Is.M 155

Siglum
Is.M 155
Transliteration
l s²mt bn zḥk bn mʿz bn ms²ʿr w {w}gd s¹fr ʿḏ f ngʿ {w} wgm ʿl- ymlk w ʿl- zḥk w ʿl- mʿz w ʿl- ʿbd w ʿl- ns¹ʾ f wny f wlh ʿl- gs² -h l- ʾbd f h lt w ḏs²r w s²ʿhqm s¹lm l- ḏ s¹ʾr
OCIANA
Translation
By S²mt son of Zḥk son of Mʿz son of Ms²ʿr and he {found} the writing of ʿḏ and so he was sad {and} he grieved for Ymlk and for Zḥk and for Mʿz and for ʿbd and for Ns¹ʾ and so he was depressed and will be distraught with grief for ever on account of his raiding party and so O Lt and Ḏs²r and S²ʿ-h-qm [grant] security to him who leaves intact [or who remains]
OCIANA
Language and Script
Safaitic

Interpretation

Commentary
The text is written across two faces. The w of wgd is under a patch of abrasion as is the w before wgm. The f before wlh seems to carry on the sequential sense of the previous f and I have therefore translated it simply as “and” rather than “and so”. I have taken the sense of the perfect in wlh l- ʾbd to be that of “an act the occurrence of which is so certain that it may be described as having already taken place” (Wright ii 2A) since “he was distraught with grief for ever” makes little sense. It is possible that the five persons for whom he wgm were members of his gs². The author's grief for his raiding party suggests that its members had perished and that only he (or perhaps he and a few others) had survived possibly because they had been left behind with the baggage and exhausted camels (Musil Rwala p. 523). In this case the prayer s¹lm l- ḏ s¹ʾr might refer to the author “the one who is left” rather than as is usually the case to “whoever leaves [the inscription] unharmed”.

Editio Princeps
OCIANA

Name Distinguished
Larger-normal/normal
Technique
Incised
Direction of Script
Curving

Associated Signs
Two sets of 7 lines one above the other in the same technique as M 155 and crossed by M 156.
Associated Remains
None
Associated Inscriptions
M 156 (on the same face as the beginning of M 155); M 157 (on an adjacent face)
Site
Al-ʿĪsāwī, Rif Dimašq Governorate, Syria
Date Found
1996–2003
Current Location
In situ
Subject
Genealogy
Old OCIANA ID
#0026925
Download Images
Updated 16 Sep, 2024 by OCIANA