BES19s 77.1

Image © Ahmad Al-Jallad; CC BY
Siglum
BES19s 77.1
Transliteration
l ʿbd bn ys¹mʿl bn ḫdmt bn trml bn s¹ry bn s¹lm w ḥll h- nḫl nwy s¹nt ʿbdt w h lt mḥlt l- {ḏ} {y}ʿwr h- ḫṭṭ w wrd mlḥ f ḏkr f ʾmt f ʿqbt f h lh rwḥ w s² ----
Ahmad Al-Jallad
Translation
By ʿbd son of Ys¹mʿl son of Ḫdmt son of Trml son of S¹ry son of S¹lm and he encamped in this valley while migrating the year of ʿbdt and so, O Lt, may he who would efface these carvings experience a dearth of pasture; and he went to water during Aquarius, then Aries, then Libra, and then Scorpio, so, O Lh, send relief and s²----
Ahmad Al-Jallad
Language and Script
Safaitic 2

Interpretation

Commentary

This inscription provides further information about the Safaitic calendar, documenting four star periods passing through the winter (mlḥ), the season of the later rains (ḏkr) and then the wasmi rains in the fall, beginning with Libra (ʾmt) and into Scorpio (ʿqbt) (Macdonald 1992b; Al-Jallad 2014c, 2016). Drought is conceptualized as the absence of the storm deity Bʿls¹mn, so perhaps our author in desparation has turned to the creator deity Allāh to intervene during this moment of meteorological distress. The inscription is dated to the year of one of the Nabataean kings called ʿbdt (Obodas).

Ahmad Al-Jallad

Editio Princeps
OCIANA
Field Collector
BES19s team

Technique
Incised
Direction of Script
Winding

Associated Drawings
Elaborate scene of a predator pouncing upon a person while a mounted warrior attempts a rescue
Associated Inscriptions

  • Al-Jallad, A. An ancient Arabian zodiac. The constellations in the Safaitic inscriptions, Part I. Arabian Archaeology and Epigraphy 25, 2014: 214-230.
  • Al-Jallad, A. Echoes of the Baal Cycle in a Safaito-Hismaic Inscription. Journal of Ancient Near Eastern Religions 15, 2015: 5-19.
  • Al-Jallad, A. An Ancient Arabian Zodiac. The Constellations in the Safaitic Inscriptions. Part II. Arabian Archaeology and Epigraphy 27, 2016: 84–106.
  • [BES19s] Inscriptions recorded during the summer season of the Badia Epigraphic Survey 2019
  • [MST] Macdonald, M.C.A. The Seasons and Transhumance in the Safaitic Inscriptions. Journal of the Royal Asiatic Society of Great Britain and Ireland 3rd. series, 2, 1992b: 1-11.
Site
Firʿ Wādī al-Ḫuḍarī, Al-Mafraq Governorate, Jordan
Date Found
2019
Current Location
In situ
Subjects
Astronomical, Curse, Deity, Genealogy, Movement, Weather
Download Images
Updated 19 Feb, 2026 by Ahmad Al-Jallad

Cite this Site

Al-Jallad, Ahmad. 'BES19s 77.1.' OCIANA. 19 Feb, 2026. https://ociana.osu.edu/inscriptions/44176. Accessed: 01 Mar, 2026.