DCLP Transcription [xml]
Introduction
Medical prescriptions. The papyrus consists of six fragments: two bigger pieces (frag. 1: 7 x 11 cm; frag. 2: 3 x 8 cm) and four smaller scraps (frr. 3-6). They were written on the verso of an official letter book and taken from a mummy cartonnage. The contents may have dealt with child-birth: see ἔμβρυον at frag. 5, l. 2 and perhaps χαρίεν at frag. 1 ll. 6, 8 (infra line by line commentary). It is not clear whether the text merely contains receipts, or represents part of a continuous treatise. The fragments are written in an upright book-hand to be dated ca. 260-230 BC.
1[ ̣ ̣ ̣ ̣ ̣] λεπτὰ̣ς̣ ἐγ̣βαλ̣[ -ca.?- ]
[ -ca.?- ] ̣[ ̣ ̣] ̣ ̣ ̣ε̣ις μέλι δὸ̣ς̣ ̣[ -ca.?- ]
[ -ca.?- ] ̣ ̣[ ̣] ̣σσηι ἀνακαθαρεῖ κ̣ ̣ ̣[ ̣ ̣] ̣[ -ca.?- ]
[ -ca.?- ] ̣ ̣[ ̣ ̣] ̣α̣ς̣ σπουδαῖον δὲ καὶ πρὸς υ̣ ̣[ -ca.?- ]
5[ ̣ ̣ ̣ ̣] ̣σιας κυάθι̣ν διδόναι προ[ -ca.?- ]
[ -ca.?- ]ι̣ πίνε̣ι̣ν̣. χα̣ρ̣ίεν δὲ καὶ πρὸς [ -ca.?- ]
[ -ca.?- ] ̣ δ̣ι̣δ̣ό̣ναι π[ίν]ε̣ι̣ν ἢ τῆς̣ [ -ca.?- ]
[ -ca.?- ]νειν. χαρίεν δὲ καὶ πρὸ̣ς [ -ca.?- ]
[ -ca.?- γυναι]κ̣εῖα εἴ τις γυνὴ ὕσ̣τ[ -ca.?- ]
10[ -ca.?- ] π̣νιγμὸς ἢ πε̣ρ̣ὶ̣ τὴν̣ [ -ca.?- ]
[ -ca.?- ] ̣ διδόναι αὐτῆι τ̣α̣[ -ca.?- ]
[ -ca.?- ] νήσ̣τηι πί̣νειν [ -ca.?- ]
[ -ca.?- ] ̣ ̣θα πιστὰ [ -ca.?- ]
-- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- --
1[ -ca.?- ]ο̣σ̣α̣σ̣θ̣[ -ca.?- ]
[ -ca.?- οἷ]στισι συν ̣[ -ca.?- ]
[ -ca.?- ] μὲν οὖν κ̣[ -ca.?- ]
[ -ca.?- ] ̣ ἱερῶι β̣ι̣ ̣[ -ca.?- ]
5[ -ca.?- ] ̣ις καὶ κακ̣[ -ca.?- ]
[ -ca.?- ]στειαις υι[ -ca.?- ]
[ -ca.?- ] ̣εθα εκτ[ -ca.?- ]
[ -ca.?- κ]αταφρονη[ -ca.?- ]
[ -ca.?- ]ονει τι ̣α̣ι[ -ca.?- ]
vac. 1 line
10[ -ca.?- ] ̣πεν ὑπὲ̣[ρ -ca.?- ]
[ -ca.?- ]εως [ -ca.?- ]
-- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- --
1 ̣ ̣τερον πνε[ -ca.?- ]
τὰ σπάσματ̣α [ -ca.?- ]
δὲ καὶ γυναι[κ -ca.?- ]
κα̣τ̣ὰ κ[ -ca.?- ]
-- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- --
1[ -ca.?- ]ερουσι [ -ca.?- ]
[ -ca.?- ] χρήσιμον̣ [ -ca.?- ]
[ -ca.?- ] συνλογι[ -ca.?- ]
[ -ca.?- ]α̣ν ἐν̣χ̣[ -ca.?- ]
-- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- --
1Traces 5 lines
1[ -ca.?- ἐ]γ̣β̣αλεῖν ̣ ̣α̣ ̣ ̣[ -ca.?- ]
[ -ca.?- ]α̣σ̣ι̣ ἔμβρυον ̣ιδη̣[ -ca.?- ]
[ -ca.?- ] ̣ε̣τ̣ι̣ ̣ ̣ιπ ̣[ ̣ ̣ ̣] ̣[ -ca.?- ]
-- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- --
Notes
- Frag. 1, 6.
If χαρίεν (frag. 1, ll. 6, 8) could be taken as a noun and identified with the herb χαρίεν τὸ ἐπονομαζόμενον mentioned in Hp. Mul. 1.78 (8, 186.9-10 L) as useful in assisting delivery, the obstetrical content of the text could be suggested with greater confidence; the position, however, of σπουδαῖον in an identical opening phrase in the previous sentence (fr.1, l.4) makes such an identification doubtful.