in inscriptions 28 and 29 were written up in Aramaic. Going by the,
admittedly rather limited, information given by the inscriptions, it seems that
different languages were used in entirely different spheres of Palmyreen life and
Aramaic appears to remain the language that is preferred in a religious context,
much like Latin is the language associated with military matters. 7 This is also
reflected upon in inscriptions 38 through 42, that do date back to the Roman
period. These were also composed exclusively in Aramaic and were also found in
the context of either the temple of Bl or that of Bl ammon. The key difference
with inscriptions 28 and 29 is that these dedications were made by private
persons, not by priests.

Healey 2009, 144.

Millar 1995, 470.
3
Healey 2009, 144-222.
4
Healey 2009, 145.
5
Bremmer 1999, 2-3.
6
Drijvers 1995, 11.
7
Adams 2003, 156.
2

Word count: 458

Bibliography
Adams, J.N. 2003, Bilingualism and the Latin Language, Cambridge.
Bremmer, J.N. 1999, Greek Religion, Oxford.
Drijvers, H. 1995, Greek and Aramaic in Palmyrene Inscriptions, in: M.J.
Geller/J.C. Greenfeld (ed.), Studia Aramaica, Journal of Semitic Studies
Supplement 4, Oxford, 31-42.
Healey, J.F. 2009, Aramaic Inscriptions and Documents of the Roman Period.
Textbook of Syrian Inscriptions, Oxford.
Millar, F. 1995, The Roman Near East, 31 BC AD 337, Cambridge.