OCIANA
Online Corpus of the Inscriptions of Ancient North Arabia

WH 1705

Text Information

Siglum
WH 1705
Transliteration
l {ṣ}{w}r bn tmh h- bkrtn
Translation
By {Ṣwr} son of Tmh are the two young she-camels

Interpretation

Apparatus Criticus
WH: h-bkrt for h-bkrtn
Commentary
The n of bkrtn is clear behind the hump of the smaller camel, but in fact this has its tail hanging down suggesting it is a male camel, or possibly prepubescent, since in real life the raised tail is an indication that the she-camel is ready to mate, though it became a convention simply to signify female camels.

Provenance
WH Cairn 21 and this inscription were rediscovered and photographed by the Badia Epigraphic Survey in 2018 and the co-ordinates given are exact.
Original Reading Credit
OCIANA

Associated Signs
7 lines and numerous scratches
Associated Drawings
Two she-camels
Associated Inscriptions
A brief modern Arabic inscription ("Sulayman") has been carved between the two hs. On the stone on which this one is resting there are a few visible letters and many more scratched over. It is difficult to make anything of them.

  • Winnett, F.V. & Harding, G.L. Inscriptions from Fifty Safaitic Cairns. (Near and Middle East Series, 9). Toronto: University of Toronto Press, 1978.
Site
WH Cairn 21, Al-Mafraq Governorate, Jordan
Date Found
1958–1959
Current Location
In situ
Subjects
Drawing of a domestic animal, Genealogy
Script
Safaitic
Old OCIANA ID
#0012552
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